Post by 50yardfan on Dec 14, 2010 11:05:33 GMT -5
by Jerry Hewitt - What information is owed to indoor football fans by the team and league they follow when? To say they are owed everything the NFL and its teams offer fans is not reasonable or doable. Man power and budget concerns limit what leagues at the minor league level can afford, but a shortage of both doesn't mean fans can't have a good percentage of what the top pro league offers.
Besides the NFL site I also have looked at the AFL and CFL sites for comparison. Both sites are quite extensive, but the CFL offers fans more and is closer to the NFL site than the AFL one. The AFL is still pretty much basic, closer to the indoor leagues than the NFL, although they tout themselves as being a level above the indoor leagues.
In the minors, it is considered a no-no to have anything controversial on your site, anything which may show the league or any of its teams in a negative light. The NFL and CFL sites do feature articles, opinions and commentary which do not always live up to this positive image idea. The AFL has chosen to go the way of the indoor leagues and only offer official, always positive information.
Putting aside the question of whether anything negative should be on a site or not aside, what should a site at the minor league level include? I think we have the basics: latest press releases, schedules, scores, standings, and stats. Those are the five basics of current information. I think team and league content is a given, but isn't something that needs constant attention or updating.
I personally don't care what a site offers as long as that information is put out in a professional and timely manner. The five basics I mention should be a part of all the leagues' sites and kept up to date. If stats and scores are automatically updated live during a game then staff needs to be available to update that info quickly after a game's conclusion. Scores within minutes and stats definitely with in an hour. Standings need to be updated as games are concluded or at the very least at the end of all games played in a night.
Now we come to the options which a site can include. Options can range from transactions to posting main stream media headlines to even online fantasy games. The option part is just that, optional and shouldn't be expected by fans. These options increase a league or team's workload and shouldn't be undertaken unless they have the man power to follow through. If a league is going to start something, say set up a transaction area, they need to follow through. Not following through is where they run into problems with their fans.
Let's look at options in more depth and see if they could be a part of a league's website without over extending staff and available resources.
Transactions. This should be an easy call. There isn't much manpower or resources required to implement and follow through on this area. Even if it is only updated once a week, it should be an option all leagues adopt.
Mainstream Media Headlines. This is another area that would be very easy to incorporate into a league website. There are some extra man hours required, but they are minimal in my opinion. My belief on why leagues don't do this is that any outside reporting might include something negative.
Chat Rooms. To open chat rooms on any league or team site does require extra man hours as they need to be monitored. I believe in fan involvement and chat rooms have proven to be one way to further involve the fan. Unfortunately this would mean someone working nights for a few hours to monitor chat. One real upside to chat rooms is leagues could invite players or coaches to host, a Q&A type affair.
Fan Forums/Messageboards. Most leagues will not have a fan forum as a part of their site simply because they are worried about what may be posted. I've seen some in the past where all postings had to be approved before they went live and others where negative posts were quickly removed. Like chat rooms, the forum gives leagues an opportunity to further involve the fan. In my opinion if leagues are doing everything they can to do things right they shouldn't be afraid of the occasional negative post or conversation.
Fantasy Games. I'm not up to date on the technical aspects of this area and there may be automated programs available to make fantasy games easier and involve just a minimal amount of man hours. If they are available, I know fans love this type of friendly, away from the games, competition. If not automated I can easily see where leagues just wouldn't have the resources available to handle it. Of course, the games would be impossible without timely, accurate stat keeping, something some leagues still struggle with.
Independent Commentary and Opinions. I repeat, if a league is doing everything they can to do things right, there should be no paranoia about anything negative. But it is that paranoia that keeps most from having any kind of independent reporting. There really isn't any increase or burden on a league's resources in offering up this type of content as it would most likely come from fans who would not expect any form of payment.
I feel that any league with ten or more teams should have the resources to do more than just supply the basics. I have listed six areas of content leagues could look at as optional. Of the six, three really would not require many more league resources than are already in motion. The other three would require an additional expenditure of either money, man power or both.
The one area I have ignored this morning is one most leagues have already adopted: social networking sites. I think the Facebooks, Twitters, and YouTubes are great assets if used properly and not used to take the place of the league website. I feel you have to invent reasons for fans to visit the main website and from what I've seen most post all the news on Facebook or maybe even Twitter which gives fans no reason to ever visit the main site.
In my opinion, Facebook should be used to update fans with what is new on the league site, but not give them the full story. Twitter could be used the same way, but also as a chat room for gameday conversation between fans or to update scores for those with mobile devises that can't access the league site. YouTube gives leagues and teams an inexpensive and simple way to include video on their sites, although there is free and inexpensive software widely available that would meet that end as well.
What a league offers its fans on their websites is up to them. There are the five basics, but beyond those there are other options to engage fans. My gripe is that sometimes leagues start something or allude to fans in one way or another something may be available and then don't follow through. It's no surprise when some look at the indoor football leagues or think of them as less than professional. True professionals actually deliver on promises and if they fall short, tell fans why instead of just being silent.
Besides the NFL site I also have looked at the AFL and CFL sites for comparison. Both sites are quite extensive, but the CFL offers fans more and is closer to the NFL site than the AFL one. The AFL is still pretty much basic, closer to the indoor leagues than the NFL, although they tout themselves as being a level above the indoor leagues.
In the minors, it is considered a no-no to have anything controversial on your site, anything which may show the league or any of its teams in a negative light. The NFL and CFL sites do feature articles, opinions and commentary which do not always live up to this positive image idea. The AFL has chosen to go the way of the indoor leagues and only offer official, always positive information.
Putting aside the question of whether anything negative should be on a site or not aside, what should a site at the minor league level include? I think we have the basics: latest press releases, schedules, scores, standings, and stats. Those are the five basics of current information. I think team and league content is a given, but isn't something that needs constant attention or updating.
I personally don't care what a site offers as long as that information is put out in a professional and timely manner. The five basics I mention should be a part of all the leagues' sites and kept up to date. If stats and scores are automatically updated live during a game then staff needs to be available to update that info quickly after a game's conclusion. Scores within minutes and stats definitely with in an hour. Standings need to be updated as games are concluded or at the very least at the end of all games played in a night.
Now we come to the options which a site can include. Options can range from transactions to posting main stream media headlines to even online fantasy games. The option part is just that, optional and shouldn't be expected by fans. These options increase a league or team's workload and shouldn't be undertaken unless they have the man power to follow through. If a league is going to start something, say set up a transaction area, they need to follow through. Not following through is where they run into problems with their fans.
Let's look at options in more depth and see if they could be a part of a league's website without over extending staff and available resources.
Transactions. This should be an easy call. There isn't much manpower or resources required to implement and follow through on this area. Even if it is only updated once a week, it should be an option all leagues adopt.
Mainstream Media Headlines. This is another area that would be very easy to incorporate into a league website. There are some extra man hours required, but they are minimal in my opinion. My belief on why leagues don't do this is that any outside reporting might include something negative.
Chat Rooms. To open chat rooms on any league or team site does require extra man hours as they need to be monitored. I believe in fan involvement and chat rooms have proven to be one way to further involve the fan. Unfortunately this would mean someone working nights for a few hours to monitor chat. One real upside to chat rooms is leagues could invite players or coaches to host, a Q&A type affair.
Fan Forums/Messageboards. Most leagues will not have a fan forum as a part of their site simply because they are worried about what may be posted. I've seen some in the past where all postings had to be approved before they went live and others where negative posts were quickly removed. Like chat rooms, the forum gives leagues an opportunity to further involve the fan. In my opinion if leagues are doing everything they can to do things right they shouldn't be afraid of the occasional negative post or conversation.
Fantasy Games. I'm not up to date on the technical aspects of this area and there may be automated programs available to make fantasy games easier and involve just a minimal amount of man hours. If they are available, I know fans love this type of friendly, away from the games, competition. If not automated I can easily see where leagues just wouldn't have the resources available to handle it. Of course, the games would be impossible without timely, accurate stat keeping, something some leagues still struggle with.
Independent Commentary and Opinions. I repeat, if a league is doing everything they can to do things right, there should be no paranoia about anything negative. But it is that paranoia that keeps most from having any kind of independent reporting. There really isn't any increase or burden on a league's resources in offering up this type of content as it would most likely come from fans who would not expect any form of payment.
I feel that any league with ten or more teams should have the resources to do more than just supply the basics. I have listed six areas of content leagues could look at as optional. Of the six, three really would not require many more league resources than are already in motion. The other three would require an additional expenditure of either money, man power or both.
The one area I have ignored this morning is one most leagues have already adopted: social networking sites. I think the Facebooks, Twitters, and YouTubes are great assets if used properly and not used to take the place of the league website. I feel you have to invent reasons for fans to visit the main website and from what I've seen most post all the news on Facebook or maybe even Twitter which gives fans no reason to ever visit the main site.
In my opinion, Facebook should be used to update fans with what is new on the league site, but not give them the full story. Twitter could be used the same way, but also as a chat room for gameday conversation between fans or to update scores for those with mobile devises that can't access the league site. YouTube gives leagues and teams an inexpensive and simple way to include video on their sites, although there is free and inexpensive software widely available that would meet that end as well.
What a league offers its fans on their websites is up to them. There are the five basics, but beyond those there are other options to engage fans. My gripe is that sometimes leagues start something or allude to fans in one way or another something may be available and then don't follow through. It's no surprise when some look at the indoor football leagues or think of them as less than professional. True professionals actually deliver on promises and if they fall short, tell fans why instead of just being silent.