The St. Paul Companies Launches $20 Million Corporate Branding Campaign; Effort is Largest in 146-Year-Old Insurance Firm's History.

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 27, 1999--

The bland world of insurance advertising gets a breath of fresh air as The St. Paul Companies (NYSE: SPC) launches its largest marketing communications effort ever today.

Created by national marketing communications agency Campbell Mithun Esty (CME), the $20 million campaign uses visual metaphors to humanize intangibles such as trust and integrity. The integrated campaign includes television, print, direct mail and Internet components.

The new work is the first major corporate branding initiative in the company's 146-year history, and comes after The St. Paul spent more than a year refocusing its business on commercial property-liability insurance. It's also the result of an extensive analysis of The St. Paul's market position.

According to Karen Himle, senior vice president-corporate affairs for The St. Paul, the investment in brand-building communications is a concerted effort to increase awareness and recognition levels following a period of sharpened corporate focus.

"For a century and half, we've quietly gone about the business of providing insurance," Himle explains. "As a result, surprisingly few people know our name, even though we are one of the top insurance providers in the world. In today's competitive, global marketplace, brand-building takes on mounting importance - even in the traditionally conservative world of property and liability insurance."

"Building a brand makes buying decisions easier for customers," adds Bruce Martin, the company's vice president of corporate marketing. "It improves efficiencies of marketing expenses across business units; and it facilitates the sales process for our independent agents."

Advertising for the financial services industry has exploded in recent years, exceeding $776 million in the first half of 1999, up 16.6 percent from the previous year. Despite, or perhaps because of, the added clutter, Martin contends The St. Paul's ads are distinctive for the category.

The integrated campaign consists of two striking :30 TV spots and five equally dramatic black-and-white print executions. A direct mail campaign targeting agents and brokers, and an updated web site extend The St. Paul's brand-building reach.

In "Rhino," the :30 TV spot which kicks off the campaign, a young girl brings trust to life as she stands unflinchingly while a 4,500-pound rhino stampedes directly toward her. In the end, the rhino comes to a dramatic stop inches from the girl, then patiently waits as she proceeds to give the beast a gentle kiss.

A second TV commercial, "Confidence," joins the mix in early October. Both spots will air in rotation on network and cable TV during programming such as Monday Night NFL Football, CNN Headline News and CNBC's Marketwatch.

The broadcast campaign is supported by an extensive print media schedule. Five print executions in page and spread formats will rotate through business and news magazines such as Newsweek, Time, Business Insurance and The Wall Street Journal. The first to appear, "Rhino," breaks in Time in late September. This print execution focuses on trust and features a young girl kissing a massive rhino.

Subsequent print ads "Bench" and "Foot" use impactful visuals to emphasize that The St. Paul does what is right in the face of uncertainty and views the unique needs of all business segments as equally important.

In "Window Washer," which features a lone window washer against the backdrop of an immense building complex, the idea of partnership is clearly communicated in the single line: "You are by yourself. But you are not alone."

"Stairs" completes the five initial print executions and centers on the idea of insight. Photography for the ad, shot at the historic Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, shows a staircase, but from the vantage point shown it is impossible to ascertain up from down. Accompanying copy describes the importance of an insurance partner who respects each company's point-of-view.

The CME creative team included Executive Creative Director George Halvorson; Copywriter Reid Holmes; Art Director Bob Brihn; Print Producer Renee Loso and Executive Producer John Borchardt.

The St. Paul Companies, headquartered in St. Paul, Minn., is a group of companies providing property-liability insurance, reinsurance and life insurance products and services worldwide. The St. Paul ranked No. 171 on the Fortune 1000 list of largest U.S. companies.