February 9, 2010
Why we care and what motivates us are often two different things.
If you are involved with an NCAA DII athletic program and I told you that I have found a way to bring 1,000 new people to your games who aren’t coming now, you would probably be motivated to listen. If I told you these people would come more than once, that they would attend the games or events of more than one sport, and that they would come because they really care about the student-athletes and the school, I would probably have your undivided attention. If, finally, I told you that these people are not friends or family of your student-athletes and most have probably never had anything to do with your school, you’d likely think it unbelievable.
It is not.
You have many reasons to be motivated to increase attendance at your athletic events. It increases revenue to support the programs, it attracts new students to the school, it encourages the athletes to play better who, in turn, might win more. With more winning would come better recruits and even more winning. The whole school benefits. You would be motivated to do that.
Now, about that “caring” thing…
Most efforts to increase the number of butts in seats are built on THE SCHOOL’S motivations, not the needs and desires of the audience who fills those seats. With this blog, over time, I will provide a lot of specific ideas – and hopefully even more of your stories – about what schools can do to focus on what audiences care about. Give them what they want and need and they will come back and do more.
That said, the 66 words in the final paragraph of this post will be more than enough for someone in a DII school to revolutionize the way they build an audience. Who knows, in a year or maybe 18 months, maybe sooner, there will be a story on this website from a school who does remarkable things just by considering the following solution to better butts in seats:
No, surprise: give them community. Make the college THEIR home court – the place where those who live close to you feel welcomed and included – and you will see the marriage of your motivation with what they care about. Create an atmosphere where the campus feels like the town square and the students are their neighbors, and you will see more, and better butts in your seats.