Hiring for social media isn't easy, as almost anyone in that field can attest, if only because there's got to be a mutual feel/trust/vibe between the company and the individual in that role. Because they're representing what we do to the public. And reacting to what we hear. And reading the room.
So, we hired our daughter.
I know, right?
But it all made so much sense: Dara graduated a couple months from the UNC School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, N.C., she's moving to New York to activate her acting career, she needs the cash to cover the cost of living over there ... and she's more than capable of what we need to have implemented and executed when it comes to social. Meaning, of course, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok and everywhere else that we visit in trying to push people here.
She chases her dream, she pays the bills, and we grow while keeping a family business even further in the family.
Now, as she's repeatedly admonished me of late in bringing this up, she's hardly new to working here. She's handled customer service -- meaning dealing directly with a big percentage of everyone reading this sentence, I dare say -- for several years now, and she's been terrific at it. Which is good because that, too, is a position we'd have an impossible time filling from the outside for all the same reasons delineated above, and she'll be staying on to keep doing that, as well.
If you happen to be on any of these social platforms, by all means, give us a follow, a share, a like, whatever. Every little bit helps so much than most would realize. A post on Facebook, for instance, gets shown to exponentially more people, if it receives a like or a reply. Makes a massive difference.
This, by the way, finally rounds out our staff at least through the winter. We're always looking to get better, at the risk of paraphrasing Ben Cherington -- although we also make actual moves toward that end -- so the future-employment folder's always open for new resumes, but it's not like there's anything active afoot. We've got the right quantity, ideally the right quality, and, unless I screw it up, a plan that'll keep things in motion.
I'm in comments if any questions, as ever.
INSIDE THE WORKS
• Thanks one final time to everyone who either showed for our 10th anniversary celebration, or who sent congrats in some other form. I tried to respond to as many as I could, and I'll apologize here if I missed anyone.
• Can't wait for our custom commenting upgrade to be in place. That's expected before the football season.
• We've launched two new Feeds, one for day-by-day Site Stuff fodder and another for Hot Button, and both would benefit from your feedback on all fronts.
• And speaking of your feedback ... wow, let's start letting it rip on that Steelers Feed, yeah? I had to pretty much bark out at one point from the sideline in Latrobe about how quiet everyone was, even though I could see we had plenty of readership. We're talking about the Steelers here. Let's not tiptoe.
• Everyone loving being ad-free? If you're not there yet, it's only for paying subscribers. If you aren't subscribed yet or if your subscription's expired: This is our subscribe page. From there, make sure you're logged in, tap on the link, and thumb down to the bottom for the SUBSCRIBE button to buy/renew at the monthly or annual level. We also offer discounts, as ever, for student subscriptions and senior subscriptions.
• Grateful that so many of you continue to leave us good reviews on outside platforms. For anyone who hasn't yet, feel free to add your own on our Google listing, our Apple or Spotify podcast channels, our YouTube channels for the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates and, last but not least, our own app, whether it's the Apple or Android version. And again, thank you!
BACK TO BUSINESS
• Our page-view numbers for the past week were 740,821, with 34,254 unique users over the most recent full seven-day span, July 19-25. Our most-read original piece was my Friday Insider about the weekend we launched this venture, at 21,914. Sticking to sports, it was my column on Josh Palacios from PNC Park, at 13,254.
• On the multimedia front, our podcast downloads for the past week were 71,762, and our YouTube video views were 83,042.
• Our company social media accounts are at 55,139 followers on X, 41,044 on Facebook, 31,771 on YouTube, 15,146 on Instagram, 853 on TikTok ... and already 4,843 on the new Threads!
• We make mistakes. If you see one, email: Typos@DKPittsburghSports.com
• We're often asked about our HQ/shop merch being available online, and yes, it's right here. The Downtown shop itself's open Tuesday-Saturday, 12-6 p.m.
• Anything you need, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
• Thanks for reading and, as ever, for your support of this venture.