World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. (WWE) has become a powerful social TV brand in the past year. A little over a decade ago, the organization was struggling for definition as name disputes and corporate restructuring dominated headlines. Today, with the help of social platforms, their broadcast ratings are up. Fans are more passionate than ever, flocking to Twitter, Facebook and their brand new website to discuss fights, engage with the celebrity fighters and build their own personal niche within the community. They even won six Mashable Awards in 2011 including “Digital Company of the Year.”
Monday night’s “WWE’s Raw” topped cable ratings for the night as the popularity continues to surge. The organization has launched a brand new website and Lost Remote spoke with Jason Hoch, Senior Vice President, Digital Operation at WWE about the launch.
Lost Remote: How has social media changed WWE’s TV broadcasts?
Jason Hoch: WWE is a leader in social TV. The creative teams across the company collaborate on unique methods of dramatic storytelling that engage our fans in new and exciting ways. We weave the social experience into our broadcast each and every week – when a Superstar walks into the ring, you’ll find their Twitter handle listed below their name. Dolph Ziggler wears trunks with hashtag #heelziggler on the back. Our announcers engage our fans directly, asking them to join in the conversation on Twitter, Facebook and WWE.com. We deliver exclusive backstage video interviews with our Superstars during and immediately after our shows. Stories don’t end when the broadcast ends, they just continue on our digital platforms.
Our fans have come to expect new and innovative ways for us to weave this story telling into the WWE experience – and social media has become one of the most immediate and interesting methods for our fans to feel like they are just that much closer to their favorite Superstar.
LR: Have you seen a difference in ratings?
JH: The transformation of social media integrated with TV broadcasting has given rise to new social TV ratings guides like Trendrr. And we’re paying attention to those rankings – we use Trendrr data to understand what moments spiked with fans socially. It’s a new type of information we’re using to listen to what our fans really love about the WWE.
LR: What social media agencies/partners do you work with?
JH: WWE recently engaged in a partnership with Digital Royalty, one of the top social media agencies in the country. Together, we’re looking at innovative new approaches in social media. Just wait for this year’s WrestleMania in Miami on April 1, 2012!
LR: How big is the social media team?
JH: With over 57 million Facebook fans and over 20 million Twitter followers, you might expect us to have a huge team dedicated solely to our social media presence.
In fact, we don’t consider any one group of our company our ‘social team.’ All of WWE is part of social media at some level. Our WWE Superstars engage fans directly 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, no matter where they are. Our TV and writing teams create unique methods of integrating these social stories in every show.
We’ll be extending social into more traditional viewing experiences such as our live events later in 2012. Wherever fans go, we want them to be entertained – and allow them to share their amazing experiences with others via social channels.
LR: How did the launch of the site go and who helped develop the technology?
JH: We’ve partnered with Echo to deliver real-time interactivity not just during our live TV broadcasts, but 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For our fans, the experience doesn’t end when the show goes off the air and we’re excited for our fans to have a conversation with us – and each other, about everything WWE.
Just hours after we soft launched the new wwe.com site (no press release) this past Sunday, #newwwecom was trending on Twitter – a true testament to the enthusiasm and passion our fans bring – the best fans in the world. We think it’s an amazing experience, and we hope our fans agree.