Intersport Running

Done in: 2020 / Customer: Intersport Running / Task: Community Management, Content Strategy & Copywriting [ENG] / For: Instagram

The desired objective

With great speed Intersport Running had grown into an Instagram channel designed for real runners. With over 12.000 followers, it encouraged and celebrated runners of all levels, acting as a passionate specialist.

Brand partners

Intersport Running worked closely with various brands such as Nike, Adidas, New Balance, Puma, Brooks, Asics and Saucily. Therefore it was able to create a lot of amazing content, both in-house and all over Europe. Competitions, challenges and giveaways were executed regularly.

Social media strategy

Altogether it was a privilege to have taken over the account from the Iris London-office. And we got off to a great start; were about to launch a fresh new 2020-strategy including innovative community management guidelines. Something that slipped away from attention for too long and which now contained all the more growth potential.

But then reality kicked in……with a minor event going by the name of COVID-19.

The reality

And just like the rest of the world, we (me+team) were suddenly more concerned with other (peoples) agendas than our own. Finding ourselves in between overdelivering to stakeholders and taking into account as much European regulations as we could, testing our creativity big time.

Algorithms

Not to mention, the account had to deal with severe but unavoidable developments in the (online) marketplace. As a result of C-19 it was busier than ever on social media! There was so much to see and to do, and the competition on timelines is huge! Which made the account struggle with organic reach and algorithms, resulting a drop in both impressions and engagement.

Within scope

But even though the outcome was nowhere near what we had in mind, we rolled out a few really nice franchises like ‘Mindful Moments’, ‘Fuel Up Friday’ and ‘workINS’ (via IGTV) by new coaches every week. Originated along the way. Also New Balance gave a green light for a give away, which was fun!

Content versus tone

In Intersport Running’s case, content would sit on the more practical side of the spectrum and the tone had to be both ambitious, sublime and possibly pretentious, but all the more accessible and pragmatic. Tone would mainly come through post copy. Here’s an example:

Not: “We can’t wait for the #BerlinMarathon!”

But: “80 live bands line the route of the #BerlinMarathon, so if you’re out there, ditch those headphones and enjoy the atmosphere.”

The community was built on encouragement through UGC [User Generated Content] and instructional content from influencers, which often seem lofty. But a more human and personable tone kept the assets grounded and open to runners of all abilities.

– – –

By the end of June Intersport unfortunately had to move some of the scope in-house and therefor would no longer have a clear requirement for community management support on an ongoing basis.