SBS creates social media team
SBS has become Australia’s first TV network to create a team dedicated to building social networking communities around its programming.
SBS today announced the creation of its three person engagement marketing team, tasked with “providing a better synergy between current direct marketing initiatives and new social media activities such as Facebook and Twitter”.
Convergent media specialist Aisha Hillary (@superfabulous, pictured right) joins SBS from a previous advisory role., while CRM specialist Andy Miller (pictured left) joins SBS from the ABC’s Triple J, where he managed digital marketing initiatives including growing the broadcaster’s Facebook community from 3,000 to 70,000 in under one year.
The new division will be led by Ellis Neil (pictured centre), communications manager – engagement.
SBS marketing director Jacquie Riddell said: “Direct marketing and new and social media channels are critical tools for establishing better connections with our sophisticated and diverse audiences. Traditional audiences are joining Twitter to continue the debate begun on television.”
Linkedin
Nice shirt Andy.
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Can I just say awesome.
I know Andy well and he’s a smart guy – I think he’ll be a great asset in that role. It’s also great that a traditional, mainstream broadcast outfit understand the massive benefit of plugging their existing quality content into communities through deep social engagement.
Wouldn’t it be great if all TV networks understood that?
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Andy you crazy Mofo, nice work
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Can I just say WTF?
SBS is primarily taxpayer-funded, sufficiently so that it went crying poor to the Govt (remember the station’s own line about being like Oliver with a begging bowl?) before the budget, and then howled at how little it got and how it would need to cut back all sorts of programming and initiatives and services.
So how on earth can poor little SBS afford to run a team of three, that’s right, THREE staff for an exercise in what can only be described as a “Web 2.0 wank”, aka its “engagement marketing team”?
Now is the time to attend to your basics and core content and get those right, SBS.
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Unbelievable waste of money. Social media needs to be used by the people MAKING the TV, ie the shows, the regular staff, yes even the marketing director. Hiring (super nerdy) staff to do is is super lame.
Oh, and the new logo sucks too.
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Andy Miller is one of the most exciting young creatives/creators around.
Check his history: Wolfgang, Gutter Club, Triple J et al. Lucky SBS to have him on board.
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This is awesome, best of luck SBS!
Harry & Jack
It’s a realistic fact that organisations need to hire these kinds of people to not only engage with the social media space themselves, but help upskill their co-workers and help in driving change in the organisation.
Hopefully producers, directors & actors will take some learnings onboard and it wont be isolated to these three.
If media organisations don’t innovate, and we’re seeing this all over the world, their current business models cease to work and everyone in them loses their jobs.
Best of luck to the three of you!
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Good work SBS! You are at the forefront of the new corporate online marketing planning. This is the new playground for advertising and promotion. Most companies, big and small will be needing similar teams in the near future.
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How exciting can’t wait to follow what’s happening – love my SBS and love the innovation SBS offers agency clients (which in return means we spend money with SBS in advertising and mainly online!)
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Congrats guys – if you can help move TV from cognitive heat sink to something driving some socially useful, then I’m happy for my tax dollars to be spent that way.
Clay Shirky gave a great presentation about this …
http://www.shirky.com/herecome.....mouse.html
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