Summary:
We worked with BaseballSoftballUK (BSUK) between June 2014 and April 2015 to support them on a number of key delivery areas. We began the work by reviewing the national participation programme offer that BSUK were using as the foundation of their drive to increase the number of people playing the sport. Alongside this, we worked with BSUK on their marketing and communications strategy.
Approach:
The review was completed over the summer and a clear way forward was identified via a brand-new participation programme: Hit the Pitch. Hit the Pitch is an all-encompassing offer that provides a simple and structured way for organisations to engage with the sports of baseball and softball. We worked with BSUK for a further 6 months after the review to project manage the implementation of the new programme. Management and support ranged from establishing a new brand for the programme, to designing and developing a new website, to staff training and developing all the guidance and communication documents needed in order for the programme to be a success. The work culminated to the launch of the programme in April 2015 in London.
Additionally, the programme included the development of the new Hit the Pitch Activator course, which is a 3-hour course that teaches people the basics of the game and how to facilitate the game. Hit the Pitch Activator course is being delivered across the country by Sport Structures as part of the education services contract with BSUK. Moreover, when developing the marketing strategy, we ran consultation workshops, examined the market segments associated with the sport as well as working alongside the baseball and softball team to understand the needs of the organisation. The strategy outlines the overall approach that the BaseballSoftballUk NGB should strive for in the future and provides useful toolkits that form an easy reference guide for day-to-day marketing and communications.
Outcome:
The relationship between us and NSUK has been a huge success as BSUK have rated us highly based on the service we provided and reported that they would definitely use our services again in the future due their needs being met through our involvement.