Giving an established brand a new look is not to be taken lightly. Fortunately, mail can be a great way to make the transition a bit smoother.

As the new century dawned, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority was beset by image problems, not the least of which was its name. “It’s six long words that ends in ‘authority,’” says Michael Lejeune, the county agency’s creative director. “That’s about as cold, unfriendly and bureaucratic as you can get.” The organization’s old nickname, MTA, didn’t inspire much excitement either, he says. A worse problem, however, was declining ridership. Though more than 1 million Angelenos board county buses every weekday (with another 300,000- plus taking the Metro Rail lines), only 10 percent of area commuters were taking public transportation. “We need people to choose public transportation, because getting more people out of their single driver habit is key to improving,” Lejeune says. Sensing a connection between the drab image and limited ridership, officials at the transportation agency launched a full-on, multichannel rebranding campaign. This included a new emphasis on the popular name for the company, “Metro.” “All over the world, ‘metro’ means movement,” Lejeune says. “Think of the Paris Metro or the Washington Metro. The word is shorter, friendlier and feels right.” In addition, the agency repainted its buses and launched ads across multiple channels. A redesign of the old logo, which already incorporated the “Metro” term, completed the rebrand. And to get out lengthier messages about the rebranding campaign, Metro turned to mail, sending out thousands of brochures and calendars to riders and employees to heighten awareness of its latest moves and, as Lejeune says, “to entice residents to try it.” Though mail is traditionally associated with direct marketing, the Metro campaign is one of many recent efforts that illustrate how major marketers also are embracing mail to help them rebrand their companies. Since a rebrand can be potentially confusing for consumers and even employees, marketers ranging from big-box stores to restaurant chains to municipal agencies are relying on mail marketing for its ability to convey substantive messages about a rebrand quickly and easily. Rerouting perceptions In the case of Metro, Lejeune and his team sent out more than 160,000 brochures to residents within a half-mile of its Orange Line route. The four-color brochures contained information about the new Orange Line route and, in an appeal to eco-conscious Angelenos, about Metro’s new high-tech/low-emissions buses. The agency also coordinated its mailings with other ad channels. For instance, Metro last year began mailing calendars that promoted a campaign dubbed “Opposites,” originally launched in outdoor media. Featuring a stark black-and-white design scheme, the outdoor campaign showcases transportation problems and solutions. For example, one ad features a silhouette of a gas pump with the word “problem,” while an opposing image of the Metro logo bears the word “solution.” Metro mailed about 4,000 “Opposites” calendars to 600 of its Employee Transportation Coordinators — volunteers at private companies who educate employees about transit options, promote ridesharing and work with Metro to get the latest on its programs and services. Metro also created 10-second drive spots for local radio, ran twice-monthly insertions in more than 60 smaller papers around L.A. County and posted online banner ads on its site and high-traffic local sites. So far, the campaign is working. Average weekday ridership on Metro Rail had jumped more than 40 percent by late 2008, and bus ridership on various Metro color-coded lines increased around 10 percent. Meanwhile, Lejeune and the Metro creative department have even captured prestigious awards for the rebrand. “The recognition has been very exciting for us,” Lejeune says. “It’s a validation that we’re doing good work.” Of course, Metro isn’t the only organization or business benefiting from the integration of mail into its rebrand. High steaks Take Cincinnati restaurateur Jeff Ruby. Fueled by his own larger-than-life image, Ruby built a culinary empire on what is known as “The Jeff Ruby Experience” — a combination of award-winning steakhouse cuisine, VIP service and upscale ambience. It’s a formula that initially came together in his flagship venue, Jeff Ruby’s Precinct, which has attracted world- renowned entertainers, pro athletes and other luminaries for decades. Problem was, as recently as a few years ago, many Midwestern food lovers were unaware that the five-star Ruby dining experience could also be enjoyed at more than just his namesake locations, including The Waterfront (a floating steak and lobster house with a Miami– South Beach vibe and raw bar) and Carlo & Johnny (situated in an old Cincinnati casino and Mafia hangout). Each restaurant has its own unique aesthetic, menu and patrons, but the company wanted to expand its brand equity to encompass the entire family of eateries. “The challenge was coming up with a unifying theme while continuing to promote these restaurants individually so that they’re able to live on their own,” says Ben Stallard, who worked with the Ruby organization to guide the rebrand. “We asked ourselves whether Jeff Ruby Culinary Entertainment would be better served operating as a branded house or a house of brands.” After some careful consideration, Stallard pitched a simple idea: bolster the umbrella brand under which all Ruby restaurants would fall. Thus, an upscale steakhouse like Carlo & Johnny would become Jeff Ruby’s Carlo & Johnny. “There was this huge piece of equity that the company owned in ‘The Jeff Ruby Experience,’ but people on the street would talk about it in pieces,” Stallard says. “What we did was put it all together, articulating that Ruby brings his dining experience to every property he owns. To communicate that message, we agreed on a hybrid solution: It would be best if Jeff Ruby’s became a branded house of brands.” They also determined that direct mail was one of the ideal channels to use to get out word about the rebrand. As part of the seven-month initiative, Jeff Ruby Culinary Entertainment developed a list of people who had recently moved to the Cincinnati area and sent them cards hand signed by the general manager of a particular Ruby’s restaurant. The cards were die cut into oval shapes featuring Jeff Ruby’s new logo on the front. Inside, recipients were treated to brilliant, four-color romance shots and food photographs. “The messaging was ‘Welcome to the neighborhood, come in, ask for me (the general manager) and let me introduce you to the Jeff Ruby Experience’,” Stallard says. “It proved very successful, with people new to the area appreciating the outreach.” Further leveraging direct mail, Ruby pored over his private data, including his own mailing list, customer comment cards and promotions redemptions. The restaurateur then partnered with a national luxury-brands direct marketer that mails packets of gift certificates to patrons. Ruby’s specified that it wanted to focus on recipients who had not recently visited a Ruby’s restaurant. The standard postcardsized gift certificates, included in a packet of similar offers from other upscale brands, invited customers to visit a specific Jeff Ruby’s restaurant to take advantage of the special offer. Though Stallard declined to specify just how many direct mailers were sent out (he would only say that they mailed “thousands” of cards and invitations), he notes that the combination of Ruby’s private customer data, the mailing list of recent Cincinnati residents and direct helped Jeff Ruby focus his marketing outreach plan. “Instead of using only mass media like TV and radio to reach our target group, we identified direct as one of the most effective ways to reach them,” Stallard says. “We were able to develop messaging much more specific to the wants, needs and mindsets of the people who drive our business. Direct is a tool that savvy organizations can use to be much more selective, focused and efficient. “The Jeff Ruby brand has a comprehensive base to work from when it expands,” Stallard says. “People won’t have to wonder each time ‘What does this place stand for?’ If it’s a Jeff Ruby restaurant, they’ll know what it stands for.” B-to-C Marketing, Brand Marketing, Case Studies, Large Business