It’s no secret that social media is king these days, and Boston College Athletics is doing its best to capitalize on what is becoming the online version of foot traffic. The recent hire of graphic designer Anthony Garro and the addition of Brent Greenberg as a video content creator have put BC’s social media engagement leaps and bounds ahead of where it was at this time last year.
After Chris Lindstrom was selected in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, the BC Football Twitter account saw an uptick in impressions—up to 1.6 million, according to Senior Associate Athletic Director for Communications Jason Baum.
But this April, following AJ Dillon’s selection in the third round of the NFL Draft, that number had jumped to just over 3 million, according to Baum.
Baum said that he and his department attribute that increased digital traffic to a greater emphasis on the creative side of communications, starting with Garro and Greenberg.
In addition to Baum’s full-time staff, he and his department are also always looking for student involvement in the content creation sphere through internships and work-study programs.
Garro began working for BC before ever really stepping foot on the Heights. When he was hired by BC, the University had already shut down due to coronavirus, so all the work he has done so far has been virtual.
He arrives after playing football for the University of Rhode Island, where he later spent a year as a graphic designer.
“Being around a football program for four years obviously taught me a lot about what goes into it as far as recruiting, branding, and that sort of stuff,” Garro said. “So it was kind of a smooth transition for me. … I got familiar with what it takes to build a brand.”
Much of what Garro has been doing since he joined BC’s staff is creating images that BC Athletics publishes on its various social media platforms, including ones that new football recruits can use to announce their commitment to join the Eagles. And with an influx of recruits—10 in the Class of 2021 and one in the Class of 2022 according to 247Sports—Garro’s graphics are popping up all over Twitter.
Though Garro comes from a football background, and much of his work with BC has been related to football, he’s working on improving the online presence of all BC sports.
“As we continue to grow, we’d like to get all athletics on the same page, so it’s a pretty cohesive unit that we have,” Garro said. “You’re able to showcase a sport like softball in the same way as football.”
Greenberg, on the other hand, has been with BC for longer than Garro, after working as a sports information director in 2019 for BC field hockey, softball, track and field, cross country, and sailing. He found his footing with content creating the year prior, though, when he worked with Harvard Athletics in a similar role.
At BC, his main focus has been on creating videos featuring football, hockey, and basketball.
But as live, in-person sports got canceled, BC Athletics began to rely even more heavily on social media, including introducing “Throwback Theater” to replay historic BC football games. What began as just a weekly YouTube series has quickly turned into lots more, thanks to Greenberg and his team.
“We’ve kind of seen how we’re getting alumni involved,” he said. “We started out just showing the games, and we’ve expanded it to the point where we’ve had like a roundtable with alumni, and it’s been cool to bring alumni back into the program.”
Though the shutdown of the University threw a wrench in BC’s scheduled athletic programming, the creative team has been successful in maintaining interest from students and alumni alike.
Featured Image Courtesy of BC Athletics
All Other Images Courtesy of BC Athletics
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