MLB: This is Beyond Baseball
March 27, 2009 by Kori Ellis
Filed under Marketing
Major League Baseball is launching a new marketing campaign, “This is Beyond Baseball.” The campaign will kick off with a 30 minute TV special of the same name, narrated by legendary broadcaster Vin Scully. The program will air on March 29 at 8:00 p.m. on the MLB Network.
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The league says the campaign will “celebrate baseball’s unique place in the cultural fabric of society and in the lives of fans.” With baseball constantly in the news for the steroid scandal in recent years, the league looks to get back to its roots as America’s pastime and a family game.
The marketing campaign and program are divided into four segments–family, ballparks, community and culture. The family segment features interviews with players and their families. The ballpark segment looks at stadiums that have become icon fixtures to their cities. The community segment highlights MLB’s community efforts with the Boys and Girls Club and Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI). And finally the culture segment talks about baseball’s impact and influence in cultural and societal issues, from Jackie Robinson to 9/11.
The campaign will have online elements on MLB.com, as well as television commercials on regional sports networks, local carriers and national networks (FOX, TBS and ESPN).
The game of baseball has been tarnished by years of scandal, and attendance and viewership has definitely suffered. This campaign aims to renew public interest and faith in the sport by getting back to the basics that made it popular in the first place.
This is a smart move. The average internet savvy person probably can tell you 5 players who’ve been implicated in a steroid scandal but couldn’t tell who holds the record for career strikeouts.
It’s a shame because baseball is built around stats and accomplishments, not around scandalous behavior. If MLB wants to attract more fans and keep the currently jaded fans they really need to bring the game back to its roots.