[dwolfson20]

As a sports fan, I wonder what's specific about the sports industry in this analysis? Vanity metrics are an issue for any business with a digital presence.

Maybe left unsaid is the idea that sports organizations are used to relying on numbers to assess on-field ability, and it now permeates their social marketing strategies as well? Still, this is a mistake I've seen many businesses in plenty of far-flung industries make.

[MaxWendkos]

You're right - this isn't specific about the sports industry. However, sports properties do tend to be a bit behind the rest of the business world when it comes to understanding and successfully adopting new media. It's a shame, because they're playing on such fertile groups. Few brands are so lucky to have such a captive and engaged audience.

This article was targeted at the sports industry because a) I'm working on a sports startup and b) it was written for SportsNetworker - a sports business blog.

Is there an e-mail address I can reach you at?

[ddw]

I know, I was hoping that this would start a discussion about sabermetrics on HN!