Building a fan base

[jpe747]

I have a problem...I think it is one of the problems to building a fan base.

I have mentioned elsewhere I am bringing 96 middle school students and teachers to the SMU game Saturday. This is a reward for being good students. SMU made it possible by offering the tickets. Thank you SMU. I am paying for gas on two school buses and other needed expenses. Whatever the extras are they will be taken care of.

However, there is nothing else for the group. I cannot find anything else to 'sell' SMU to a group of young kids or develop a fan base from adult teachers. Some of these kids are athletes. Of course I don't know if any will be good enough to play college ball. But, they are students and/or possible future fans. Most of these guys are going to their first SMU game.

For the future, I believe SMU should come up with other possibilities for 'first time' fans besides going to the boulevard. If I were in charge I would find student volunteers (perhaps set up a 'spirit' club) that could show newbies around dorms, some of the athletic facilities such as Moody, D Walker statue, Dallas Hall, etc. and tell anyone SMU's history and why SMU is important to the city of Dallas and the world of education. That would cost SMU virtually nothing and there is so many great things around campus to see and hear about...one of the most beautiful campuses anywhere.

Outside winning more games on the field, what else can SMU do to attract new fans?

[SMUer]

We're so pathetic. Hell yeah they should offer your kids a campus tour...how about some extra Mustang Maniac tshirts...you don't think there are 96 extra?... how lame.

[jpe747]

I thought fan base was a problem. I just ran a few ideas by the board. I felt we could brainstorm ways to increase the fan base. Perhaps the reason we loose fans is because we do not wish to address the problem and just call ourselves words like 'pathetic'.

[Mustangsabu]

I agree. When I was a middle school teacher I brought kids to games at SMU and they really enjoyed it but I felt they didn't really understand where they were. Sure they understood the game they were watching but I don't thing they understood the institution, the life opportunity that was carrying on around them.

[East Coast Mustang]

Did you email Rick Hart and tell him you were bringing 96 kids on campus for the game? It might be a little late now but he's very responsive to fan emails. All of those kids should at Least get an SMU tshirt or something for the game. A tour of dorms might be tough with students in there now but id like to think someone could show them around campus afterwards

[jpe747]

Good idea East Coast...I'll try to contact his office tomorrow. Nonetheless, future thinking could help with the next group.

[CenTXpony]

Thanks for bringing these kids... I've brought a handful of people to the games and most of them have became casual fans or at least started following our program because they enjoyed their time. Young kids are impressionable... a good experience could easily make them at least more aware our existence if not future fans.

[jpe747]

SMUer I didn't mean to sound harsh. SORRY I love your idea of giving out t-shirts. I know you've worked to improve the program. I just don't think we need to be so harsh on ourselves. We are not pathetic. We are moving in the right direction...just too slow for so many of us. We just need to solve our problems and come up with ways to fill our stadiums and elevate our programs. Lets have some more ideas.

[ojaipony]

Wow, that's great. Thanks for doing that! I wish we had ten (or more) just like you.

Some ideas:
- Tour GWB Library.
(are these public school kids? if private religious school, maybe take them to Perkins - they have a beautiful library)
- Take them to meet Peruna! and talk to the handlers.
- Maybe have them meet one/some of the players after the game? I'm sure someone like Rambo would be open to it.
- Have them watch the players' march down the blvd. We still do that right?

I'll keep thinking.

Great work. True pony fan right here.

[SMUer]

I guess I misread your comment. I though you meant that you contact SMU and they said they had nothing to "sell" the University to the kids. That 'a what I was calling pathetic. Yes, please do email Hart to see if he can get you some last minute swag for the students...especially since it 'a a promotional game.

[blackoutpony]

This is awesome. You should get an SMU medal.

As far as things for MIDDLE SCHOOL KIDS to do, why on earth would you want to take them to some library or museum or even a dorm? That's boring. "What's that? Your iphone isn't getting good reception so you can watch of video of a dog chasing it's tail on youtube? But hey, there's a cool painting over there"

My roommate used to tutor English as a second language to a bunch of middle school kids, and every so often a group would come and tour our dorm. The couldn't have seemed less interested."Oh hey, kids, this is my bed where I sleep and here's my desk where I sit and do boring adult stuff and other fun adult stuff we can't talk about."

I think something successful for groups of kids like this would be activities on the blvd before the game. Set up a game of flag football or two hand touch. Hell, you could even break the 96 kids into a bunch of teams and make it a tournament. Stuff like corn hole, Frisbee, or whatever might be a good idea. A huge game of freeze tag (do kids still play that these days??????? (I feel really REALLY old)). Maybe I'm over estimating kids desire to do something active because I'm sure most would rather be running over hookers in GTA V, but at least it's something other than sitting around or looking at books on a shelf

And they really should get you some t-shirts or something. I can only hope that, in today's day and age, that's not impermissible benefits or something.

[East Coast Mustang]

GWB Library is pretty cool but it's closed for government shutdown

[PlanoStang]

Nice work JPE

What ever happened to the UMY (Methodist youth) days we used to have? Churches bused in kids
from all over this half of Texas to see SMU play with free tickets. It helped make me a SMU fan
when I was kid.

[RyanSMU98]

Great that you are doing that. Shoot a note to Purity Ateku ([email protected], or you can call her at 214-768-1319). She is the External Affairs Coordinator and though she might not be able to get you setup with this kind of notice, she definitely is eager to help with any ideas that get potential fans engaged with Athletics. I worked with her on an auction donation last year and she is very responsive and I am sure will see what she can do to help the folks you are bringing get the most out of the experience.

[StallionsModelT]

A poster on the Rutgers Rivals site posted that they were walking around campus and there was literally no one who knew SMU was playing Rutgers tomorrow.

That post, in a nutshell, sums up so many threads we've had on here about how to change the culture at SMU.