brand campaign
problem | Develop the yearly brand campaign for Notre Dame Athletics that tells the story of the 2023-24 athletics year. The brand theme must clearly encompass all 26 varsity sports, resonate with student-athletes, coaches, and fans, and be easily adaptable to social media, video, digital advertising, in-venue call to actions, and apparel.
solution | Define what makes Notre Dame unique. The final theme is based on interviews with student-athletes and coaches across sports, as well as the culture of our fans: "what makes us Notre Dame is an unyielding and relentless pursuit of excellence."
The Theme: To be the FIGHTING Irish means more than fighting together as one, or fighting for each other. It speaks to an inner drive and resilience that defines us all: because we are All Grit, All Heart, and All Fight.
| part 01: presenting to the athletes |
problem | Athletes didn’t feel connected to previous themes, and had no idea that the brand themes applied to anyone other than football.
solution | After meeting individually with athletes and coaches from Women’s Basketball, Hockey, Volleyball, and Football, I came up with the concept of a brand box to present the final theme to each athlete through a premium experience. The box was personally addressed to them, with a note from the Athletic Director explaining “All Fight,” and a sport-specific note recapping the Vision Statement we wrote for each team based on their feedback. This was to reinforce that we listened to and valued what they told us.
I then pitched selling the concept to Dick’s Sporting Goods as a brand partnership in order to cover the full cost of the project. Executed in collaboration with Alessandra Dickos (partnerships), Rachel Pincus (photography), and the full Fighting Irish Media team.
| part 02: applying the theme |
"All Fight" was then carried out through production day set designs (for use in hype videos shown during games); a versatile but cohesive graphics package used across all twenty-six varsity sports; and "Irish Wear Green" apparel (a fan engagement initiative for the biggest home game for each sport) produced through a partnership with Under Armour.
production day set design
left: original set concept sketch. middle: set rendering. right: behind the scenes of set build.
Set design and concept Emma Schneider. Set construction led by Bo Savage, Jon Asher, Cody Baker, and Derek Coleman. Photography by Boston Logan. The football set was then deconstructed and components were used for other Notre Dame sports production days.
social media graphics across sports
All social media graphics shown above were designed by Notre Dame designers Jerry Maloney and Bo Savage. The goal was to give each sport a distinct look while still maintaining a single brand standard, in order to appear consistently and clearly "Notre Dame." Creative Direction by Emma Schneider.
"Irish Wear Green" apparel
left: Notre Dame Football head coach Marcus Freeman wearing All Fight apparel on the weekly Notre Dame Coach's podcast. right: All Fight t-shirt sold at retail in advance of Notre Dame Football vs. Ohio State
a little more on how we did it:
After conducting research within the athletic department, developed an in-depth creative brief to define the project. I then convened a committee of 13 stakeholders across athletics communications, partnerships, brand, fan experience, video, and social media to provide input and ultimately select the final theme. Interviewed student-athletes and coaches across multiple sports to get insight into the Notre Dame experience.
I served as project lead, in charge of project management and creative direction. Collaborated with the overall Fighting Irish Media department in the brainstorm of over 200 potential themes, allowing the full team to feel included in the process. Lead my team of 4 designers in the creation of over 100 logo sketches before choosing a final theme and design.
key aspects of my role: overall creative direction, project management, final logo design, final theme copywriting/story, theme presentation to athletics department, brand box concept design and execution, set design, apparel design, creative direction of social media graphics