It’s just a few minutes before tipoff at a recent Celtics home game, and to find an empty seat at TD Garden, you need to make a dedicated search.

For two fortunate fans who are already settled in, however, the vantage point is about to get a whole lot better.

Peter Stringer , the Celtics’ senior director of interactive media, turns on his smartphone, opens up the Twitter app, and fires off a challenge to the roughly 450,000 followers of @Celtics: He gives his location, then promises that the first person to find him will get an upgrade of two tickets near courtside.

Stringer walks from the parquet floor up to the 300 level, where he is soon greeted by a young couple. They’re savvy enough to know where to find him, and quick - but not savvy enough to not reveal that they’ve won the tickets before and were just waiting for him to arrive. He gives them a voucher but not the upgrade.

A moment later, another fan approaches. His name is Mark Anderson. He is there with his wife, and he asks the winning question: “Are you Peter Stringer?’’ An affirmation later, he has two choice seats and a huge smile.

“It’s a pretty awesome thing for them to do,’’ said Anderson. “Not that I needed another reason to be a Celtics fan.’’

Said Stringer, “It is a good feeling to be able to do that for fans, to help make their experience even more enjoyable.’’

It’s more than just a nice gesture, though - it’s just one of many ways the Celtics use social media in creative ways to connect with fans.

The Celtics have approximately 6.4 million “likes’’ on Facebook, the second-largest following in North American sports behind the Lakers. They were the first NBA team with a Facebook app (“Celtics 3-Point Play’’), and Stringer runs a popular chat during games, hosted by Cover It Live, that has become a community unto itself.