Major League Baseball and Snapchat have teamed to produce weekly content on the social media giant’s site throughout the season. Dubbed “MLB Wednesdays”, the social networking giant will provide a median that will allow both fans and MLB to contribute content capturing the fan experience of professional baseball.
The aim of the partnership is to gather footage from fans and correspondents, package it and release it every Wednesday night. The “stories” are designed to stay up on Snapchat for an entire 24 hours before disappearing, a stark difference from the measly 10 seconds that it takes to see a message evaporate when users are communicating directly.
While other professional leagues, such as the NFL and NBA, have previously produced content that has survived for 24 hours on Snapchat, the American baseball league is the first to provide footage that will appear on a regular basis over a set time period.
The move represents a small shift in direction for Snapchat, who have been famous for their quick dissolving messages between users. The media juggernaut has recently turned to partnerships with other various news outlets as well. Along with MLB, Snapchat have associated themselves with ESPN and CNN, among others.
The series will essentially be a weekly highlight package on Snapchat featuring on-field action and fan clips as they provide a window into what a baseball fan experience entails. Both Snapchat and MLB believe the weekly stories have the potential to garner tens of millions of views every week.
Delving into a partnership with Snapchat, and their nearly 200 million users, is a fantastic way for MLB to reach fans that may not be die-hard baseball fanatics. Snapchat has become one of the most successful social media sites in the world, and associating with them will allow MLB to reach audiences that they may not have been able to touch before. Baseball clearly wants to draw the average fan to the ballpark and this represents a great avenue to accomplish just that.
Additionally, with this deal, MLB has succeeded in incorporating the fans into their marketing ploy. Nothing screams America like buying an overpriced hot dog at a ball game, and now that behind-the-scenes experience, and others like it, can be documented by fans and sent to MLB for the weekly series.
Going to a ball game is a fantastic experience for all fans, especially families. With this partnership, MLB will look to emphasise the experience of catching a game from the stands.
The first MLB “story”, featuring the Washington Nationals vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, debuted on Snapchat’s “live” section on Wednesday, May 13th.
