Why don't orienteers like social media?

[Sunlit Forres]

Maybe they do, but it just doesn't seem like it.

Take a brilliant Facebook page like Thames Valley Orienteering Club https://www.facebook.com/tvoclub?fref=ts - hardly any interaction despite regular attractive posts and over 600 fans. Compare that with a running club such as Forres Harriers https://www.facebook.com/pages/Forres-Harriers/122353461124493?fref=ts - similar following but a damn sight more interaction.

Thames Valley Harriers has half the following but twice the interest.

Folks, we're missing out on a wonderful opportunity to promote the sport we enjoy, to show visitors to our pages that we're a sociable bunch who like to share our love of the sport with others. Social media only really works when people start engaging by liking, commenting and sharing, so why not visit your club's page and do your bit to help make the work of your publicity person more effective?

[Mrs H]

I dunno! I love Facebook but people can be so frightfully sniffy about it like it's the work of the devil or something. I only started when we went to New Zealand last year to see Young Neville, because it was the most efficient way to keep in touch with my daughters and post pictures etc for the rest of the family, now it's our main way of keeping in touch and everyone else in my small band of friends can take or leave what i put up, but I am enjoying Brian Ward's Urban pages and the Race the Castles pages. People need to understand it's like everything to do with the internet - you use it - you don't let it use you. (Having said that - have you tried 2048? I've got it cracked!)

[mrmoosehead]

Perhaps we are all of an ilk that would rather be out doing stuff than living an artificial life on social media.

It's a great marketing tool for prospective participants when used right, but I suspect that orienteers as a demographic aren't the people who will fawn over social media promotion.

Probably a sweeping generalisation, but in my experience fairly accurate.

[Mrs H]

See what I mean!

[SeanC]

I can only comment on my little corner of the world.

My local running club has quite an active Facebook group. 2 local orienteering clubs have either none, or an inactive page.

But the running club Facebook it's still 20% of the club doing 99% of the messaging.

I think in general the orienteers are there for the orienteering only - our lonely battle with the forest/streets. We might be friendly and interested in chatting about routes, but once we leave the event that's it. Kent Night Cup bucks the trend on this to some extent. With the running club I think more people do it to make friends so are naturally more interested in messaging about random stuff, or running, on Facebook.

I suspect those wanting friendship out of orienteering tend to drift away... possibly to running clubs. Orienteering has the problem of a widely scattered membership, but I don't think we are as supportive of new members as our local running club. They have "couch to 5k" mini-clubs just for newcomers with dedicated coaches. I find it a bit weird to be cheered and congratulated by complete strangers at ParkRun's and 10k races, even though I'm an also ran.

Orienteering could do with more team events, and encourage people to run in pairs or in groups, to make it more "teamy". Even grumpy old men @ DFOK can change their ways at team events. At the Harvester we cheered our runner across the line as he beat the much faster runner from mighty Southdowns in a sprint finish.* Team spirit.

*So they only lapped us once, not twice.

[mrmoosehead]

See what I mean!

I spend my day in front of a computer, trying to beat it into submission. The last thing I want to do outside of work is sit in front of it. I barely have time to get out running/cycling enough as it is.
I see so many people who live their lives vicariously through facebook. If you are one of the lucky ones who can dip in and out without getting dragged in, then all credit to you.
I just prefer to concentrate on the life in front of me, rather than what an old schoolfriend from 30 years ago had for lunch.

(Useful tool for families though, I agree. We all use skype for family in States and Sweden)

[RJ]

If you can use Facebook to promote your club and what is going on then that is great. But you have to work at it. Commercial organisation use it and Twitter to promote themselves but they are quite clear what they want to say.

We have had some success and manage a local audience quite well.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/West-Cumberland-Orienteering-Club/165760043481944

It is something you have to work at though and keep finding new items every week!

[Parkino]

Most orienteers have lived most of their lives without e-mail, let alone smartphones and social media.

[roadrunner]

I'm not sure how much interaction you'd expect on a Facebook page - my orienteering club started one a while ago, and I assumed that (having "liked" it) I'd get a feed of anything that was posted there - but it seems I don't, I only see things posted by the page owner. My running club, by contrast, has a Facebook group, and there's a lot of interaction there - people saying what they've achieved, suggestions for races to do, requests for lifts, social events and so on.

I think that, to get the best out of social media, you need both - as some clubs already have. The page is to let existing and potential new members know all about the club, while the group is the place for interaction.

[andy]

I actually tried to replace our (dead) forum with a facebook group, got vetoed by angry committee members who refused to sign up to facebook in case their details got sold on

[Parkino]

We (DVO) have both Facebook page and group. The page is essentially an extension of the website and the group hosts occasional comment and banter and sharing of items of interest BUT the prevailing view, at least among our most influential members, is that a newsletter, a Yahoo newsgroup and a website are quite enough, thank you very much. And I guess they would be right ... if they were communicating only with themselves.

[BenM]

BOK has a facebook group which gets lots of use, posts and useful info/lift sharing questions etc. I'd say, from my experience, Orienteers do like social media.Getting notifications on Facebook only really works for groups rather than pages, as for pages they want you to pay to "promote" your post as this is what loads of companies etc use for advertising.

[Parkino]

BOKs demographic is both younger and more metropolitan. Same goes for SLOW. Their FB groups are relatively well-used.

[SeanC]

They are also 2 big clubs which gives more chance of getting a critical mass of Facebook users.

Not sure if the urban thing is that relevant. Local running club with active Facebook users is solidly in middle england/semi-rural land. Also the running club is predominantly middle aged: 30 - 55, though I suppose that's 15 years younger than the orienteering clubs.

[Sunlit Forres]

I can see the merit of groups Vs pages, especially when others can post on the page under their own names. BOK's looks pretty well used. I think I'll investigate a "group" for Moravian.

I think where pages come in to their own is when they become the "public face" of an orienteering club. If visitors to the page see a lot of social interaction going on it makes the club appear more attractive. That is certainly the feedback we've had up here, and several people have come to events through seeing them on FB.