A Man, A Mouse, and a Twitter Account: How Disney Could Step Up Its Social Media Strategy

disney

“You can dream, create, design, and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it requires people to make the dream a reality.” – Walt Disney

It also requires an engaging Twitter strategy.

The suits and imagineers behind Lake Buena Vista, Florida’s Walt Disney World (WDW) take many steps to stay current: attractions are built and updated, Starbucks are popping up everywhere, gluten-free and vegetarian food options have been added aplenty, craft beer selections have grown, and last year they even rolled out the MyMagic+ program, an app-and-wristband combination resulting in some serious online magic.

But what they boast in factory-created fantasy, they lack in thorough social media presence.

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Behind the Tweets with Boston’s Best-Kept Secret, @OnlyInBOS

Twitter user @OnlyInBOS (OIB) is Boston’s best-kept secret. With over 35,000 followers, the self-proclaimed “most relevant digital media influencer” in the city has quickly become one of Boston’s biggest voices, sharing commentary on its best events, food, nightlife and people. But who is behind it all? Hopping from one bar and event to another, there are hundreds of pictures documenting the adventure with nary a manicured nail nor fly-ass Jordans to give us a clue, but the truth is not entirely concealed. OIB took the time to sit down with Metter Media and give us some insight to how it all works.Continue reading

Social Media Tips from @MiddlesexLounge

middlesex lounge

Nate Brown of @middlesexlounge has a lot to do. He’s the face and voice of one of Boston’s hottest bars and lounges that features regular live music and performances – so how does one juggle all of that and not sound like a robot? It’s no easy task, but Brown didn’t make our “Who to Follow” list for nothing! We asked for some advice.

 

 

 

1. Have social media be a part of someone’s job. not an afterthought or addendum to someone’s job. If its a marketing person, it should be one of the main duties.

2. Engage people, even if it’s a Foursquare check-in or you’re hashtagged and not directly communicated with, reply or retweet.

3. Cut down on links. More links away from Twitter make it a pain in the ass, and not all links are worth it clicking away for.

4. Give as much info as possible in 140 characters. Is it an event? Offer the time, date, cover fee, type of music/ artist, etc.

5. Have something worth reading. If you read your own tweets as if they were from a completely unknown account, would you follow that account?

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Social Media Tips from @mcslimjb

Social Media Tips from @mcslimjbMC Slim JB may sound like the name of your newest favorite Boston-based rapper, but in reality, he’s so much cooler than that. The local restaurant critic writes reviews for the Improper Bostonian and plenty other publications, all the while happily tweeting about food, Boston, and more. And if you were wondering, no, he is NOT the cat in his Twitter avatar. Find more Food & Drink Twitter accounts at our list of Who to Follow in Boston!

 

 

 

1. Find a niche and stick to it. Probably 85% of my comments relate to Boston food and drink, with a sprinkling of national food/drink stuff thrown in. That’s why people follow me.

2. Credit your sources, ideally with their Twitter handles. It’s not nice to pirate ideas. Nobody expects you to come up with original content all the time; they follow you because they take some interest in what you find interesting. So point them to cool, funny, interesting stuff besides your own; just tell people where you found it.

3. Go easy with the Tweeting of photos of what you’re eating. That dish might indeed be awesome, but if you’re like me, your smartphone-based photo of it is probably pretty pitiful, and maybe not doing the chef or restaurant such a great favor.

4. Be wary of reporting rumors, especially restaurant closings. False rumors can hurt a business and its workers. Better to be scooped than to get the facts wrong. Nobody cares if you got the news out first, anyway.

5. If you’re going to lob a dart at somebody in the industry for their self-aggrandizement, dumb restaurant name, horrifying marketing campaign, or shady business practices, consider using satire over sanctimony. For most readers, it’s more fun to see a scoundrel or ninny ridiculed than scolded.

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Social Media Tips from @BostonAttitude

86eBott8They say “attitude is everything,” which means that John Romard (aka @BostonAttitude) is everything Boston. Follow his account for tweets about “Living, Working, Playing in Boston!!” BA’s on our “General Boston” Twitter list for Who To Follow on Twitter in Boston, because, well, if you live in Boston, you better be following him!

Here are @BostonAttitude’s tweeting tips:

1. Pick something you know about to talk about.

2. Be consistent with the content in your posts. I tweet about Boston and major events. I try to keep my content honest, accurate and current.

3. Have fun and work with others, it’s not competition.

4. Never give up or get discouraged. You don’t build a following overnight.

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Social Media Tips from @OnTheBar

Social Media Tips from @OnTheBar@OnTheBar is one of the coolest apps to have if you’re living in Boston. It’s also one of the coolest Twitter accounts to follow — you can see where your favorite bartenders are working on any given night and plan your night accordingly. Plus, their tweets are beyond entertaining. Find more Food & Drink Twitter accounts at our list of Who to Follow in Boston!

 

1.  Try to mix it up. We’ll sometimes throw in cultural references that are not immediately related to what we do / our mission. If we’re just, “cocktails, cocktails, cocktails!” all the damn time, we’d be both boring and drunk.

2. Have a sense of humor, but don’t be a jerk. We take a pretty irreverent tone from time to time, but we never (or very, very rarely) speak negatively about a person or thing. Usually if we’re making fun of something, it’s ourselves. People seem to dig that. Corporate accounts are usually stodgy as hell.

3. Talk about others more than yourself. Our job is sorta easy here because we have all these amazing bartenders creating really cool content about what’s happening in their bar or what drinks they’re making, etc. We get to share this via Twitter and Instagram, and we love hyping our community members. Like that @sahildmehta guy. He’s great. You should follow him.

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Social Media Tips from @BriteBoston

Social Media Tips from Sara Steele-Rogers of @BriteBostonSara Steele-Rogers can tell you what’s up in Boston. As the Boston Metro Marketing Manager for @BriteBoston, Steele-Rogers tweets about and attends some of the coolest events in the city. Find more Event Twitter accounts at our list of Who to Follow in Boston!

 

1. Be consistent. Every week, I schedule my tweets on Mondays and Thursdays for the next few days to keep accountable.

2. Eventbrite Boston is all about showcasing Boston’s best events and live experiences, not just events on Eventbrite. Be sure your tweets aren’t 100% self-promotional. Branch out and give others in the community some love, too!

3. Know what your followers are looking for. The Eventbrite community particularly loves free events, as well as fitness, food and drink, and tech events. Also, anything out-of-the-box or super unique is always very popular!

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