This week we managed the official Twitter account for the very first European Sport Tourism Summit which was held in Thomond Park in Limerick. It was organsied by W2 Consulting based in Limerick headed up by Rugby legend Keith Wood and his business partner Mark O’Connell.

@sporttourismirl had the following account metrics on the morning of the event before we started Tweeting:

Followers = 736

Following = 1,701

Tweets = 602

Photos/Videos = 67

The event started at 9.30am but we started tweeting officially just after 8.30am.

We promoted the official event hashtag #ESTS2014 to generate conversation and measure engagement.

About the Event

Rugby legends Lawrence Dallaglio and Keith Wood in Thomond Park at the European Sport Tourism Summit – Source independent.ie

The inaugural European Sport Tourism Summit provided delegates with insights required to enhance events, destination marketing or realise the potential of sports or locations in this vibrant sector. Sport Tourism visitors spend twice that of a normal tourist according to a report produced by BDO, with the legacy from large scale sports events making destinations more attractive places to do business as evidenced by 35% of people now viewing London as a more attractive place to do business as a result of the 2012 Olympics.

Watch footage from the event here or below.

The Twitter Strategy

The Twitter strategy was as follows:

1. Promote the official hashtag #ESTS2014 hoping to get it trending in Ireland

2. Follow all sponsors, speakers, partners and organisations related to sport and tourism in advance of the event

3. Live tweet from the event to an external audience interested in the theme including media and influencers

4. Engage with and promote attendees at the Summit

5. Measure before and after metrics

Bringing Ireland’s Profile International

It was clear from the outset that the appeal of the speakers would generate international interest in #ESTS2014 and ultimately in Ireland and so it did. Retweets, favourites and mentions from England, Scotland, Wales, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Canada, USA and New Zealand.

So what does it mean to internationalise an event in Ireland on Twitter? Quite simply, this event was harnessing international experience and profile on a social media platform and telling a story. The theme? Ireland can and will do business in the sport tourism sector. We are not too small, we have a track record in sports excellence, customer service and a way of creating something special. This was the message that was transported worldwide from Thomond Park by organisers who have taken the lead in developing the sport tourism sector in Ireland.

In fact one of the key messages from the Summit from a number of international speakers was the power of social media to generate ROI, international profiling, ticket sales and positive relationships for sport tourism events.

# Newsfeed

Here are screenshots of the Twitter conversations.

The Results

#ESTS2014 Trended on Twitter in Ireland

Audience Engagement: 336,488

Impressions, 1,053, 714

Following: 1,778

Followers: 851

Tweets: 941

Photos/Videos: 85