College Basketball, NBA teams

Hoops Hall of Fame Looks To New Class As A Jumping Off Point…

When the casual sports fan thinks of the Hall of Fame, usually the first thought is baseball’s shrine in Cooperstown, New York. Baseball’s long-time position as “The National Pastime” and its long-standing summer enshrinement weekend have given the Baseball Hall of Fame a recognition position that none of the other “Halls” have been able to challenge. Their extensive learning and outreach programs, traveling exhibits, and the ability to use the area to draw visitors not just to visit the memorabilia but to experience the game has kept the baseball Hall of Fame a “must visit” destination for the American sports fan. The Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio has started to take a page from baseball’s book, establishing a consistent enshrinement time and other festival-like events to draw fans and brands, but the effort still cannot challenge the spot that Cooperstown holds.

Now basketball is making its move to carve its own tradition, build brand and draw fans. This coming week, the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts will use one of its greatest enshrinement classes…led by Michael Jordan, John Stockton and David Robinson…to take another big step in its re-branding efforts to become a central stop for casual fans and hoops junkies, like its baseball cousin is in its sport. Now while Springfield is not necessarily on the “must see” list of many American cities, its accessibility by interstate and proximity to several major metropolitan areas, not to mention the lure and popularity of hoops, gives it a great opportunity to grow and draw. Recent moves by the Hall, including its expansion, new sponsor activation programs and a push to make the hall a bigger part of regional education programs for kids, all will help grow elevate the brand beyond its physical plant. The redevelopment of the area, which includes a refurbished arena for events and the media attention that could potentially come with a new D-league team, will also give the Hall the potential to connect with a larger audience. While all those pieces will help, maximizing and then developing the exposure that will come with next week’s inductions will be a key part of brand growth as well. The large amount of media and fans who will flock to Springfield this coming week will be the Hall’s best emissaries of their message to a larger audience, and then taking that message to new partners through digital programs and partnerships with NBA teams, potentially colleges and youth groups, will be another big step. The physical destination for a fan does generate tourism dollars, but building the Hall beyond its walls, which can also entice others to travel and see and experience more of the building and its history and exhibits, is perhaps the biggest challenge and its opportunity. Value added programs, along with all the “stuff” that can travel for people to experience can move the Hoops Hall’s presence, stature and brand from being less of a long shot and more of a layup for marketers, fans, and new partners.