Atlantic 10 Conference Basketball Marketing: 3 Inspiring Things About #11 Fordham

There's something (or things) that every program does a fantastic job of that we can learn from. In anything you do, if you can find the good in what someone does and do more of that and then avoid what you find to be less effective, you'll end up in a better place.

Thus far our journey through the Atlantic 10 has shown us #14 St Joseph's, #13 La Salle, and #12 Saint Louis.

Let's keep moving.

#11 Fordham

What the program is known for? Fordham doesn't have the same level of prestige as the last 4 squads we've checked out, from a historical basketball point of view. But, that said, they also have seen success -- with 4 trips to the NCAA tourneys (most recently in 1992). They also advanced to the sweet 16 in 1971. That may be a bit ago, but it is success and I see it as the job of the Fordham athletics site to paint the picture that we have new success on the horizon!

Why are they 11th? Fordham needs to be creative as they look for ways to connect. They don't have the history that many other programs have, and as you'll see below some of the pieces are in place.... they just need to be un-buried.

What inspired me about Fordham? (link here)

1. Read up on the Rams with Media Links in the Basketball Section

We saw yesterday that Massachusetts created some impact by bringing in their local sports channel's coverage into the U Mass site. Fordham Athletics scans across the media and finds posts on the Rams from all local sites. They then link those right in here, into the Rams site.

I love the concept. It seems like, as a fan or potential recruit, the more info on the team you can find, the better. And if someone else does the heavy lifting, even better.

My challenge is how do we make this truly amazing? There's lots of ways to increase the impact. Let people sign up for a daily email that gives them everything. Or pump in more than the headline here. Give me more of the story. This has the makings of something special.

2. Fordham Fan Polls of the Week

Who doesn't love a fan poll? I mean it's simple, quick, and you can have a say in the outcome. You participate. I've come across these a few times and think the power is pretty amazing.

That said, this is just the starting point. Can we go a step deeper (or a few steps)? First, give us the immediate results. Let us see who agrees and who disagrees. I am a monster fan of voting mixed with maps, like ESPN does in the image below. I know it's a much more involved way of voting but the visual power is addicting. It makes me want to vote on more things.

3. The Independent Fordham Sports Blog

Blogs are labors of love. Not every school is blessed to have a blog that is detailed, passionate, and active... But Fordham does. The Fordham SportsNet blog (link here) gives you a very detailed look into the Rams.

As you can tell from this image, there's a LOT of information. I am pumped to see Fordham link to an independent blog. To some, that's risky (what if he wrote about something negatively?) But is it really risky? I think aligning yourself to someone who is passionate for what you do is smart and (as you can tell) is the beginnings of something powerful.

What if this wasn't just a link buried in the depths of the hoops site? What if Fordham athletics did something big and partnered with this blog to chronicle the season. To keep the Fordham site fresh. And to bring more fans in? What if they allowed people to visit the Fordham site and sign up for updates on this blog. Would that be crazy? Or would they connect the program in a more meaningful way to more fans?

That's it. Come back tomorrow as we keep moving through the A-10!

Andy