Being a social media lead of a sports team is a difficult job. On one hand you’re the voice of an entire fandom, and as such, you are expected to develop a presence that represents them. You’re encouraged to be edgy, but not too edgy. Funny, but not too offensive. Just ask former Houston Rockets social media manager Chad Shanks, who was fired over an edgy emoji tweet aimed at poking fun at a playoff rival. In that case, the Rockets overreacted and his firing left a sour taste in many observers mouth. The entire job is walking on a tightrope.
I may have been the first person in history to be fired due to an emoji combination. That's something, I guess.
— Chad Shanks (@chadjshanks) April 30, 2015
These people for the most part are really good at their jobs. Caity Kauffman, the voice of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s social presence is one of those people. Today, with one tweet, she totally eviscerated a fan who was being snarky.
https://twitter.com/jr22tank/status/598199770474217473
Here’s the response.
@jr22tank Sounds like you might need to get your eyes checked pic.twitter.com/ixaFa3FgyI
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) May 12, 2015
That is a playful, truthful response. Clearly somebody put a lot of effort into coming up with that retort, which is why it’s so great. It’s one of the best response tweets I’ve seen. Here’s my personal favourite.
@conanobrien Clearly, that joke wasn't meant for prime time.
— LA Kings (@LAKings) May 25, 2012
Here’s to NHL teams who like to be snarky on social media. More of that please.
