Race directors, how important is social media to your race?

Ok, that's a silly question.

Maybe a better question is this: How are you using social media to build a community around your race?

It’s easy to think about social media primarily as a promotional tool. Registration opens, so you post about it. Prices increase next week, so you remind everyone. You announce sponsors, share course maps, post countdowns, and eventually flood your feed with photos and videos from race weekend.

All of those things have their place and indeed are important.

But social media can do something much more valuable for your race. It can help you build relationships with the people you eventually want to show up.

And that starts with engagement.

Sometimes it's hard to admit that a gravel bike race is not going to save a rural town. Communities that have experienced decades of population loss, industry changes, declining tax bases, or fewer local businesses are dealing with challenges far more complicated than anything a cycling event can solve.