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ARU needs to embrace social media

Roar Guru
2nd December, 2009
17

Browsing through Wikipedia, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and other communication media, I noticed the lack of dedicated new media channels. Could this be a missing link between the public and Australian Rugby?

I think so.

One of the main problems found in the Brand Health Index report for rugby recently published was the lack of interest formed by the rules not being clear: least passion, least grassroots orientated image, and least social.

These problems, no doubt, may also extend from the elite image of rugby that has existed for the past 100 years. Social media, however, can help fix many of these problems by opening up opinion, enrollment, grassroots development, and creating passion from these factors.

These factors can be seen from a social point of view in Facebook (or even The Roar), where opinions can be openly discussed, every person can have their personal and private, but public space and ideas can be clarified.

We have seen in modern corporate affairs and advertising that new media has become a central part of the business and individual communication process.

Unfortunately, the ARU (and its associate and member unions) has not made this transition. Sure, they do have feeds and Fan Pages, but these are usually linked, impersonal feeds of the published news articles released to the Associated Press.

I suggest the ARU dedicate time, people and money towards personal communication through the internet, opening up the rules to people interested in the game. Furthermore, to whoever creates and services the rugbynet sites, I suggest that the ARU work closely to create a Facebook of rugby clubs.

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It’s time that rugby became more open and social.

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