Another vendor deal to announce: the Tampa Bay Rays have teamed up with Daktronics to improve game-day graphics at Tropicana Field, while enhancing the fan experience.
“Daktronics Creative Services was great to work with and provided our team with really incredible creative output,” said Darcy Raymond, Tampa Bay Rays vice president, marketing and entertainment. “We let them know our strategy and vision which they brought to life so we could visually see words like ‘energy,’ ‘magic’ and ‘community’ in the graphics they produced. When we gave them our ideas they always worked with us to develop them, delivered on time and provided even more than we asked for. That teamwork provided us with an extra level of trust and we’re extremely excited with the final results.”
The success of the digital assets can be traced back to the early start of conversations back in November 2014, although the season didn’t start until this April, and the tight collaboration between the Rays and Daktronics throughout the entire process.
“The Rays were very interested in being closely involved in the creative process,” said Daktronics Creative Director Bob Lee. “They did a great job of sharing their creative goals, what they were looking for and who they are. Then we were able to bring their visions, ideas and goals together to creatively represent their overall brand in the final product.”
“Anytime we have the opportunity to work so closely with a customer to participate in brainstorming together with all sides listening and providing input, it ensures that we will have a positive result in the end and that their vision is completely realized,” added Lee.
One of those completely realized visions is apparent in the two minute opening feature. It pays homage to the previous feature that was produced by Daktronics Creative Services in 2007 while also incorporating the local community and diverse fan base as they come together to support their team’s quest for victory.
“They took our logo and created a great story with it,” added Raymond. “And working with those creative elements throughout all of our graphics package, they brought our game-day production to the fully integrated place we’re in right now where every piece has a purpose.”
Other content produced for the Rays includes player introduction and headshot pieces, game matchups, logo treatments, special presentations, mascot pieces, and a graphics toolkit.
“We focused our creative pieces on organic elements including flares and nebulas of energy to help represent the Rays’ brand and to connect all of the pieces of the story together,” said Monte Ford, Art Director for Daktronics Creative Services.