The League: The Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) is a national organization of non-NCAA, college lacrosse programs. There are currently 213 teams across ten conferences in the US and Canada. The vast majority of these programs are not institutionalized, varsity programs. As a result, many of these programs are largely student-led.
The Site: mclaDNA is a resource for administrative leaders of MCLA programs at all levels. The idea behind the site is simply to help unite and improve the league as a whole. mclaDNA provides a platform for collaboration and shared growth.
History: mclaDNA was launched in December, 2010 by three Grove City Lacrosse athletes who shared a vision for improving the league by helping programs grow. The site’s content is built around the mclaDNA Core, “the fundamental structure upon which you build a strong lacrosse program.” They have identified six vital elements: Management, Apparel, Network, Social Media, Fundraising, and Budgeting.
Success: mclaDNA has had significant success in its first two months of existence because it is built around providing relevant, helpful content to its target audience. Leadership turnover happens quickly in a student-led college lacrosse environment, and, as a result, sustainable success is a rarity in the league. mclaDNA has been able to effectively engage people around the league because they are helping to solve a pain that is prevalent in many programs.
Takeaway Points: There are a couple of key things about the site’s content that make mclaDNA successful:
- Audience-focused. Everything about the site is aimed at developing lacrosse programs. Many of the lessons are applicable elsewhere, but the content is focused on meeting the needs of growing MCLA teams.
- Authentic. Posts are about real lessons learned from real experiences. Not all successes, but real, down-to-earth, practical advice based on experiential learning.
- Quality. The authors are neither English majors nor professional lacrosse administrators. But they’re putting forth the effort to craft quality content that is worth the time it takes to read. It’s not perfect, but it is quality.
- Consistent. mclaDNA is posting new content on an almost daily basis. They are committed to constantly developing content and improving the site and the league. Many organizations create a website, then get lazy with the content. mclaDNA is doing it right.
Bottom line: pay attention to the individuals and organizations who are doing content development well. Take a page from their book and start investing in meeting the needs of your audience. Don’t be afraid to fail, adopt a Ready, Fire, Aim approach, continue to learn, constantly strive to improve, and, in the words of Nike, just do it!
Leave a comment and let me know what you think of mclaDNA, this post, or others who are doing a great job with content!
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