VT Athletics Overhauls Website for New Fan Experience
In conjunction with its website partner SIDEARM Sports, the Virginia Tech athletics department launched a redesigned HokieSports.com Wednesday, taking another step forward in its commitment to fan experience through digital innovation.“Each year, over two million people visit HokieSports.com”, said Brad Wurthman, VT’s Senior Associate Athletics Director for External Operations. “As a department, we are committed to elevating the fan experience, both in-person and digitally. We reevaluated all of our digital touchpoints over the last year and I’m incredibly proud of Kyle Bruce, Damian Salas, Lance Dozier, and the rest of the Digital Strategy and Innovation team who made this digital update possible.”
The redesigned HokieSports.com keeps the athletics department on the cutting edge with an eye on industry trends in eCommerce and content consumption. The site utilizes a streamlined layout to leverage a variety of content while adding tools and features that enhance the overall user experience.
New features to HokieSports.com include:
- A hub for trending topics and important links on both the main home page and sport home pages designed to point users to the most timely and relevant information
- A social media-inspired feature at the top of the main home page designed to further promote important announcements and sports coverage while showcasing high-quality photos, videos, and graphics
- Various modules on both the main home page, sport home pages, schedule, and roster pages encouraging users to subscribe to Tech Athletics emails, make a gift to the Hokie Club, buy tickets to upcoming events, and more
- A reoriented presentation of content on the main home page and sport home pages to a vertical feed encompassing news articles, video highlights, photo galleries, podcast episodes, and more
- A refreshed menu navigation, including the addition of a “Connect” tab that highlights the various ways Tech fans can stay in touch with the Hokies
“We’re very excited about the new features on HokieSports.com. The ‘Moments’ section at the top of the site, which is a first in the collegiate website space, offers a dynamic way for our fans to interact with the site and stay up-to-date with their favorite teams,” said Salas, Senior Director & Webmaster. “As our department content offerings continue to evolve, having a flexible home page will allow us to share a wide range of media, from news articles to podcast interviews and video highlights.”
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Tech Athletics has also enhanced its official HokieSports mobile app, adding mobile ticketing integration and a refreshed platform for Maroon & Orange Memories. The mobile app is available for download on both iOS and Android.
About SIDEARM Sports:
Based out of Syracuse, NY, SIDEARM Sports provides the software and technology that powers website, mobile applications, live stats, social presence, and video streaming for over 850 colleges, universities, and high school sports programs across North America.
