| Websites for college athletics now exist for nearly every Division I program. Effective websites target distinct audiences and promote the success of the college teams on a number of levels. The digital age, however, continues to bring sweeping changes to how college athletic sites function.;Lehigh University Athletics is currently working on a pilot website that will incorporate a number of new media. Working with AmericanEagle.com, a website consulting company, Lehigh is striving to create a technologically advanced website that will fulfill the needs of each sector of the Lehigh Athletics Department.;This thesis examines the changes in the Lehigh Athletics website over the past ten years. The web page was analyzed over that time period, interviews were done with each of the departmental heads along with other individuals who are highly involved in the process, and other information was gathered to determine what changes were done and why.;Analysis of the website changes, interviews and other data collected reveals that the changes being made are done primarily to directly address the leading audiences and in ways that will be most appealing. Many of the changes involve incorporation of video or video technology and other new media, such as social networking sites. Content and aesthetic appeals are areas undergoing the broadest changes. However, because of a large incorporation of video, plans to make changes in written content and storytelling were identified as well. The goals of these new tools are to promote athletics, develop more following and generate more revenue for the product that is Lehigh Athletics.;Further research should be gathered and surveys done of website users to determine if the changes were successful. Lehigh Athletics has no choice but to continuously evolve its website because of the digital age. But this age brings many possibilities, and research must regularly monitor if Lehighsports.com does indeed make the most of those possibilities. |
