St. Louis Blues Brand Campaign

Joshua White

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Background 2

Positioning Statement/Situational Analysis 3

SWOT Analysis 4-5

External Research 6

GOAL/Objectives 7

Overview of objective #1 8-11

Overview of objective #2 12-14

Overview of objective #3 15-16

Budget 17-18

Calendar 19

Evaluation 20

Background of the Saint Louis Blues:The St. Louis entered the NHL as an expansion team in 1967, and has played in Saint Louis since that time. The Blues have had great success in their franchise history having an above .500 winning percentage going 1457-1347 over their history. The Blues have 7 division Titles, have made the playoffs 34 times including a NHL record 25 consecutive times from 1979-2004 and have reached the Stanley Cup 3 times, losing each time.

In addition to the great success on the ice for Saint Louis, they have had a host of hall of fame hockey players including Bernie Federko, Grant Fuhr, Wayne Gretzky,Brett Hull, Al MacInnis, Scott Stevens, and Joe Mullen, just to name a few. The Blues are also home to one of the most unique traditions in the NHL. The team was named after the W.C. Handy song, “St. Louis Blues” and before each period an organ rendition of the song plays. The Blues fans also sing “When the Saints (Blues) go marching in” before every game.

The Blues have played in the Scottrade Center, which seats 19,150, since 1994. The Scottrade Center was formerly known as the Savvis Center and the Kiel Center. Prior to that, the Blues played in the St. Louis Arena from 1967-1994.

Mission Statement:To provide the city of Saint Louis the best possible experience and opportunity to watch the National Hockey League and the Saint Louis Blues.

Direction:To lead the organization to a Stanley Cup title and to return to the top tier in the league in both attendance and revenue.

Positioning StatementWho are we? – Saint Louis Blues

What business are we in? – National Hockey League

What people do we serve? – Hockey fans nationwide and the Saint Louis metro area

What are the needs of the people that we serve? – The needs of the people we serve include a winning product/team, a great image, atmosphere, and experience and the ability to view the Blues.

Who are we competing against? – Nationally, the rest of the NHL. Locally the Saint Louis Rams, Saint Louis Cardinals, SLU Billikens, Illinois Fighting Illini, Missouri Tigers

What makes us different from the competitors? – Unique product as the Blues are the only hockey venue in the greater Saint Louis metro area and a greater game-day experience.

What is the benefit of our company/product? – The benefit is to allow the city of Saint Louis to view and enjoy the sport of hockey at its highest level.

Situational AnalysisSince the NHL lockout in 2004-2005 the blues have failed to return to their prominence as one of the top franchises in the league. Ticket Sales and attendance have hit an all-time low, and the blues are operating in the red.

There is a lot of opportunity to turn the organization around and get backto the top echelon of the league.

SWOT ANALYSISStrengths

1. Strong leadership with clear plan for the future. a. For the past several years there has been unrest and turmoil within the

organization regarding the direction of the franchise. However the new regime of the organization is committed to building the franchise back to its rightful place inthe NHL. Having that direction and commitment behind the team will be invaluable.

2. Great facilities a. The Blues play in a sate of the art arena that holds the 8th largest capacity in the

NHL.

3. Rich history and tradition of franchise a. The Blues have the 9th most wins in NHL history, and have been a constant in the

NHL postseason failing to qualify for the playoffs only eight times in their history.The blues have also developed a reputation of having a rabid fan base that makes the Scottrade Center a very difficult place to play.

4. Strong sports support city a. The City of Saint Louis is filled with die-hard sports fans that have supported the

Cardinals, the Blues, and the Rams for decades. Having this type of dedication from the fan base holds a great potential to fill the Scottrade Center.

Weaknesses

1. Poor brand image a. For the past 7 years the Blues have been mired in losing seasons and the image

has taken a hit because of this. This has in turn resulted in poor attendance and revenue. Revamping the Blues image will be essential to creating interest.

2. Bad results on ice a. The bottom line for a lot of fans of any sport is the results of the team.

3. Lack of creativity and morale within organization a. Organization management and philosophies have been consistent with the past,

however over the last few years that have proven to be unsuccessful, and it is clear there are some changes that need to be made. The morale of the employees is also low due to the acceptance of mediocrity within the organization. Apathy leads to employees not giving 100% effort.

Opportunities 1. To be one of the best teams in the NHL

a. We have been one of the best teams in prior seasons and have had the city supportthe team in the past, so the opportunity to achieve this goal is definitely there.

2. To increase revenue with correct changes a. By increasing brand awareness and marketing product properly, the opportunity to

return to operating in the black.

3. To reach the loyal fan base of Saint Louis a. The city of Saint Louis is extremely passionate and supportive of their sports

teams, by appealing to a larger audience and supplying a good product

4. To experience a different and unique product in Saint Louis a. The Blues are the only hockey team in within the metro area, and offer a much

different experience than a Rams or Cardinals game.

Threats1. Lack of interest due to bad seasons past few years

a. With continued losing seasons, there is potential to lose the fan base as a whole.

2. The other sports teams in the area a. People may be more inclined to spend their time and money on the Cardinals,

Rams or the college teams in the area.

3. The economy, leading people to spend money on other things a. Tickets to sporting events are something people may choose to cut out of their

budgets, so making the games affordable is essential.

• In order to gain perspective on what our key publics arelooking for from the Blues, we conducted surveys for past ticket purchasers. We did not include season ticket holder as we wanted to gain a perspective from the casual fan as to what may lead them to come to more Blues games.

• We conducted email, phone, and mail surveys asking past purchasers what they enjoyed most about the games, what they enjoyed the least about the games, what the Blues organization could do to create more interest in going to games, overall satisfaction of games, how they felt about the ticket prices, and the onearea of improvement the organization could make.

RESULTS

To re-energize the fan base to create long term interest in the St. Louis Blues.

1. Increase ticket sales and attendance by creating various ticket packages and options.

2. Increase presence in the community by organizing and participating in more events within the Saint Louis area.

3. Re-appropriate the budget and payroll to improve the team and management.

Overview of objective #1 -- Increase attendance & ticket sales revenue by 10%

Lower ticket prices and packages

• Offer discounted group rate ticketso There will three levels of group ticket rates that will save fans on regular

single tickets. Group tickets discounts will encourage the attendance of local groups and companies.

10-20 = 15% savings 20-50 = 20% savings 50+ = 25% savings

• Offer Dynamic ticket pricingo The premise of dynamic pricing is for the ticket prices to fluctuate based

on demand of each game. For instance a game against division rivals Red Wings or Blackhawks, will cost slightly more than a game against the Calgary Flames.

o Rather than have specific tiers of ticket levels, the games themselves will fluctuate. The lowering of ticket prices to less popular games will encourage more people to attend the games, whereas the games against our rivals and higher profile teams people will attend even if there is a slight bump in single game ticket pricing.

o For single game tickets using dynamic pricing, their will be a floor to protect season ticket holders. No single game ticket will ever be less than what a season ticket (per game) would cost.

• Lower Season Ticket Prices and include extra incentives o Season tickets will be lowered incrementally based on the location of the

seat.o Season ticket holders will be guaranteed the lowest per game average

ticket.o By purchasing season tickets by certain deadlines the holder will have

various incentives to do so. For example if purchasing full season ticket package prior to June 1st, each holder will have admission to two private practices with a meet and greet with the players and front office after each practice.

• Partner with social discount coupon companies o Utilize groupon, livingsocial, and dealster to offer discounts to select

games, mainly those with lower demand.

Market to specific demographics by offering different ticket packages

• Student Nights and Packageso Saint Louis is comprised of many college aged students, and we will target

this market by making every Thursday night game discounted ticket and concessions for college students with ID.

o There are even a greater number of students who will come home over Christmas break, to capitalize on their presence in Saint Louis we will offer a 4 pack pick’em of home games during Dec 20th – Jan 12th

• Family Days/Gameso All Sunday games will designated as family days. This will involve contacting

the local youth hockey organizations, and in addition will ensure that these games will have a more family friendly environment to hopefully encourage more families to come to the blues. A Family game 4 package will be created, with special discounts accompanied with the package.

• Diverse promotional nights o The big time hockey fans will show up to the games regardless of if there is

any special promotion going on. However to entice some of the more casual fans to attend, we will create different promotional nights that may interest different groups of people.

NASCAR night Cardinals night Ugly Sweater night Casino night Office Space night Movember Mustache Nights

Increase Local Advertising Efforts

• Increase Social Media Presenceo Twitter, Facebook, Team Website, Blogs, Email. Making sure that not only are

these mediums active, but that they are maximized in the content they provide.Reaching out to fans to promote, generate buzz, pass along information, and give insight will be essential.

Each day there will be ticket giveaways via, twitter AND facebook – this will help create more of a following to these mediums.

• These will also be used to pass along more information than just blues scores and highlights. Updated daily, they will provide information around the NHL, big news story both nationally and locally, updates on all Blues events and promotions. Also will utilize several players to create blogs of which people can follow their daily activities both hockey and non-hockey related.

• The Website will continue to be the hub of the team info, and all social media will link to the appropriate part of the home page to pass along correct information.

• Email marketing will continue to engage in email blasts once per week, notifying fans of special offers and the happenings with the Blues organization

• Radio, TV, Print and Web Advertising, Outsideo Increase the amount spent on these advertising mediums, and the overall # of

ads.o In addition to increasing the ads, there will be a heavy emphasis on the

strategic placement of these ads. Starting in the offseason, TV spots will be placed heavily with FSMW

during cardinal games, during season during Rams games. Ads during each network nightly news.

Print Ads will be scaled back as print increases its decline, will concentrate on Stl Post Dispatch, RFT, and local college newspapers/newsletters

Radio ads will be utilized with stations: KMOV, 101.1 ESPN Billboard ads will be placed in strategic locations, Transit ads, Ads

within Scottrade (free) during other events, area ice rinks, Ed Jones Dome, Busch Stadium

There will be a change in the commercials, with the message that the Blues are not only a part of St. Louis, but that with what we represent and stand for, we are St. Louis

o Partnering with local companies for special offers Utilizing the large corporate sponsors to help advertise for the blues.

Example adding inserts to charter and Ameren bills, or advertising with the local ice rinks. Partnering with local charities.

o Place heavy emphasis on marketing star player(s) to have a nationwide association of that player(s) and the Blues

Having a face of the franchise will increase the overall brand image of the Blues.

Overview of objective #2 – Increase the amount ofcommunity events and appearances by 50%

Involvement in youth activities

• Sponsoring/Appearing in youth hockey campso There are plenty of youth hockey organizations in the Saint Louis area, by

hosting camps and having players appear and help coach/teach this will create a very positive influence on the youth in Saint Louis, which hopefully will lead to them being loyal fans for years to come based on their experiences as children.

o The opportunity to host older youth (high school) camps would also generate a lot of positive publicity for the Blues. This would show that they care about the development of the hockey’s future players in Saint Louis.

• School Appearanceso Whether it is going to elementary schools to participate in activities (such as

reading programs), or going to middle/high schools to speak, we will increase the appearances of Blues players at local schools.

• Youth Days at the arenao There will be designated days both in-season and off-season that will involve

inviting groups to Scottrade to tour the arena, meet players, and have skate time on ice. In-season games will showcase different youth hockey organizations and teams both on ice and over scoreboard/announcements.

Involvement in Philanthropic activities and local events

• Participating in existing local charitieso There are many local charities and events within the St. Louis area and we

need to make sure we have a presence at these events Local chapter of Ronald McDonald house Local chapter of the Salvation Army Greater St. Louis Community Foundation Variety the children’s charity of St. Louis Susan B. Komen Foundation

• Creating more Blue’s charity eventso In addition to participating in the existing charities, we will create different

events and programs Saint Louis Blues Charity Foundation Golf Tournament Movember – Mens Cancer Awareness month Food drive Toy drive Blood drives (more below)

Enable more access of players and organization to the public by organizing Blues related events.

• Warm-Up event similar to the Cardinals Winter warm-upo Summer Cool Down

Opportunity for fans to come and hear about the offseason changes, and the new direction of the organization

Meet players for autograph and Q&A sessions

• Meet and Greet eventso STH private practice eventso Youth and business tours of stadiumo Summer Cool Downo Blues and Blues night

Concert night with local blues musicians and a special talent show from the St. Louis Blues players.

o Skates and Plates charity gala The Blues will host our signature event, the Skates & Plates Charity

Gala, to benefit the St. Louis Blues Charity Foundation. Blues players will wear tuxedos and pass plates they greet guests and serve as waiters for the evening. Along with dinner, the event will feature silentand live auctions. Prizes will also be awarded to guests for the top tips collected by the players.

• Partnering with other sports teams in the area in their events and charitieso Anytime one of the local college hockey teams, the Rams or the Cardinals

have charity events, the Blues will have a presence. We will continue to promote that the Blues are a part of the sum of all of Saint Louis. Having strong professional ties with the other organizations in the area will help promote the Blues brand.

Overview of objective #3 – Re-appropriate payroll/budgetby 10% towards team management to improve team

Clean Organization HOUSE

• New Managemento It is clear that the current team management is not getting the job done with

regard to the results of the team. We need to hire established hockey minds and talent with proven track records of winning and rebuilding a Franchise

o Starts with the GM, Player Development, Coaching, and to some extent players.

o Both coaches and players will be evaluated to make sure they have the same philosophies and attitudes as the organization as we move forward.

o New Marketing/Advertising/Public Relations Bringing in people who have the hunger to build this franchise back to

the level the city of Saint Louis is accustomed to. Current regime is complacent and apathetic.

o New front office staff will be in place by May 1st.

Invest in player development

• Adding to the scouting departmento Will hire 8 more scouts and place in strategic locations

2 In upper Midwest – Dakota’s and Minnesota 1 In upper northeast 2 In new Canadian areas 3 more in Europe To have an overall better team, we need to continually place better

talent within our minor league system and the players we draft. By adding talented scouts who have proven eye for talent, we will be able to target better players.

• Continuity within the organization on direction and type of players that will be consistent for what we stand for.

o A coaching philosophy will be put in place and, we will need to fill the roster with players who fit that philosophy.

o Acquiring players/coaches who are blue collar works, with good reputations and strong characters. We cannot afford to have players who would be prone to bad decisions or getting into trouble. In this case all publicity is not good publicity.

o Place premium on training and coaching of minor league talent, making sure those players and coaches are prepared the best possible way to be ready to make an immediate impact for the Blue if needed.

• Sign franchise player/big name free agent to be the face of the organization and to help market and build the brand.

o The Blues have always had a face(s) (Bernie Federko, Brett Hull, Chris Pronger, Al MacIinnis) of the franchise and having someone of this stature canhelp create a lot of interest/buzz as well as help create a consistent brand/image for years to come.

o More money will be devoted to spending on one to two marquee free agents.

• Create an international presence to attract more top international talento Will organize hockey camps and tryouts in both Canada and Europe

Will have scouts and Blues ambassadors present for international league games/tournaments.

Budget:

Overall team operating budget will be 109 million

• Player Payroll/Expenses: 64 milliono Coaches: 3 milliono Staff: 1 milliono Players: 60 million

• Marketing Department: 32 milliono External Research – 1 million

Mailings – 500,000 Research Groups – 500,000

o Print Advertising – 4mil STL Post – 2.5mil College Newspapers – 500,000 RFT – 1mil

o Web Advertising/Account maintenance – 8 mil Social Media Ads (FB, Twitter, Google, YouTube, Hulu) 5mil Website Upgrades 500,000 Stltoday.com – 1.5mil St. Louis centric websites (Citysearch, YP.com, Explore Saint Louis) –

500,000 Local Websites (joesportsfan.com, Ilovesoulard.com

johnanddrew.com, PowerMizzou.com) – 500,000o Radio – 3mil

KMOV – 1mil 101.1 ESPN – 1 mil Other Radio – 1 mil

o TV Advertising – 12 mil

Fox Sports Midwest – 4.5 mil Charter Cable – 2 Mil KDNL (Abc) – 750,000 KSDK (NBC) – 1.5 mil KMOV (CBS) – 1 mil KTVI (FOX) – 1.5 Mil KPLR (CW) – 750,000

o External Advertising – 6 mil Billboards – 1 mil Transit Ads – 250,000 mil Ice Rinks in area – 250,000 mil College Arenas – 1.5 mil Busch Stadium – 1.5 mil Ed Jones Dome – 1.5 mil

• Ticket Operations – 1 milo Ticket Marketing

Social Coupon sites – $500,000 Outsourced Coupon Companies -- $500,000

• Community Relations and Charity Events: 10 milo Skates and Plates – 2 milo Charity Gala – 1.5o Toy Drive – 250,000 milo Food Drive – 250,000 milo Youth Camps – 1 milo Blues and Blues night – 1 milo School Appearances – 250,000o Golf Tournament – 1 milo Summer Cool Down – 500,000 milo Season Ticket holder meet and greets 250,000o Misc Events – 2 mil

• Arena Expenses/Upgrades: 11 milliono Ice Maintenance – 1 milo Suite Upgrades – 4 milo Concessions Operations – 2 milo Hall of Fame addition – 2 milo Misc Operation Expenses – 2 mil

• Front office and staff: 2 million

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

JanuaryIn season, list promotion events

FebruaryIn season list promo events

MarchIn season list promo events