Social media has not only changed the way we communicate, but for many, it’s changed the way we do our jobs. No one is immune from its effects, not even coaches.

As a college coach, I’m interested primarily in three groups – our players, our fans and our recruits. Our players constantly use social media (including during post-game speeches by the head coach). Our fans use social media (even during our games). And our recruits use social media (often in the middle of their school day when they should be paying attention to someone like their government teacher).

See, social media is all about storytelling. As a coach, I want my players, fans and recruits not only to know our program’s story, but also to be excited about sharing our story with others. Why wouldn’t I take advantage of this powerful tool to tell my program’s story?

Less than a year ago, our basketball program decided to start consistently employing social media to tell our story, focusing primarily on Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat. Over the course of the season, we found success with our followers not only viewing our content but also sharing our content.

Here are just a few examples of the ways we tell our story through our social media platforms:

ROAD TRIP ANYONE?

As a small program, not a lot of our fans always travel with us. However, we still value their support and want people to feel like they’re a part of our team. Whether it’s a photo from the plane, a video on the bus, or a picture from a morning shoot around, we attempt to bring our fans with us on every road trip.