Developing a venue’s digital space – site unseen – had its challenges, but our digital and creative teams made it happen by leveraging the spirit and legacy of one of baseball’s most beloved teams.

 
As unshakable fans of the legendary St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, Switch was ecstatic to design and implement a customer-facing online presence for the launch of Cardinals Nation, a 30,000 square foot venue spanning three levels. Anchored in Ballpark Village, a new dining and entertainment district framing the renowned St. Louis Cardinals stadium, Cardinals Nation features a two-story restaurant and bar, Cardinals Authentic Shop, Cardinals Museum and Hall of Fame and the AT&T rooftop deck, which can seat more than 300 during baseball games and special events.At the start of this project, Ballpark Village was still under construction, but the St. Louis community had been awaiting the anticipated addition to the ballpark grounds for years.

Client Deliverables

  • Cardinals Nation microsite design
  • Procurement of web domain
  • Website copy

Objective of the site

The goal for the online presence of Cardinals Nation was to create a digital presence that would serve as a resource for the target audience, Cardinal baseball fans and St. Louis tourists.

Internet users increasingly prefer to research a restaurant or venue before venturing out. It’s a form of preparation that has only been made possible in the Internet age. The microsite facilitates this practice by featuring detailed information about parking, hours for each branch of Cardinals nation, restaurant menu, ability to purchase rooftop tickets and a visual insight into the shopping experience. Assigning each core component its own page, we captured the spirit of Cardinals Nation in words and images, initiating a digital connection between Cardinals fan and venue.

Overall, we wanted to introduce the sophisticated family environment steeped in an authentic St. Louis Cardinals setting. It wasn’t just a restaurant or just a Cardinals gear shop; Cardinals Nation is an authentic, nostalgic ballpark experience that can be enjoyed year-round and for decades to come.

Challenges

An initial challenge was representing a venue that would not be fully constructed until after the website launch. With no photos to reference, we had to rely on computerized renderings to visualize the look and imagine the ambiance of the space. Another challenge was the absence of a defined brand. While Cardinals Nation did not have a full brand identity guide, there existing logos and colors. We were challenged to use those elements to create an overall look on the website that would translate into the menu design and print ads.

Overview

Designed for fans to connect to Cardinal history and the current team, Cardinals Nation needed a site that would draw online visitors to the physical venue. The multi-tiered, multi-functional site conveys the brand’s celebration of baseball, welcomes family, friends and fans to the location, and perpetuates the spirit of St. Louis.

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