4204 Final Write-Up Fox SportsTime Ohio

Ever since being launched by Fox Sports Ohio, SportsTime Ohio has really gained ground with

regards to gaining the television broadcast rights for famous Major League Baseball teams, such

as The Cleveland Indians. This has been an overall good decision for the television network, as

many Americans consider baseball to be a national pastime, and enjoy watching baseball.

However, recently, an issue has been brought up. As famous as Major League Baseball is, it is

mainly only attracting viewers above the age of 50, with the average viewer watching the World

Series being 54 years old. Evidently, many viewers within the millennial generation are watching

baseball anymore.

In order to figure out how to regenerate viewer interest and interaction amongst the

younger consumers, our team has developed a comprehensive marketing strategy which we feel

would not only increase viewership of baseball games on broadcast television, but also, generate

interaction and communication amongst spectators at the games themselves, therefore increasing

viewership of the Cleveland Indian games two-fold. Our comprehensive strategy will incorporate

viewer interaction, social media interaction, contest-like elements, all topped with a little

sprinkling of nostalgia. In this comprehensive marketing plan, we have provided step-by-step

details about what our strategy entails.

A. Historical Context

Television networks focusing on sports have experienced progressive growth with regards to

viewership as well as expansion in sporting coverage over the course of its eighty-year history.

The United States aired its first TV broadcast in 1939, when NBC showed a baseball game

between Columbia and Princeton. Since then, they have expanded over different media forums,

and have included a multitude of different sports. In the United States, national and local media

both serve major roles in sports broadcasting. Depending on the league and event, telecasts have

often been shown live on network television, and are nationally available on cable channels

(such as ESPN or Fox Sports). In some leagues, as seen with the NHL and the NBA, events have

been primarily shown by regional sports networks groups, such as Fox Sports Networks. These

are networks that air telecasts for teams of local interest, which are usually only carried within

the relevant market. This is the case with Fox SportsTime Ohio covering Indians baseball games.

Fox SportsTime Ohio assumed the regional cable television rights to Major League Baseball

games involving the Indians from Fox Sports Ohio, which had served as the exclusive local

broadcaster of the Indians from 2002 to 2005. During that time it was majority-owned by

Cablevision Systems Corporation until an asset trade with then-Fox Sports Net parent News

Corporation.

B. Current Context

Industry Analysis

Fox SportsTime Ohio is competing in the sporting television network industry. They want to

attract consumers to the actual field to watch Indians baseball games, engage them, and as a

result, ultimately increase viewership on their television network. Within these two industries,

television networks and sporting venues, there are a lot of options for customers to consider. For

instance, individuals must determine which network to view the game for at-home viewing, or

whether or not they prefer to watch the game in person. Instead of watching a game at home or in

the stadium, individuals may alternatively choose other entertainment options entirely. They may

prefer to go to the movies, shopping, dining, or to a concert. The following is a Porters five

forces industry analysis for the sporting television network industry. What we found was that

both of these industries are very tough to tap into due to the large number of substitutes, and

intense rivalry. Competitors have to be extremely relevant, innovative, and have a great value

proposition in order to be successful in this industry.

Although we are looking at the television broadcast industry, it is worthy to note that this is a

subsector of the entertainment industry. As we look at what Fox SportsTime Ohio is trying to

accomplish, we notice that we are not only dealing with their television network segment of the

entertainment industry, but also the live sports viewing segment of the entertainment industry.

This is how we can break down these segments:

As it can be seen in this chart, within the entire entertainment segment, we are taking a look at

sports. The particular sport we are taking a look at is baseball, with the team we are focusing on

being the Cleveland Indians. The Cleveland Indians can either be viewed on the Progressive

Field, or on Fox SportsTime Ohios television network.

Entertainment

Sports

Baseball

Television Network On-field Viewing

Cleveland Indians

A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis was completed to analyze

the internal and external situations for the on-field viewing specifically.

Strengths

o Being able to watch game right in

person, live.

o Extra features available at the game,

including booths, food, etc.

o Game as a forum to hang out with

friends.

Opportunities

o Bring back the interactive element.

o Implement photo booths, and other

features.

o Increase viewership on the

television network by creating

connections with the interactive

features present in game.

Weaknesses

o Games might be too long, causing

boredom among viewers.

o Sitting down in one area and not

being able to move around may be

struggle.

o No one to go to games with or

participate interactively with the

game.

Threats

o People might rather watch sports

through other forums, including

internet streaming, or cable

network.

o Consumers may prefer other forms

of entertainment in general,

including movies, concerts, etc.

Market & Category Analysis

The market we are looking at is within consumer entertainment. Within Ohio specifically, the

market includes: TWC SportsChannel, West Ohio Sports Networks, Fox Sports Ohio, and

SportsTime Ohio, among other regional sporting networks. These are major forums through

which people view sports in the Ohio area. The major markets of consumer entertainment are in

highly populated areas of Ohio including Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Columbus.

The category is smaller than the market. In this case, the category would be regional television

broadcast channels, especially these channels in the Midwest/Ohio region.

Competitor Analysis

Based on this cross analysis we were able to find out that on average most people chose certain

sporting television networks mainly due to simply being aware of that television network. What

was really interesting was that ESPN was the only real competitor in the sporting television

network industry. Many of the other sporting networks virtually posed no threats to Fox

SportsTime Ohio. From the survey results, it was determined that most people chose ESPN as

their preferred sporting network. 44% of respondents choose this network simply due to brand

awareness. Additionally, however, we also saw that ESPN had comparably higher visual quality

of game coverage than other sporting networks listed. Also, many respondents chose ESPN

because they provided extra information during the viewing of the game as well as special

coverage of the teams and the sports.

It is important to note that many of these competitors can fall into two tiers of sporting television

networks:

1. National Television Broadcasts (ESPN, NBC Sports, ABC Sports)

2. Regional Television Broadcasts (TWC SportsChannel, West Ohio Sports Networks)

ESPN was indicated as a number one sports channel as it took 64% of preference from our

sample population. ESPN is a U.S. based worldwide sports cable and satellite television channel

leader. The channel focuses on live and recorded event telecasts, sports news and talk shows, and

other original programming. As of 2015, ESPN is available to approximately 94,396,000 paid

television households and broadcasts in more than 200 countries. The channel is aiming for

bright, ambitious, and young atmosphere and currently owning almost a 20% interest in The

Sports Network.

A second competitor, NBC Sports, ranked after Fox Sports Time Ohio, took preference by 6% of

respondents. NBC Sports is an American digital cable and satellite television channel that

launched on July 1, 1995. The channel was dedicated to programming primarily involving

fishing, hunting, outdoor adventure programs, and outdoor sports. By the turn of the 21st

century, NBC Sports began covering more mainstream sporting events, and as of 2015, NBCSN

is available to approximately 81,578,000 pay television households in the United States. The

channel brings together the best in media and technology and driving innovation to create the

worlds best media and online experiences.

Customers Analysis

Sports Time Ohios most common viewers are male and typically between the ages of 55 and

older. In order to further define the target customer, weve come up with an original customer

value strategy.

Original Customer Value Strategy

Who: While the target customer isnt a definitive, cut-and-dry age group, Fox SportsTime Ohio

should definitely expand its viewership to all ages. They already have many viewers in the 55+

age group, so that is not a demographic they need to be focusing their research and efforts on.

However, the younger demographic, especially consisting of teenagers and young adults in

college (the millennials) generally do not watch Fox SportsTime Ohio. Therefore, they should

try to figure out how they can tap into this demographic so that their average viewer is in their

thirties.

What: Obviously, Fox SportsTime Ohios biggest selling point, or competitive advantage is the

fact that they have rights to, and air all the Cleveland Indians games, every season. Since it is not

possible to change the sport of baseball to make it more interesting, or economical to have

different sports be featured at the same rate, we feel the best way for SportsTime Ohio to attract

viewers is to have interactive features and promotional events that viewers could engage in when

theyre not sitting down, watching the game.

Why: The reason this would be the ideal strategy to generate more viewers is because people

want to be able interact with each other at a game, and have something to actually do than just

watch the game. According to our survey results, about 48% of our respondents stated that

having more promotional efforts would make them want to attend a game.

The strategy is intended to target the millennial segment of Cleveland Indian fans. The

promotions are meant to attract true followers of the sport along with the not-so-avid baseball

fans and attendees of the games. Research suggested that brand awareness was paramount in

deciding what network to watch. As it stands, many cited ESPN as the most recognizable

network. The strategy is intended to shift the brand associated with watching baseball, but

especially the Cleveland Indians, to SportsTime Ohio. On-site activation of the photobooth will

create the necessary familiarity with SportsTime versus any other station.

Millennials are highly active on social media platforms. One strategy is aimed at

translating this generations affinity for Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook into a method of

promoting SportsTime Ohio. Young people enjoy sharing with their friends what events they go

to, where they are, and showing everyone what a good time they are having. The big idea is that

because something like a baseball card is different and unique it will inspire fans to share it with

friends. The incentive beyond simply letting the social media community see the baseball card

content is the chance to win prizes for doing so. The prizes are enticing and worth the effort of

posting to social media.

The final and most imperative part of the strategy is to link at-game experience with at-

home watching and viewership. Showing the photos throughout the live broadcast of an Indians

game adds an aspect of excitement to a game that some consider to be slow paced and potentially

a little boring. It will encourage not simply leaving the game on, but a more engaged form of

viewership.

The millennials are the main focus but a further advantage of the strategy is that it attracts

all ages. Youths love photos just as much as the millennial generation, and the nostalgia of old

trading cards appeals to the older demographic.

What: PasTIME Pics is a photo booth provided by SportsTime Ohio that allows individuals at

the game to partake in the opportunity of capturing special game-day moments. Unlike

traditional photo booths, pictures will be printed and placed onto predesigned baseball cards that

can be pocketed upon departure. The pictures taken on the site will be printed on stickers for ease

of application and cost efficiency. In addition to a physical takeaway, PasTIME Pics allows for

the chance to win a prize offering for those who share their photo with social media. Any

individual who visits the booth for a snapshot has the opportunity to be displayed on television

showing or the big screen. These additional features are incentives to increase social media

traffic, brand awareness, and ultimately, viewership.

Where: The photo booth will be set up in the SportsTime Ohio booth located in the newly

constructed bar in the Indians Stadium.

When: The photo booth will be available during the games of the 2015 baseball season,

particularly Friday and Saturday evenings. Studies have shown that 17% of all likes, comments,

and shares are on Fridays, which is higher than any other day of the week. This gives incentive to

make the booth available on these increased media traffic days.

How: In order to allow PasTIME Pics to work in an efficient and cost effective way, hiring an

off-site source has been our recommendation (as discussed in the proposed marketing budget).

To reiterate, a company called Framester will provide all components or assistance necessary to

complete the on-site activation. This ranges from required labor, to the booth and backdrops, to

the physical picture taking, and to the final takeaway product. This photo booth is intended to

take two hours to set up and one hour to tear down. More specifically, Framester will provide

assistance to outsource the template card, but the picture sticker itself will be provided by them.

Tactic 1: Strategic Card Design

What: The takeaway baseball card is designed strategically in terms of both picture and

informational content. In preparing the card, a basic, non-distracting backdrop is

formulated. This is designed to eliminate clutter and to allow the more essential content

to stand out (i.e. both the Indians and SportsTime Ohio logos and promotions). A blank

space, required for the picture to be inserted at the game, is placed in the center. This

allows for the stick on print to be easily and smoothly applied. Furthermore, the card is

designed to appear as authentic as possible. A normal baseball card is 3.5 x 2.5, which

makes PasTIME Pics cards marginally larger. This is required to fully display

compelling visuals and other necessary information.

Where: When the individual card designs are created, prints to have available at the

game will be made from an outsourced company given by Framester. A company like

Fedex, as was used in this marketing challenge, may also be used, but perhaps less

efficiently. When considering where, it was important to take quality and cost into

consideration.

When: Card designs should be made and printed prior to the start of any game, or the

start of each single, double, triple series.

Front

Back

Tactic 2: Promotions on Cards

What: The pre-printed cards are designed in such a way to include not only a fun photo,

but also promotions. Specifically, the baseball card includes both the Indians and

SportsTime Ohio logos. The Indians schedule is included on the back, only two months

at a time for readability. These will change with the three separate series of activation

(discussed below). Furthermore, the District Ticket, the Indians ticket offer for

admission and a free drink for a total of $13 is also displayed on the card. Note the

SportsTime Ohio logo is displayed on both the front and back in hopes of increasing

awareness with the brand. Lastly, no co-advertising, such as neighboring bars, is included

on the card because the primary focus and attention needed to be geared towards

SportsTime Ohio.

Where: The promotions on the card will be located on both the front and back. This is

done so that not only the individual receiving it has a lower opportunity of missing them

but also so that more than one promotional offer/brand can be displayed.

When: These promotions should be included in the card design thus before the standard

card is printed. Because only two months will be provided on the card during each of the

three series the schedule must be changed before the start of each one. Furthermore,

promotional offers may be updated whenever desired or necessary.

What: Although the baseball cards are available to ball goers throughout the entire

season, there is variation in both how the card appears and what the card offers over the

three different periods. These are called the single, double, and triple series of activation

(as mentioned above when discussing the changing of schedules). The single will be

offered during the first two months of the season, double the next two, and triple the

remainder of the season. With each changing series the background options and props for

the photos will vary as well as the grand slam prize offering (described below).

Where: Collection of these 3 collectible cards will take place on-site at the photo booth

in the stadium.

When: These occur with the breakdown of each of the series, meaning every two months

of the season with October being included as the third month in the triple series

What: Those who post their picture or baseball card on social media with the hashtag

SportsTimeOH will be entered to win a Grand Slam Prize. They can either tweet it

out, Instagram the photo, or post it to Facebookas long as they use the hashtag so

SportsTime Ohio can find it. The idea behind the Grand Slam incentive is to create social

media activity and buzz for not only the promotion, and explicitly for SportsTime Ohio. .

This promotional effort will be the drive for social media activity.

Where: The prizes will occur in different places throughout the season as they shift in

both magnitude and theme. The where component for the actual competition will occur

across social media platforms.

When: The prize will change through the season to coincide with the single, double, and

triple promotions. By keeping the Grand Slam reward fresh and dynamic, people will be

encouraged to continue to participate through each stage of the season to win a new prize.

Ideally, these prizes will increase in magnitude. For example, in the first two months (i.e.

Single promotion) the Grand Slam could be a free ticket with a friend. The next

activation could be a locker room tour, followed by a third activation for field access.

This will depend on SportsTime Ohios capabilities with regards to the Indians products

and access to facilities.

Tactic 5: Dedicated Hashtag

What: Tweet #SportsTimeOH for a Grand Slam will be the slogan in order to win the

Grand Slam offerings. We created this hashtag because it is unique and dedicated to this

effortwhich therefore makes all social media interaction created through this specific

promotion readily available to SportsTime Ohio. Fans will even be able to search for

other peoples pictures and posts to enjoy funny or cool photos. In addition, they can

look for friends and family members who have used the hashtag. The intention is to make

the promotion as user friendly as possible and very accessible to SportsTime

Ohio. Signage encouraging people to Follow us on Twitter @SportsTimeOhio Follow

us on Instagram @SportsTimeOhio Like SportsTime Ohio on Facebook

Where: The hashtag will be placed on the front of each card. It will also be displayed

around the booth and on SportsTime Ohios own personal social media platforms. The

idea is to ensure that everyone knows about it and understands that they should use it on

any posts regarding the baseball cards.

When: The hashtag will be used every time people post to social media. It will be used

to collect data whenever SportsTime Ohio needs to access peoples participation in the

promotion.

Tactic 6: Data Capture via On-Site Kiosk

What: At the time that a fan snaps his photo at the booth, he will be prompted to enter a

phone number, email, and other relevant information (to be decided by SportsTime Ohio)

in order to receive a digital copy of the photo that was taken. The photo will be of a

higher quality and make it easier to instantly post to social media. The data mining

possibilities are very broad with this method--SportsTime Ohio can ask for whatever

reasonable information they would like to collect. In addition, they can creates terms of

service in order to gain consent to send future promotions or information to the fans.

Where: A kiosk will be located near the photo booth, but away from the direct entrance

into the booth. This will hopefully ease the difficulties of backups in the line and

cramping people together that are entering data and also waiting to enter the booth.

When: After fans take their photo, they will be prompted to enter the desired

information. It will ideally only take a minute or so to enter the necessary data.

Alternative: There are several possible downsides to the kiosk, such as line back-ups,

slow server problems, and overall increase in time that the fans spend at the booth (of

course the fans are there to watch the game, not spend time dealing with the logistics of

an entertaining booth). We are not nave enough to assume that everything will run

smoothly with our proposed idea, so while we think that the kiosk is the best option, we

also want to provide SportsTime Ohio with an alternative. The photo booth provider can

give SportsTime Ohio digital copies to put on its own social media platforms for fans to

access. SportsTime Ohio can again require an email, phone number, or other information

in order to access the photos. Therefore, the data mining aspect is still included.

What: There are many moving parts and tactics, but the bottom line is increasing

viewership among millennials. Each person that takes a picture at the booth will

automatically have the chance to make it on the SportsTime Ohio television broadcast.

Where: The photos will be aired on SportsTime Ohios television station as the Indians

games are broadcasted.

When: One of the most important aspects of this tactic is the timing. The photos will be

aired on the next broadcasting of the following Cleveland Indians game. The key to this

idea is that the photo will be posted in the future to encourage future viewership, and

eventually an invested connection to watching the games as people become more

intrigued by following the Indians success. It will create excitement and intrigue to flip

to SportsTime Ohio and watch the Indians game. The timing can be consistently during

the 7th inning for example, or throughout the game to cause the fans to watch more

intently.

In order to leverage our strategy, we plan to measure and retain the number of pictures taken and

baseball cards produced. In doing so, we will measure and record the number of people that

interact with our photo booth. Other quantitative benchmarks that we plan to utilize are the

number of tweets made at SportsTime Ohio with the unique hashtag #SportsTimeOH. The

amount of followers SportsTime Ohio gains on their various social media outlets, such as twitter,

Instagram, and Facebook accounts, from the time of implementation will also be used to

benchmark our activation site. The amount of website traffic on SportsTime Ohios website can

also help us measure our sites effectiveness. Lastly, the amount of total viewers of Tribe games

both at the stadium and on SportsTime Ohios TV network will also provide useful data for our

execution.

B. Measurement Methods

In order to obtain accurate data of the aforementioned benchmarks, we will first capture data of

the fans that participate and have their photos taken. As individuals plan their baseball card

photo, they will fill out a small sheet with basic demographic material and contact information.

Therefore, we can record basic information on participants as well as gather email addresses for

future contact reference. The number of tweets with the specific hashtag #SportsTimeOH will

not be difficult to measure, nor will be quantifying the increase of followers SportsTime Ohio

acquires on their social media outlets.

After photos are taken at the pastime, participants will have the option to view their

pictures on SportsTime Ohios website. In order to view specific photos, fans must enter their

email addresses. Not only will this drive web site traffic, but will also provide information about

the active site users. The web site traffic can be monitored through various web analytics, such as

click-through rates, to determine any increases in traffic as the result of our PasTIME Pics photo

booth. In a similar manner, fan attendance and the number of STO network viewers can be

accessed and analyzed to determine any positive disparity initiated by our activation site.

C. Criteria for Success

For each game, the photo booth can accommodate approximately 300 photos. With

twenty-four games, that equates to about 7,200 photos of baseball fans that have been exposed to

SportsTime Ohios brand. We believe that if we can reach this average, our entire campaign will

be a success for multiple reasons.

First, not only will thousands of people become directly aware of SportsTime Ohios

brand and presence in Cleveland sports, but also will have tremendous indirect effects through its

extension into social media. As the first digital natives, Millennials primary means of

communication exists through social media. The MLB has noticed the trend as well and has

initiated several social media campaigns, such as the popular MLB Fan Cave, which has 1.8

million Facebook likes and 300,000 twitter followers. Major League Baseball fans have been

extremely receptive to such campaigns; 33% of the 11 million users that share baseball content

and posts do so more than six times more frequently than average sports pages. The tremendous

social media response among baseball fans can therefore elevate our PasTIME Pics campaign

exponentially across such outlets.

Furthermore, research has demonstrated a recent increase of social media use while

watching a sporting event. Over 50% of fans access their social media during the game,

especially Facebook and Twitter, which has increased 10% over the past year. Consider the

following survey on the next page:

Thinking about a typical game day, which of the following, if any, do you use before, during and after the games?

(Select all that apply.)

2012 2013

Before 38% 48%

During 53% 64%

After 46% 64%

Before 39% 50%

During 45% 54%

After 55% 70%

Before 22% 35%

During 33% 54%

After 26% 56%

Before 23% 15%

During 26% 10%

After 52% 59%

Source: Catalyst

Social media is not only where fans access sports information about their favorite teams

and players, but also interact with them through tweets, hashtags, or picture comments. We

believe, therefore, that through our photo booth activation site, we can generate a great buzz

about the Indians and SportsTime Ohio. In fact, in response to a brands promotion during a

sporting event, 67% of fans reported that they have liked a brand on Facebook, and 50% have

followed them on twitter.

Brand awareness and engagement among our target demographic will therefore

successfully increase through roughly 300 photos per 24 games from our PasTIME Pics photo

booth. Of the approximate 7,200 direct participants, if only half of them tweet their picture at

STO with the hashtag #SportsTimeOH, thats a potential increase of 2,000 additional followers

of SportsTime Ohios social media accounts. Through the younger generations extensive social

networks, the increased brand awareness achieved by STO can extend way beyond that.

D. Time Frame

Historical statistics have shown that weekend home games have the highest attendance,

especially among the younger demographic. Not only are weekend games held during prime time

for social gatherings, but also a period of time in which both students and employees have leisure

time. With this in mind, we plan to integrate our activation site idea within these weekend

games, primarily Friday and Saturday evenings. The Cleveland Indians current schedule has

twenty-six home games on Fridays and Saturdays, twenty-four of which we plan to have our

activation site up and running.

Additionally, most of these games also happen to be promotional games to encourage

fans to come out to Progressive field, which we plan to utilize to our benefit. Our target

demographic is especially receptive to promotions such as dollar-dog nights and free giveaways,

providing a greater opportunity for us to engage younger adults with SportsTime Ohio through

our PasTIME Pics photo booth. The following calendar indicates the games we have selected for

implementation of our activation site. They can be seen here on the following pages:

3 4 5 6 7

10 11 12 13 14 15

16

17 18 19 20 21

24 25 26 27 28 29

30

31

1 2

3 4

7 8 9

10 11 12

13

14 15 16

17 18

21 22 23

24 25 26

27

28 29 30

1

2 3

4

5 6 7 8 9

12 13 14 15 16 17

18

19 20 21 22 23

26 27 28 29 30 31

1

2 3 4 5 6

9 10

11 12 13 14

15

16 17

18 19 20 21

22

23 24

25 26 27

30

31

1 2 3

4

5

6 7 8 9 10

13 14 15 16 17

20 21 22 23 24 25

26

27 28 29 30 1

4

A. Derivation of Budget

Consulting a well-established photo booth company named Framester helped us derive the

budget and implementation plan for PasTIME Pics. Framester was able to answer any of

questions we had as well as provide good estimations for what an onsite activation would cost

for our particular idea.

B. Budget

After speaking with the owner of Framester, Adam, he was able to shed more light on the

specifics to the cost structure of this photo booth. We communicated to him that we were given a

loose budget of $12,000 to create an onsite activation for 24 games. Per this budget, that equates

to approximately $500 to be allocated per game. Seeing as one 4-hour photo booth event

typically costs $1500, Adam informed us that it would be hard to make $500 work. However, he

believes that $750 per game would be a reasonable cost. The $750 is all-inclusive for the fixed

and variable costs of the event. The exact break down is listed below:

Software and additional hardware

Disposables

1. Cardstock

2. Stickers

3. Printer Ink

Backdrop

Daily Set up, operation, removal

Additional labor for live prints

Possible Promoter to engage guests

$750.00

Number of Games 24

$18,000.00

With a $750 per game quote, this would bring our proposed budget to $18,000, which is $6000

over the budget given. Though Adam would not break down the $750 by item for proprietary

reasons, he did provide more information about the backdrops, labor, and disposables.

We were quoted approximately $250 per backdrop created for the photo booth, all of

which would be owned by SportsTime Ohio for future use. Though minor, this will allow

SportsTime Ohio to reuse these backdrops for more than just one baseball season if they so

choose.

Additionally, we learned that because our booth would have onsite printing, our

activation would require 2 Framester workers throughout the entire course of the event as well as

for set up and tear down. At $20 an hour per person and with a total set up and tear down time of

2 additional hours, labor for a 4-hour photo booth event is approximately 33% of the per game

budget at $240. This does make up a significant part of the budget per game. However, because

the equipment is owned and operated by Framester employees, there is little room to negotiate

this cost away.

Though the information Adam provided about the variable cost of printing the baseball

cards was not necessarily monetary information, we gained insights on why printing with a

sticker is the best creative option to move forward with. Because standard photo booths print

one-sided photo strips, it would cost significantly more to have it print a two-sided card with a

custom photo. Also, not many photo booth printers are designed that way so customer hardware

and software may be needed to make a two-sided print. Therefore, Adam suggested outsourcing

a large quantity of cardstock baseball cards, without a picture on it, and to have the photo booth

print each photo out on a sticker. Then the sticker could be applied to the pre-made cards. This

would decrease price and increase the efficiency of the booth. However, the cost of printing the

stickers was proprietary information and was not disclosed. That in mind, Adam was confident

that the cost of the stickers for approximately 300 prints over 24 games would fit within the

$18,000 budget he quoted.

C. Justification

Our proposal is projected to cost $18,000. Though this is $6,000 over budget, we believe that the

product and services that a company such as Framester could provide adds significant extra value

to SportsTime Ohio and their brand. Further reasoning for this justification can be found in the

Evaluation section of this report.

A. Metrics, Methods, and Benchmarks

We have identified three main metrics to measure the success and usefulness of this experience

for SportsTime Ohio. Those metrics, how they are calculated and our projected benchmarks are

listed below:

A. Metric 1: Number of Pictures Taken at Booth During a Game

Method: Keeping track of the number of cards given away at a given game can

be done a couple different ways. The simplest way would be to mark down the

number of cards you start the game with and then count how many are left over

after the booth is closed. This will give you the number of cards given away.

Benchmark: Via information given to us by Framester, a typical 4-hour photo

booth event that prints out physical photos can accommodate about 300 guests. If

300 cards can be given away each game, that means 7,200 cards can be

distributed throughout the course of the season (24 game estimate).

B. Metric: Number of times #SportsTimeOH was hash tagged

Method: In order to measure the amount of hash tags, a person from Sportstime

Ohio will need to monitor the different social media accounts and count how

many times the hash tag is used.

Benchmark: Estimating this number was more a little more difficult, but we are

projecting that about forty percent of the people who take a photo with the booth

will hashtag #SportsTimeOH. This estimate has multiple factors. Research shows

that 60% of sports fans engage in social media during live games and 33% of

MLB fans post content during games as well. However, because we believe that

our booth will attract more than just the loyal MLB fans in the stadium, we

believe the number could be higher than 33% by a marginal amount. Therefore,

40% of 7,200 total guests hash tagging #SportsTimeOH equates to approximately

2,900 hash tags.

C. Metric: Increase in SportsTime Ohio Followers on Social Media

Method: The same social media analyst listed in the above metric should count

the number of followers before and after season for each social media platform.

This will help gauge whether or not this activation resulted in more likes for

SportsTime Ohio.

Benchmark: We are estimating that approximately 20% of people who use the

photo booth will follow SportsTime Ohio on different social media platforms

from the added exposure. A recent study reported that 35% of Facebook users will

like or follow an organizations page in order to win a contest. Though the

PasTime Pics campaign is not explicably a contest, there are chances to win prizes

through tweeting for a grand slam. We believe that this is a similar incentive and

therefore could produce similar results.

B. Success Factors

There are many reasons why we believe that PasTime Pics will be successful for your company

despite going over budget. Our reasoning is listed below:

Little to No Work for SportsTime Ohio: Through hiring a company like Framester to

run the event, there is very little work left to the SportsTime Ohio team to do. The photo

booth company will bring the equipment to and from the venue and the photo booth

workers will make sure the photography and printing all runs smoothly and efficiently.

Because of the work the photo booth company provides, the only work to be completed

by SportsTime Ohio is to monitor social media channels, help engage fans to draw them

into the booth, and help promote their brand. For $6,000 extra, the hired company does

the complicated work and SportsTime Ohio get to focus on engagement and brand

awareness.

Increased Exposure with Tangible Prints: Unlike most photo booth events that provide

only digital copies of the photos taken, tangible printed takeaways help increase the

exposure of the SportsTime Ohio brand. A recent study shows that when measuring

impressions, or a metric that quantifies online buzz, an event that printed tangible

handouts versus digital photos created double the impressions and therefore doubles the

online impact. Additionally, of the participants that were given both a tangible and

digital copy of the photo, 95% of these people still upload the photo to social media

only 5% of people were satisfied with only the printed version. Therefore, the potential

that this type of activation site has to create excitement on social media about SportsTime

Ohio is very significant. Because there will be more of a diverse demographic of users at

a baseball game, assuming that 285 of the 300 people using the booth will post their

photos online might be too high of a prediction. However, there is significant reason to

believe that the extra cost incurred because of live printing will be offset by the additional

brand exposure it adds.

Scalability: The ability of this onsite activation to scale past in-person interaction into

widespread social media interaction adds value to this proposal. Though the main draw of

our activation is the tangible baseball card a fan walks away with, a photo booth company

such as Framester recreates the same look of the card digitally and then posts those

pictures onto social media for SportsTime Ohio to share. Instead of just posting the raw

picture to social media, the photo booth company edits the photos and adds the baseball

card background to each one before posting and sharing them. This helps extend the

baseball card past a physical takeaway at a game to a branded advertisement to be viewed

by anyone who sees a fans photo. This creates enormous exposure for SportsTime Ohio

and helps offset the additional $6,000 cost.

C. Consequences and Contingencies

Though we believe that the benefits will outweigh the costs, there are some minor concerns and

problems for our idea that need to be addressed. These concerns are listed below:

Lack of Control with Outside Photo Booth Company: Though using a photo booth

company like Framester to administer the onsite activation provides significant benefits

for SportsTime Ohio, there is a definite lack of control associated. In terms of cost, there

is little room to negotiate a lower cost for the events. Because of the specialized request

of printing baseball cards for a public event, it will be hard to find areas of the budget to

cut in order to lower expenses. Additionally, because of the specific software and

knowledge needed in order to run the booth, SportsTime Ohio must relinquish control for

troubleshooting process adjustments to the photo booth company. Though this sounds

common sense, it will be frustrating for SportsTime Ohio to feel helpless if the printer or

camera malfunctions and the booth must stop for repairs. However, because photo booth

companies have expert knowledge and experience with the equipment and arrive 1.5

hours early to an event to test the experience, we do not foresee technological issues to

play a significant role.

Data Collection: Being able to collect contact information and demographic data from

the users of this booth adds a lot of value and potential for expanding SportsTime Ohios

network of fan and users. Emailing or texting a digital copy of the photo to the fans, as

mentioned above, would capture this data. However, baseball stadiums, as well as other

sports venues, are known for poor Internet and Wi-Fi connection. Because these photos

would be sent via these networks, there is potential for a massive backlog of photos that

would not be sent to the fans in a timely manner. This might not only slow down the

photo booth line but it also creates a frustrating experience for the users. Ways to mitigate

this issue would be to ensure a faster, more secure network for the photo booth to use or

to capture user data via social media.

Project Brief

FOX SportsTime Ohio is a television network that has a marketing challenge involving

their viewership demography. It wants to attract audiences that are of the millennial generation

seeing as its average viewers age is in the 50s. The objective is to create stronger brand

awareness and an on-site activation that leads to an increase in SportsTime Ohios viewership.

The brands value proposition is that it can provide reliable, informative, and entertaining

broadcasts of the Cleveland Indians games. It has a voice that is focused on the local mentality

and a specified local coverage that a national network may not be able to provide.

Today the brand has good viewership in regards to overall numbers, but it finds itself

lacking in viewers among people ranging from 18-34. The task given to us is to help them

eradicate this issue. SportsTime needs to increase the amount of younger viewers to keep the

brand alive as the generations age.

Spending the money to create a marketing plan, SportsTime booth, and execute all of the

moving parts will ideally create a buzz about the brand plus positive connotations to go along

with it. A strategy that competitors and the industry traditionally employ involves branding

signage, tokens, and various advertisements to make their name a recognizable one. At times

this includes pairing themselves with other brands. Creatively, networks tend to try and capture

as much attention as possible. They want to stick in the minds of potential viewers and to do so

in an entertaining way. Humor, sentimentality, or shock are all useful tactics. In terms of media,

the industry relies heavily on advertisements, all social media platforms, and their own personal

websites.

The most important takeaways for the brand are that it must increase awareness among

millennials and create an excitement around watching the Indians on television. Paramount to all

else within the strategy, the on-site activity must spark the social media activity and shares.

This will spread the most awareness and also enter participants in for a prize, assisting in the

positive feelings about the brand.

For the strategies to work there must be a photo booth, a printing company, promotional

efforts during the game, and follow up with the social media activity.

The strategies will be carried out throughout the baseball season. At each game photos

will be taken and they will played on TV and available for download throughout the season as

well.

The budget is $18,000broken down into $750 a game for the booth rental, labor, prints,

backdrops, and digital copies.

Research Report

1. Do you watch professional sports? # Answer

Response % 1 Yes

166 71% 2 No

69 29%

Total 235 100%

Statistic Value Min Value 1 Max Value 2 Mean 1.29 Variance 0.21 Standard Deviation 0.46 Total Responses 235

2. What professional sports do you typically watch? # Answer

Response % 1 A. Basketball

111 68% 2 B. Baseball

60 37% 3 C. Golf

18 11% 4 D. Football

131 80% 5 E. Soccer

42 26% 6 F. Hockey

39 24% 7 G. Volleyball

6 4% 8 H. Other

16 10%

H. Other Professional Wrestling Squash and tennis e sports tennis Water poli swimming Tennis Racing Tennis, Ice skating Tennis Tennis tennis Figure Skating, Swimming tennis Tennis

Statistic Value Min Value 1 Max Value 8 Total Responses 164

3. How do you frequently view these sporting events? # Answer

Response %

1 A. At the stadium/arena/course

6 4%

2 B. On live television broadcast

151 93%

3 C. Streaming via mobile app

4 2%

4 D. DVR recording

0 0% 5 E. Other

2 1%

Total 163 100%

E. Other online with my laptop Online Streams


4. What most attracts you to experiencing the sporting event in

person? # Answer

Response %

1 A. Off-field entertainment

0 0%

2 B. Food at the games

0 0%

3 C. Different types of booths

0 0%

4 D. Team spirit amongst fans

1 17%

5 E. Enjoying atmosphere of live viewing

5 83%

6 F. Other

0 0%

Total 6 100%

F. Other


5. What sporting network do you mostly use to watch these sports? # Answer

Response % 1 A. ESPN

100 64%

2 B. Fox Sports/ SportsTime Ohio

25 16%

3 C. NBC Sports

9 6% 4 D. ABC Sports

6 4%

5 E. Sports Specific Networks

9 6%

6 F. Other

8 5%

Total 157 100%

F. Other CBS ESPNFC Never pay attention to which channel CBS anything that has what I want on? univision


6. What attracts you to this sporting network? # Answer

Response %

1

A. Special coverage of specific team/sport

68 44%

2 B. Visual quality of game coverage

30 19%

3 C. The broadcasters

19 12%

4

D. Brand awareness (I just know about this channel)

56 36%

5

E. Extra information provided while viewing (i.e. other game scores)

13 8%

6 F. Other

12 8%

F. Other The variety of sports shown Convenience (ESPN Watch, 360) Personal Relationships the game Covers all sports no preference If the game I want is on that specific channel, I will watch it.... I'm not the one who decides what network it's on. I just tune in to watch the game It has the game I want to see Its what other people use and I watch with others


7. Why don't you watch professional sports? # Answer

Response %

1 A. Prefer other forms of entertainment

47 69%

2

B. Dont understand rules/follow the game

18 26%

3 C. Not enough time to watch games

9 13%

4 D. No one to watch games with

0 0%

5 E. Other

1 1%

E. Other Fanatics and unethical institutional practices


8. What city do you consider as your primary residence? # Answer

Response %

1 Central and Southeast Ohio

71 33%

2 North Central Ohio

23 11%

3 Northeast Ohio (Akron, Canton)

8 4%

4

Northeast Ohio (Ashtabula, Geauga, and Lake and Mahoning Counties)

2 1%

5 Northeast Ohio (Cleveland)

34 16%

6 Northwest Ohio

13 6%

7 Southwest Ohio (Greater Cincinnati)

23 11%

8 Southwest Ohio (Greater Dayton)

9 4%

9 Other

31 14%

Total 214 100%

Other Long island Baltimore Columbus Pittsburgh, PA Minnesota Chicago *ichigan Columbus Atlanta, Georgia Chicago Chicago, IL Southern Ohio (Portsmouth) Ashburn, VA Columbus, Oh Austin Columbus Columbus Illinois Columbia, MD Singapore Seoul, South Korea Houston Maryland


10. What would make you most likely to watch a game at the

stadium? # Answer

Response %

1 A. More entertainment during breaks

23 11%

2 B. Wider variety of food at the games

6 3%

3

C. More promotional efforts (i.e. dime-a-dog, college night, ETC)

104 48%

4 D. More crowd interaction

37 17%

5 E. Other

46 21%

Total 216 100%

E. Other Cheaper Tickets Cheaper prices affordable tickets Cheaper tickets Cheaper tickets Being able to better afford going to the games Cheaper tickets Cheaper live closer If I had friends going If my friends went/alcohol Cheap tickets great sports team / game $ cheaper cost of attendance and food/drink If there was a greater convenience for me to go to a game i would. being at home with a TV is just much easier Alcohol less expensive tickets Low Cost Beer nothing. I only care about the game cheaper tickets student pricing Seeing it live lower ticket prices If good sports teams are playing Never None If I had money and lived close Good cheap seats Being able to go to England If my friend asks me to and I am not busy at the time Cheaper tickets friends invitation Price of tickets; able to go with friends seriously..you pay hundreds of dollars for tickets to watch the game...not the other stuff... LESS of this promotional BS. I want more direct interaction with the game with more replays and stats I would just go if I want to see the game Right now I just lack time and money. More attendance is in my future Cheaper tickets Lower prices cheaper


11. Why don't you watch baseball? # Answer

Response %

1 A. Im usually busy watching other sports

14 8%

2

B. Its outdated-only old people watch it

6 4%

3 C. I dont have anyone to watch it with

7 4%

4

D. It is too long and tedious (i.e. pace of game)

84 51%

5 E. I dont understand the rules

16 10%

6 F. Other

38 23%

Total 165 100%

F. Other Don't really enjoy it I do just not as much as basketball Only watch Indians I do. just not as often as bball I don't enjoy watching it I do, I just chose football for this quiz I do! Don't like baseball I like watching it live Doesn't interest me I only enjoy it when I'm in the stadium watching it live. Don't have time, but enjoy attending the occasional game with friends I just hate everything about that sport Played it my whole life and I dislike watching it. not really interested only like to watch at live game I do I just like soccer better Never grew up watching it I do sometimes I don't like to watch baseball on tv only in person Boring It's boring Does not interest me I do I do I'm just not interested in it. its lame i dont like it I am not interested in baseball I watch only when it's a big game, only in korea!!! Simply not interested unless I'm present at the stadium and engaged I personally find it fun to play and dull to watch unless in person. I do watch baseball


12. How frequently do you get connected with your favorite

professional sports teams via the following mediums?

# Question Always Very Often

Fairly Many Times

Occasionally Never Total

Responses Mean

1 A. Mobile App

20 35 26 53 82 216 3.66

2 B. Television

38 57 46 49 26 216 2.85

3 C. Word-of-mouth

20 58 48 61 28 215 3.09

4

D. Social Media (Twitter, Facebook)

38 56 42 46 35 217 2.93

Statistic A. Mobile App B. Television C. Word-of-mouth D. Social Media

(Twitter, Facebook)

Min Value 1 1 1 1 Max Value 5 5 5 5 Mean 3.66 2.85 3.09 2.93 Variance 1.87 1.66 1.45 1.82 Standard Deviation

1.37 1.29 1.20 1.35

Total Responses 216 216 215 217

13. What would motivate you to attend a professional baseball

game? Rank your preferred choice from 1 to 5, 1 being the best

option.

# Answer 1 2 3 4 5 6 Total

Responses

1

A. More entertainment between innings

22 37 25 43 18 2 147

2 B. Cheerleaders

4 8 8 17 52 58 147

3 C. Cheaper food

29 43 44 21 9 1 147

4 D. More peers in age group to attend with

54 27 25 28 10 3 147

5 E. More promotional events

27 28 36 27 23 6 147

6 F. Other 11 4 9 11 35 77 147

Total 147 147 147 147 147 147 -

Statistic

A. More entertainment

between innings

B. Cheerleaders

C. Cheaper food

D. More peers in

age group to attend

with

E. More promotional

events F. Other

Min Value 1 1 1 1 1 1 Max Value 6 6 6 6 6 6 Mean 3.03 4.90 2.60 2.47 3.06 4.95 Variance 1.77 1.65 1.38 2.03 2.11 2.30 Standard Deviation

1.33 1.29 1.17 1.43 1.45 1.52

Total Responses

147 147 147 147 147 147

14. Have you heard of the cable network, FoxSports/ SportsTime

Ohio? # Answer

Response % 1 Yes

190 89% 2 No

24 11%

Total 214 100%


15. Gender: # Answer

Response % 1 Male

81 38% 2 Female

133 62%

3 Prefer not to Say

0 0%

Total 214 100%


16. What is your age? # Answer

Response %

1 A. 15 and under

0 0%

2 B. 16-21

123 57% 3 C. 22-27

80 37% 4 D. 28-33

3 1% 5 E. 34-39

7 3% 6 F. 40-45

1 0% 7 G. 46-50

0 0% 8 H. Over 50

0 0%

Total 214 100%


17. Where were you born? # Answer

Response %

1 Central and Southeast Ohio

26 12%

2 North Central Ohio

9 4%

3 Northeast Ohio (Akron, Canton)

14 7%

4

Northeast Ohio (Ashtabula, Geauga, and Lake and Mahoning Counties)

3 1%

5 Northeast Ohio (Cleveland)

36 17%

6 Northwest Ohio

17 8%

7 Southwest Ohio (Greater Cincinnati)

26 12%

8 Southwest Ohio (Greater Dayton)

12 6%

9 Other

70 33%

Total 213 100%

Other Connecticut Virginia New york Iowa D.C Washington DC Suburb of Chicago Pittsburgh, PA New York Utah Japan Chile! St. Louis, Missouri idaho Chicago Chicago Connecticut Champaign, Illinois California Portland, Oregon Southern California Columbus Philadelphia, Pennsylvania MEXICO Colorado Chicago, IL Gainesville, Florida Southern Ohio (Portsmouth) wilmington, de Northern Virginia - DC China but grew up in Cincinnati New York Indonesia Virginia Central Florida Texas Florida Houston, Texas Illinois Illinois Bangladesh China other Maryland Troy, MI Mexico Philadelphia

China Illinois South Korea Maryland Pennsylvania India Maryland


4204 Final Write-Up Fox SportsTime Ohio

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