Saxum|PR

Victory for MSU (and social media)

February 11th, 2010 by Chad Previch. Posted in Entertainment, Industry Expertise

It was the battle of Nike versus Michigan State University fans using the social media powerhouse, Facebook, as their megaphone. At stake was whether MSU would replace its 30-year-old Spartan logo with a redesigned Nike creation.

MSU alums, students and fans became aware that the university planned to change the current logo when a new version was uncovered in January on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site. MSU’s athletics department soon found itself facing angry fans that were fiercely loyal to its current logo.

Fans created a Facebook page, “The Old Spartan Logo.” Within a few weeks, more than 63,000 people had joined. To put that number in perspective, The Oprah Magazine page has less than 7,500 fans. Even beloved basketball coach Tom Izzo became involved when he publicly berated fans opposed to the change, “For all of you out there complaining, shame on you.” (That included yours truly, a 2003 alumnus.)

In the end, the fans on Facebook won. Athletics Director Mark Hollis announced Feb. 5 that MSU’s current logo will not change. Nike will still design new uniforms, bringing all MSU athletic teams into a unified look, but the logo will stay untouched.

The logo war could have ended much worse for MSU. I give credit to Hollis and MSU’s administration for listening to their most important audience- the fans. But credit is also due to the thousands of fans who voiced their opinions.

For us PR folks out there, the lesson learned is obvious. Before social media, my Spartans would almost certainly be taking the field with a new logo on their helmets next football season. But because fans now have immediate access to an unfiltered megaphone in social media, their voices are stronger than ever. With little exception, that’s the way it should be.

Now if only our logo could help us win a bowl game or two.