A View of the NBA Playoffs Teams Through Facebook Timeline

This is the first time we’ve had an NBA Playoffs with Facebook Timeline and I was pretty giddy to see how teams were going to leverage this space.  Teams have a billboard to tell the story of their team, in that moment, to a passionate fan base.  And, naturally, as a series has its emotional ups and downs, we have the potential to adjust on the go.  I believe that we are on the cusp of a point in time where Facebook Timeline photos are the next generation’s Game Day program…

In the convenience of a photostream, find all 16 teams’ Facebook Timeline images below:

First, the East:

Sixers

male anuses

Knicks

Magic

Hawks

Celtics

Pacers

Heat

Bulls

And now on to the West

Jazz

Mavs

Nuggets

Clippers

Lakers

Thunder

Spurs

What can we take away from this?  It’s clear that this is a monster opportunity to make a visual statement and differentiate your team, which is critical to make sure you establish the right feel.  You can almost feel each team through the visual, can’t you?

Match Images to the Feel of the Team or Moment:  Six teams (Lakers, Nuggets, Thunder, Grizzlies, Pacers, Magic) lead with team-driven images.  Two teams (Mavs, Bulls) lead with fans/stadium images.  Four teams (Sixers, Heat, Hawks, Jazz) elevate key player(s) of the moment.  All can work in the right context.  The key is matching image style to the feel….  and not being afraid to update this image often.

We can empower fans to take our message and run with it.  The Sixers, here make multiple images available for fans to apply to their timelines.

We can put a defined focus on one message.  The Celtics, here, put a bold brand statement forward in a striking and simple way — demanding our attention as fans.  Simplicity is a great tactic.

Advertising changes the vibe:  Two teams bring advertisers into their Timeline image (the Bulls and the Knicks).  This is a dangerous slope to ride.  While it may bring in revenue, it definitely hurts that feel relative to other teams.

What do you think?

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Thanks for reading

andy