1. DOMERSBY DESIGN
I N T R O D U C I N G A
R E V O L U T I O N A R Y
P L A N T O R E S H A P E
B A S E B A L L AT
N O T R E D A M E
Presented by:
Nick Barella, Max Ujdak,
Teagan Dillon, Regi Engel,
Daniela Narimatsu, & Ricky
Ruehlmann
MKT 20100 - Fall 2015
Professor Edward Mayo

2. THE TEAM
We are a talented team with many skills and connections that can
get the job done in a timely and professional manner.
If you are looking for the WOW, then we are IT.
PROJECT
OBJECTIVE
4 Mission and Vision
Check out an in depth look into what
our goals with this project were. We also take
an in depth look into our mission and vision
statements as a group.
6 SWOT Analysis
An outline of what feel are the biggest
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and
Threats concerned with the Notre Dame
Baseball program.
10Aspiring Superstars
Take a look into the first of our two
target markets that this report focuses on.
This demographic mainly consists of local
youth ball players.
14Baseball & Chill
The last of our primary two target
markets. This demographic hones in on
people looking to have a good time at the ball
park and mainly consists of students!
The main project
objective is to develop
a new marketing
strategy to attract
more fans to the
Notre Dame Baseball
program. By working
with the local South
Bend community,
the team aimed to
create a marketing
plan that would
develop the Notre
Dame brand, since we
are targeting groups
who are already
somewhat connected
to baseball. On the
other hand, by also
focusing on Notre
Dame students, the
team worked to create
strategies that would
connect the students
with the sport itself,
having in mind that
such students are
deeply connected with
the ND brand. Hence,
our main goals is to
increase attendance,
create a loyal fanbase
and develop a sense
of familiarity and
community enthusi-
asm towards the Eck
Stadium.
-The Team
Nick Barella ‘18
Maxwell Ujdak ‘18
Daniela Narimatsu ‘18 Ricky Ruehlmann ’18
Regina Engel ‘16
Teagan Dillon ‘18
P A G E 2 P A G E 3

3. Domers by
Design focused
on a straight-for-
ward but also empa-
thetic strategy. We began
by developing our mission and
vision statements, in order to create a
clear identity for our group. We proceed-
ed by analysing the situation with SWOT and
PEST analysis. Once our limitations and advantages
were identified, we segmented the market and chose
two segments with which we could work, Little Leaguers and
Baseball and Chill. We built a marketing strategy for each of the
segments and this document will follow to explain them.
Project Approach
DOMERS BY DESIGN
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL DECEMBER 2015
MISSION STATEMENT
TO BOOST ATTENDANCE AND PASSION FOR NOTRE DAME BASEBALL, WHILE
BALANCING TRADITION AND A MODERN BASEBALL EXPERIENCE.
ision Statement: Elevate Irish baseball beyond
greatness.
The vision statement answers the question: “What do we
see our suggestions accomplishing in five years?” We
know that problems with the baseball program can-
not be solved overnight and that attendance is not
going to spike in the blink of an eye. These things
take time. We firmly believe with our strategic
marketing plan, that we will be able to elevate
Irish baseball beyond greatness.
V
Our mission statement iden-
tifies our primary goal regarding
marketing for the Notre Dame
baseball team. This primary goal
is to boost attendance for Notre
Dame’s home baseball games,
while also making an effort
to get campus and the
South Bend com-
munity excited
about Irish
baseball.
Our
mission statement touches on
our strategy for accomplish-
ing this, through capitalizing on
Notre Dame’s strong baseball
history and tradition, while also
modernizing the baseball game
experience to accommodate our
target groups. Notre Dame has
a very strong baseball tradition.
Home to Hall of Famers like Carl
Yastrzemski and Cap Anson, the
baseball program has a long
history of success. We want to
merge this strong tradition with
a modernized baseball experi-
ence to appeal to our target
markets.
P A G E 4

4. SWOT
Analysis
P A G E 7
DOMERS BY DESIGN
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL 2015
A SWOT analysis is a planning method that is
structured to identify and evaluate the strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities, and threats involved
in a project or business venture. Focusing on the
internal factors, the goal is to capitalize on the ND
baseball program’s current strengths and over-
come any weaknesses that it has. Externally, the
objective is to exploit opportunities and neutralize
threats to the program.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths: Quality team, Athletically minded students, Strong history and tradition, ND brand/fan base, Cheap ticket prices, &
Strong Online Presence
As a Division I team, Notre Dame baseball has a competitive, athletic environment that we can capitalize on. With quality
competition, fans can engage in exciting baseball games. Notre Dame students are actively involved in athletics, which means
the knowledge and enthusiasm surrounding sports and competition are easy to find. In addition, we can use the Notre Dame
brand and national fan base to our advantage. Notre Dame fans are some of the most loyal collegiate fans in the country. This
strong fan commitment is not limited to football; with the right marketing, we can attract those Notre Dame diehards to the
Eck. Finally, the Notre Dame baseball Facebook, Twitter, and onlin pesence on UND.com produces quality, relevant content.
Updated daily, these outlets provide the public with recent news surrounding the team.
Weaknesses: No student section, Weekday games, Many consecutive games, Lack of easy website movement, Expensive
and limited concession, Inconsistent schedule, & Weak online following
After attending a game at the Eck, it is obvious that a major weakness for the program is a lack of attendance. With not
enough students to make a student section, and sparse non-student fans, the environment lacks a loyal fanbase. The lack of
attendance is further highlighted during weekday games. Whether it is work, homework, or meetings, it is harder for students
and members of the South Bend community to attend non-weekend games. In addition, while the season commences on
February 19, 2016 against Santa Clara in California, the first home game for Notre Dame baseball is not until March 16, 2016
against Toledo. In April, however, there are nearly 14 consecutive games. Maintaining a steady attendance at each game will
prove to be difficult. Finally, while the media content online is strong, the lack of traffic to said content is weak. Notre Dame
baseball has 10,900 followers on Twitter and 9,873 likes on Facebook. We believe this number can increase through polls,
trivia, and interactive media.
Opportunities: Little leaguers, Alumni events, Dorm events, Saint Mary’s students, ND baseball gear dis-
counts with ticket, Teaming up with SB Cubs, Transportation to games
South Bend has a plethora of little league, travel, and club baseball teams [include specifics?], and Notre Dame baseball can
easily get involved in the community through these teams. Not only will this build a relationship young players, but it will
also draw the teams to the games in the Spring. In addition, alumni are always looking for an opportunity to revisit campus.
Through events geared towards them, such as fundraisers and luncheons, complete with tickets to a game, Notre Dame base-
ball can build a stronger following. Dorm events and attendance competitions can increase student involvement, along with
golf cart or O’SNAP shuttles to the games. Furthermore, the South Bend Cubs have a very strong fanbase in the community.
If we can partner with them for a charity game or mutual fundraiser, the Cubs fan base can expand and include Notre Dame
baseball.
Threats: South Bend Cubs, MLB games, Other ND sports, March Madness, No-Alcohol policies, Weather, Distance from
dorms, Length of games, & SB income per capita
While these threats are external to our program, they are still important to recognize. The South Bend Cubs have a more
entertaining venue, complete with inflatables and games to entertain kids, alcoholic beverages for adults, and lawn seating
for a more relaxed feel. In addition, the start of the MLB season can take attention away from Notre Dame baseball. When
other Irish sports play at the same time or on the same day as Notre Dame baseball, fans must decide which game to attend.
In addition, students dread the long distance from their dorm to the Eck, especially in poor weather. Finally, according to the
United States Census Bureau, the South Bend income per capita in 2013 was $19,181. This must be taken into account when
deciding the price of tickets, concessions, and apparel.
P A G E 6

5. Market
Segments
Try Before You Buy 20%
Want free admission and promo-
tional giveaways to draw them
into the stadium.
Low cost and budget entertain-
ment is a priority.
The Classics 10%
Want good baseball, peanuts and
crackerjacks, programs, “Take Me
Out to the Ballgame”, etc.
The Classics are looking for a
good, old fashion baseball expe-
rience at the ballpark.
The Die Hards 15%
Want everything and anything
Notre Dame. They go to ex-
tremes to support ND sports
and are willing to commute long
distances and/or attend weekday
games.
The diehards are looking for a
genuine Notre Dame fan experi-
ence.
The Tailgaters 10%
Want a pre-game experience,
good weather, large crowd, and
entertainment.
The tailgaters want to have fun
and have a game experience that
is considerably bigger than the
game itself.
P A G E 9
DOMERS BY DESIGN
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL DECEMBER 2015
MINOR SEGMENTS
THESE ARE IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE, BUT NOT COVERED EXTENSIVELY
Finding Our Target
To find the target markets, we did a market segmentation analysis. Our first step was to define the broad market; we
determined that ND baseball is in the sports entertainment business. From there, we brainstormed all potential custom-
ers’ needs and wants. Why do people spend money on ND baseball? What do they like or don’t like about the product
on the field and off? Our next steps included creating 6 sub-markets and identifying core and determining needs, core
needs being common to all segments and determining needs being that set of needs that is unique to each separate
segment.
Based on the relative importance of the determining needs for each group and the related demographics of the group,
we nicknamed each market segment. Our 6 market segments are Try Before You Buy, The Classics, The Die Hards, The
Tailgaters, Baseball and Chill, and Aspiring Superstars. To gain a better understanding and to be able to convey this un-
derstanding to our clients, we created a narrative about the behavior of the people in each segment. By evaluating why
people in each segment behave as they do and what motivates them to go to ND baseball games, we were better able
to determine our marketing strategy. The last step in our market segmentation was to estimate the size of each market
segment so that we could identify a couple of segments to select that we wanted to target.
Aspiring Superstars 25% Baseball & Chill 20%
AND
Want to spend time with family
and get the “Big League” experi-
ence: meeting players, going on
the field, or playing on the field
These are the “Game 7, bottom
of the 9th, bases loaded” back-
yard baseball players, and they
just want a big league experi-
ence.
Want to spend time with
friends; good weather;
large-ish crowd; cheap
concessions.
Win or lose, Baseball and
Chill-ers are bound to have
a good time.
P A G E 8

6. Aspiring Superstars
DOMERS BY DESIGN
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL DECEMBER 2015
e wanted our marketing strategies for our Aspiring Superstars to fo-
cus on accomplishing two main objectives: to build their connection
with Eck Stadium and to build their connection with the Notre Dame
baseball team. Our specific recommendations are tailored towards
accomplishing these two critical objectives.
Narrative: Grayson, 11, and Brian, 16, are two brothers whom are both coming off of
weeks in which their teams got big victories. They’ve been talking about the upcom-
ing playoffs non-stop and can’t wait to hit the cage to work on their contact swings.
Brian is starting to get looked at by a few schools, and Grayson is beginning to think
about trying out for a travel team. They love going to games not only to enjoy base-
ball, but also to experience what baseball is like at the next level. Grayson dreams of
being able to work with D1 ball players to improve his game, while Brian would die for
the chance to play on a high-caliber ball field.
Needs
-Spend time with friends/teammates
-Learn from the game
-Experience the Eck
-Good concessions
-Good competition, (Notre Dame Baseball already
provides this)
ini Camps
Mini camps would consist of brief ses-
sions following home baseball games
where our Aspiring Superstars would
have a chance to come onto the field, meet the players, and
work on some baseball fundamentals.
Mini camps has the potential to help reach both of our pri-
mary goals for our Aspiring Superstars. Through getting them
out on the field after the games, it builds their connection with
Eck Stadium. Through having a select number of players help
with fundamentals or just hang out, it builds the connection
with the team itself.
Little League Wall of Fame
The ultimate goal of targeting the youth is to create a lasting bond between the facility and the young ball players in
order to invest in the current and future success of the program. This strategy creates a tangible connection with
the park that a ball player can see, feel, and touch.
This project would consist of a program where a team can either come to the park on a game day and see a game
or have a day where they can practice on the field during the offseason. It is highly advised against charging fees
beyond that of tickets to the teams to fend off the idea of the program being just another way to make money.
After participating in some baseball related event, either a game or practice, the team would pose for a group pic-
ture which would be printed out for them to all sign to simulate the autograph experience in a reversed role. The
photo would then be hung on a wall in the interior of the Eck concourse for passerbys in the stadium to see. These
young kids would then attend future games at the Eck and show their friends only bringing further promotion to
the Notre Dame Baseball brand through word-of-mouth marketing,
In terms of a cost analysis, this would be a rather inexpensive strategy that would cost the price of a printed team
portrait, a cheap frame, and a screw to mount the picture each time a team visits. This event is also only restricted
by inclement weather. Otherwise, it can be held whenever possible.
W
M
***In our client presentation, we mainly referred to this target market segment as Little
Leaguers. It is important to note, that this does not only cover Little Leaguers, as the NCAA
baseball season comes to a close when Little League teams are just starting to get together. It is
important to focus on all aspects of youth baseball in the South Bend and Mishawaka commu-
nity. Specific leagues that are not Little League summer baseball include:Babe Ruth baseball
(summer), Little League (fall), Travel teams such as the Michiana Scrappers and the Indiana
Landsharks Baseball Club (various seasons), Inter City Catholic League (ICCL) Baseball (spring),
local public grade school leagues such as Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation, Mishawa-
ka School Corporation, and South Bend Community School Corporation (spring).
P A G E 11P A G E 10

7. lue Collar, Gold Standard”
Notre Dame Baseball adopted this marketing and team culture based slogan last season. The slogan should carry for-
ward into the stadium facilities as well.
Eck field is located in the athletic side of Notre Dame’s campus. It feels detached from the rest of the school due to the distance
from campus housing and famous school landmarks. The idea of this is to bring the culture and feel of the campus that is absent
within the Eck’s boundaries.
Foul Pole: Originally in the client presentation, our team had suggested that the foul pole be painted metallic gold as it complies
with the NCAA’s old rule of the foul pole color simply having to contrast with the background it rests upon. As of the start of the
2016 season, this is no longer the case. Rule 1, Section 2, Article B of the 2015-2016 NCAA baseball rule book states, “The foul
poles shall be painted fluorescent yellow for new construction and for repainting of existing foul poles. Any existing foul poles that
do not conform to being fluorescent yellow shall be repainted prior to the beginning of the 2016 season (Note: This requirement
will apply only to college baseball facilities owned by NCAA member institutions),” After a visit to the Eck by members of our team,
it is highly suggested that the foul pole be completely repainted as it currently looks faded and will need to comply with NCAA
regulations by next season.
A trademark image of the Notre Dame football stadium is the yellow mums that rest between the sidelines and the gold stadium
seating, placing these flowers around the outside of the Eck and in various planters outside of the field of play will enhance the
Notre Dame image within the stadium.
The field is a turf field and requires little maintenance, but the logos on the turf are rather plain and could be done more creatively.
For example, gold could be added in a tasteful manner to the first and third base line images that say “Notre Dame” and “Fighting
Irish” in a Celtic style font.
Notre Dame has a rather strict advertisement policy, but that
leaves a blank canvas in the outfield for the program to work
with. The stadium skyline is a huge part of the atmosphere of a
baseball park. For example, Busch Stadium in St. Louis is posi-
tioned so that the iconic St. Louis arch is seen in the backdrop.
A large portion of the Eck’s backdrop is a blank black screen.
Put the slogan in that spot in a tasteful manner to give the
stadium more character. Hanging banners of famous Notre
Dame Baseball players in a Ring of Honor style manner simi-
lar to Notre Dame basketball is another idea. This is similar to
Monument park found in Yankee stadium
Recently Notre Dame has embraced the university slogan
of”God, Country, Notre Dame” more so than ever. Baseball is
known as America’s pastime. This should be used to the pro-
grams advantage by placing things such as patriotic bunting in
various places around the stadium such as the outfield fence.
Work with the university to fix the parking lot. Visitors are
greeted by a dirt lot, a worn out parking lot covered in tar
patches, and large media antennas. It is suggested to move the media items to another side of the stadium and to repave and
paint the parking lot. It is also advised to use the dirt lot in some way and plant more floral items around the stadium.
B
DOMERS BY DESIGN
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL DECEMBER 2015
ommunity Championship
Games
There are many local youth leagues within the South
Bend community (see note in beginning of the section). The Eck
could be used as a neutral championship or an in season jamboree
site for various local youth leagues. No field modifications would be
necessary for many of the older youth divisions that play within the
field’s dimensions. For the younger leagues, since the park is a turf
field, a portable fence could be installed to allow for the appropri-
ate distance, which could also be used as advertising space for the
games since it is not a university event. In terms of bases and the
mound, a portable mound and bases could be placed at the appro-
priate legal distance for each event.
In addition to the “Little League Wall of Fame” idea described earlier, championship banners for various leagues could be
hung inside the Eck with the winning team’s name and year of championship. The banner could stay there for a year, and
could be donated to the winning park, school, or organization once the next championship series is over to prevent clutter.
This turns the Eck into something that younger kids will strive for such as an Indiana high school football player striving to
play at Lucas Oil Stadium or a Little Leaguer striving for Williamsport. It connects them with the stadium on a personal level
Player Outreach
Through player outreach, we can put a face to Notre Dame baseball and form a relationship between the team and the
community.
Hand-delivering season tickets:
By travelling to a handful of families’ homes and delivering their season tickets in person, the baseball team is not only in-
teracting with fans, but also forming a relationship and a culture of involvement. Those families will then have stories to tell
their friends, neighbors, and classmates or coworkers. There will also be a larger incentive to attend every game knowing
that the team took the time to deliver the ticket packages.
Involvement with elementary and middle schools:
An important way to build a relationship with local children and encourage baseball at an early age is by becoming actively
involved in their schools. Whether it is mentoring a class for a semester, or simply travelling to the school once a week for
an hour of play-time, kids will look up to the team and aspire to be like them. After speaking to Debra Higgins, a teacher at
Dickinson Elementary School, I learned that the Notre Dame men’s lacrosse team is very involved with her students. She
mentioned that every Tuesday at 7:00 a.m. the team mentored the students and taught them how to play lacrosse. As a
result, more of her students are taking up lacrosse as their spring sport. She mentioned that she has been interested in
working with Notre Dame baseball, too, but has been unsuccessful in contacting them.
C
P A G E 13P A G E 12

8. NEEDS: SPEND TIME WITH FRIENDS, GOOD WEATHER, LARGE CROWD WITH ENERGETIC
ATMOSHPHERE, QUALITY AND CHEAP CONCESSIONS, PROMOTIONS AND GIVE AWAYS, &
MUSIC AND FESTIVITIES
arrative: Rachel, David, and Alex are all hanging at
Reckers on a breezy Saturday afternoon. After finishing
up their delicious wood-fired pizzas, they slowly begin
making their way back into the brisk April weather,
discussing the game plan for the night. Exhausted
from the busy week, David says how he wants to just
“hang” tonight. Rachel agrees and begins to lament the
lack of low-key entertainment options around Notre
Dame’s campus. Alex, a hound for checking his Notre
Dame email, is knowledgeable of the Notre Dame
baseball game this evening and suggests that they
attend. Rachel and David excitedly agree and the three
embark on a night that is sure to be full of bonding
and friendship.
N
orm Competition and
Involvement
We understand that students highly identify them-
selves with their dorm’s community.When working
with the residence halls, it is important to target
it as a group rather than individual residents. We
believe that it is essential that for the Baseball pro-
gram to develop a closer relation with the dorms
and working with dorm representatives such as
athletic commissioners is one way, They could lead
walkover to the games, host events in the dorms
with the team and/or coach and create a Baseball
culture within the dorm. To develop a better rela-
tionship with athletics commissioners, the program
could hold events with every dorm’s commissioner
in a private event with the team, give ND Baseball
gear or concessions’ coupons.
In addition, because students identify themselves
so strongly with their residence halls, we under-
stand that there is a distinct rivalry between the
dorms and the program could capitalize on that,
such as having South vs. North Quad night and
the dorm that brings the most people can win a
catering night, a private practice on the field with
the team or even some gear.
Finally, the program could also hold brother-sister
dorm outings in the stadium, which guarantees
that if one dorm goes, its respective brother or
sister dorm will attend as well.
D
Marketing to Baseball and Chillers:
As a result of our analysis of students’ behavior, we came up with
three main strategies: dorm vs. dorm competition, capitalize on
impulse decisions and online presence.
Why aren’t students going to games?
We surveyed students of all classes (2019, 2018,
2017, 2016) at Notre Dame, asking them the
main reason that they do not attend Notre Dame
Baseball games. The results we got back were rather
surprising to us. We discovered that the main reason
students do not go to games is because none of their
friends go. This tallied in at 58.3%. The next most
answered reason at 22.6% was that students do
know know when the games are. Twelve percent said
that they had no interest in attending games. Three
percent said the Eck was too far from their dorm,
while 2% and 1 % said that bad weather and lack of
time were their main reasons, respectively. These
results were very promising for us, for the main
reasons students do not go to games are reasons
that can be fixed. A few of our marketing strategies
are directly aimed at making one’s friends to go, such
as our Dorm vs Dorm competitions. Another strategy
is directly aimed at notifying students of when
exactly the baseball games occur.
Baseball & Chill
P A G E 15P A G E 14

9. oach and Player Outreach
to Students
We understand that students highly identify them-
selves with their dorm’s community.When working
with the residence halls, it is important to target
it as a group rather than individual residents. We
believe that it is essential that for the Baseball pro-
gram to develop a closer relation with the dorms
and working with dorm representatives such as
athletic commissioners is one way, They could lead
walkover to the games, host events in the dorms
with the team and/or coach and create a Baseball
culture within the dorm. To develop a better rela-
tionship with athletics commissioners, the program
could hold events with every dorm’s commissioner
in a private event with the team, give ND Baseball
gear or concessions’ coupons.
In addition, because students identify
themselves so strongly with their residence halls,
we understand that there is a distinct rivalry be-
tween the dorms and the program could capitalize
on that, such as having South vs. North Quad night
and the dorm that brings the most people can win
a catering night, a private practice on the field with
the team or even some gear.
Finally, the program could also hold brother-sister
dorm outings in the stadium, which guarantees that
if one dorm goes, its respective brother or sister
dorm will attend as well.
C
Capitalizing on Impulse Decisions
We surveyed students who had gone to a Notre
Dame Baseball game before and asked them when
they made the decision to go to the game. We
learned that a cleay majority of the students who
have gone to ND baseball games before decided to
go the day of the game. About 58% of the students
who had gone been to a game before were of this
category. These results encouraged to try and
capitalize on impulse decisions, since it seems as
if most students decide impulsively to go to the
game.
ncrease Website and Social Media
Presence
Notre Dame baseball and those involved,
such as Coach Aoki, currently have a strong
social media presence. In terms of content
posted to various sites, the Notre Dame Baseball
brand is doing well. Self promotion is key to gaining
a wider audience on social media. With the current
strength of content, a simple shout out by an old No-
tre Dame Baseball player like Jeff Samardzija or David
Phelps could significantly increase online presence.
In terms of traditional social media, the current con-
tent is great, but Notre Dame Baseball should pursue
other means as well. For example, the app Snapchat
lets users submit geofilters to their website for ap-
proval. Geofilters add a unique photo filter to a picture
taken within a certain geographical zone drawn on
Snapchat’s map. Various campus locations including
most dorms, the Hesburgh Library, DeBartolo Hall,
and more all have them currently. They add a great
and creative incentive to attend an event at a location
and act as proof of being there. The filter just cannot
contain any trademarked images and needs to follow
certain formatting guidelines on the website, but it
can be done for free, and is a phenomenon that is
taking this nation and campus by storm.
I
P A G E 17P A G E 16

10. THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TOREVIEW OUR PRESENTATION AND
PROPOSAL. FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US WITH ANY ADITIONAL QUESTIONS,
COMMENTS, OR CONCERNS.
Finally, the main recommendations are: have mini camps after the
games, little-league “Wall of Fame” to create a connection with the
stadium, youth championship games at the Eck, year-round events
at the Eck open to the public and students, make minor changes
to the stadium to make it follow the Gold Standard, develop a
team outreach strategy with the local community and students,
foster residence halls’ involvement, capitalize on impulse
decisions and increase the online outreach of the content on
social media.
-Domers by Design
Final Recap

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