Throughout two phases of renovations at Oshkosh Sports Complex (OSC), Integrated Marketing and Communications worked closely with the Athletics Department and UW Oshkosh Foundation — first to raise awareness of the project in order to maximize donations to complete the building projects and, second, to market the state-of-the-art, multi-sport facilities for national and international competitions.

In all promotional materials, IMC underscored key messaging with bold, energy-inducing images that highlighted the variety of sports that are played at the OSC. Advertisements emphasized the injury-reducing artificial turf that comprises J. J. Keller Field as well as the Olympic-quality outdoor track.

The cornerstone piece of the OSC campaign was an oversized tri-fold designed to accommodate inserts. The “tri-fold” effectively paired concise, streamlined text with powerful imagery to illustrate the OSC’s evolution from the University’s football stadium to a community point of pride. Moreover, the photos supported the overarching theme that the Oshkosh Sports Complex is a partnership between the University, Oshkosh Area School District and Unified Catholic Schools of Oshkosh — not just a UW Oshkosh facility.

In spring 2008, IMC was called upon to develop a proposal for the St. Louis Rams, inviting the NFL team to use the OSC for its summer training camp. This collaboration spanned the campus community, including the Student Recreation and Wellness Center, Reeve Memorial Union and Residence Life, with the Vice Chancellor for Administrative Services managing logistics and gathering information for the text.

While the Rams elected not to use the OSC for its 2008 training camp, Rams representatives were impressed by the sheer amount of pertinent information included as well as the art, which focused not only on University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, but also the Rams organization itself. The proposal now stands as a template for future solicitations.

In addition to a comprehensive media strategy, which included press releases and announcements in UW Oshkosh Today, a postcard invitation to the ribbon-cutting ceremony was created and distributed to the campus community, the partnering high schools and community members who live near the complex.

The ceremony attracted a sizable crowd of attendees as well as representatives of print and broadcast media.