Going Social at the 2014 MasterCard Memorial Cup - How We Did It and What We Learned

Eight high-pressure hockey games, over 60 complementary events, and thousands of visitors, fans, and locals down to soak up the atmosphere of a 10-day celebration of our national sport, our Knights, and the City of London.

The only question? How can one person be everywhere and do everything?

You can't. And that's where the 2014 MasterCard Memorial Cup Social Media Team tried to help capture those essential moments.

As we mentioned earlier, Digital Echidna was proud to serve as the Social Media Headquarters for the event. The party's over, the tents have been packed and folded away, and the eyes of the hockey world have moved on.

We had a great time, yes. But most importantly, we learned a lot which can be applied to upcoming large-scale events. Here are some key take-aways – our Great 'Ates' if you will:

Co-ordinate

It's great to have a dedicated, enthusiastic team. But if there's no rhyme or reason to what they're doing, it's a waste. There were a lot of events running and to ensure maximum coverage, we had to develop and adhere to a strict schedule.

Well in advance of the event, we had a list of all the activities, the time frames, and the content goals we wanted for each. And from there we assigned team members to cover. To use a hockey analogy, we were able to change on the fly, roll all our lines, and ensure that our team was always in the right place.

Designate

As important as knowing where one should go may be, understanding what one should be doing once he or she gets there is equally as vital. At the beginning of this process we outlined three key roles and actions each should take.

What this allowed for was not just better coverage, but it prevented duplication of effort and confusion. We defined three roles:

• Customer Service – we knew there would be questions from visitors to the venues, so this team was tasked with providing timely, if not real-time, answers to questions people may have (schedules, locations, events, etc.);
• Engagement – responsible for visitor engagement, contest management, and sponsor support. This team would monitor the channels to watch for interesting posts and then engage with them – a re-tweet or @comment, for example. They also needed to promote the contests that were happening and support the event's marketing and sponsor efforts by ensuring key messages and posts appeared; and
• Onsite – This part of the team was responsible for documenting the events as they were happening through the creation and posting of content to social channels. They were kind of the event's eyes and ears for those unable to attend.

Segregate

There was a lot of information out there being consumed by a diverse audience. It would be easy to be overwhelmed and miss important items.

We also were aware that some people were just interested in the party and didn't care about the on-ice action. Conversely, some people were all about the games and not as interested in the beer tent concerts or Convent Market activities. So we adhered to two key hashtags to ensure all messaging was aligned.

• #wearehockey was designed to promote all the ancillary, off-ice action. The team would use this hashtag to talk about the concerts, the road show, and all the action happening outside of the Budweiser Gardens.
• #mcmemorialcup – This tag was applied only to the on-ice action. Team news, updates, game action – if you wanted to know what was going on between the whistles (or within the four walls of the Budweiser Gardens), this was the hashtag you followed.

Celebrate

We were a team, but a team of volunteers. We were people who came together because of our love of the game and a desire to support a really cool event. It wasn't a job – and we worked hard to never make it feel that way.

Of course, there was the volunteer appreciation event at the conclusion of the tournament, but more importantly we strove to create an atmosphere of collaboration and fun.

Anticipate

So where do we go from here? Well, we'll get together, talk about what went well and what needs work. We'll learn lessons and be ready for the next event – whether that's a sporting tournament, a celebration of music, or any other festival. London knows how to throw a party – and we know, better than ever, how to ensure you don't miss a thing!

Share your thoughts on the Memorial Cup social efforts. We'd love to read your opinions and learn from you.