Rebranding
Since 2019, MTS has successfully continued its transformation from a traditional telecommunications operator into a leading digital ecosystem. The Company’s historically developed status as an innovator in the field of cellular communications has provided us with a solid foundation for developing and transitioning to the creation of modern digital services.
During this time, we expanded our staff of IT specialists, introduced a product culture and simplified bureaucratic processes. This led to the successful launch of new digital services for both the B2B and B2C markets — KION, Lines, MTS Music, MTS Link, MTS Marketer. The 2023 rebranding was a smooth continuation and clear expression of our active transformation into an ecosystem.
The new visual style managed to reflect the variety of services that MTS currently provides while allowing each of them to build their own communication with the customer for better business performance.
Now the basis of MTS corporate identity is a dynamic and flexible logo, which contains all products and becomes the foundation for the visual system, while its left corner remains free for branding of individual services. The red color of MTS — the most recognizable brand element — has been preserved, but more diverse color solutions have been added to it. The MTS brand has retained its energy, emotionality and desire for change, but has become lighter, more empathetic and modern.
New MTS philosophy is embodied in its new products and services that help people change their routine and transform everyday life: discover new things, find creative solutions and gain unexpected experience.
MTS Mission:
We create technology and digital products to help people see more of the opportunities, ideas and ways to act all around.
MTS values, which are reflected in our work and the products we create
Make changes and get changed
We have never stood, do not stand and will not stand still. We are always striving to do things better and in a different way.
We create something that brings new experience, additional impressions to life and helps one look at handling tasks in a new way.
This is something that helps in everyday life and work and makes it more interesting and fulfilling.
Involvement
We do care about people, nature and living conditions in every part of Russia where we are present. We take an active part in using our capabilities and competencies to invest and develop those areas of life where support and involvement are needed.
Our own way
Stick to our vision and assess our capabilities with common sense and honesty. Strive to create something unique, rather than follow others, in order to bring novelty and diversity to people’s lives.
Fullness of life
We appreciate emotions, we are in love with life and work to make it full. We do everything with enthusiasm and delight. We strive to convey our drive, commitment and passion to customers, partners and employees.
Respect and partnership
We treat those with whom we work in a respectful way: customers, partners, colleagues. It means that we are open, honest, not trying to resolve issues only in our own favor. We want our interaction to leave a pleasant impression and a desire to continue cooperating.
Results
As a result of the rebranding, the brand image indicators improved:
- The rebranding was positively perceived by MTS customers and partners
- Perception of MTS as a digital ecosystem increased by 20 %
- Brand recognition in new advertising materials turned out to be higher than for the old brand – 89 % (for the new one) vs 82 % (for the old one); these indicators are unique for the market, as brand recognition usually decreases after rebranding until people get used to the new design
- Product reading in the new design is also higher – 41 % for the new brand vs 34 % for the old one. This means that the product itself has become more visible. Therefore, it will be able to build communications with the customer more efficiently and achieve better business results.
Logo Evolution
1993–2002. The first MTS logo demonstrates the abbreviated company name (Mobile Tele Systems). The letter S is depicted in both Latin and Cyrillic styles. The inscription “GSM” is intended to emphasize innovation, because mobile communication was just emerging at that time.
2002–2006. The logo was shown on a yellow SIM card as a symbol of the main attribute of mobile communication, which became more accessible to a wider audience at that time.
2006–2010. Significant and high-profile rebranding of the company, which allowed us to increase brand awareness to 90 % percent and differentiate ourselves from competitors as a courageous and leading operator. We used an image of an egg that very accurately revealed the essence of modern technology: external simplicity hiding the fascinating complexity of the content.
2010–2019. A number of logo restyling versions reflected modern design trends to match the spirit of a dynamic and leading company.
2019–2023. More noticeable restyling: the logo backing was removed, an additional logo with a stripe appeared. It was caused by the new brand strategy and the first digital products outside of telecom.
2023. The company stopped using the egg image. Now the visual style is based on a square. On the one hand, the new logo demonstrates the strength and stability of MTS. On the other hand, it is open, flexible and adaptive and reflects the key brand concepts: energy, willingness to change ourselves and make changes.
Drawing in honor of 30-th anniversary
In October 2023 MTS turned 30 years, and we launched a massive drawing of grand prizes from b2c-services to demonstrate the diversity of MTS ecosystem solutions. The key objective was to growth awareness of products and to raise loyalty of customers. The prize fund of the drawing comprises several million gifts — everyone received them, including MTS non-subscribers.
The participants won the prizes in the form of subscriptions to MTS services from various business verticals: using data-driven mechanics, we analyzed preferences of customers and selected gifts based on the current product profile of the customers. To state the content advantages of services, each product vertical also presented the prizes in the form of experiences unique for the market. Previously no brand had drawn such gifts on a similar scale: meetings with favorite writers from Stroki book service, autograph signing sessions with musicians from MTS Music, dream trips and weekends in hotels from MTS Travel, visit to a movie set and TV sets from KION, a meeting with the brand ambassador Dmitry Nagiev and many more prizes. We chose a wide list of celebrities that was interesting for the audience in order to most effectively cover all age groups of customers.
The launch was supported by the large-scale advertising campaign on TV, in digital, OOH, in bloggers, within special projects. The advertising campaign was implemented in several ages: at the first stage we focused on diversity of prizes from the digital ecosystem and guaranteed gifts for all participants of the drawing, at the second stage — explained every product vertical and exclusive gifts from it.
According to promo results, we achieved growth by image attributes of the digital ecosystem and improved loyalty of our customers. The number of the drawing participants exceeded 7.5 million people. The campaign stimulated the growth of connection of +1 service, by separate products the conversion into activation of guaranteed subscriptions was 85%. We were able to achieve the growth of loyalty among customers of My MTS app, which became the main point of entrance: the difference was 29 percentage points for direct comparison of NPS for those who participated and did not participate in the drawing.
Unique gifts in the form of experiences caused maximum involvement of the audience: the winners came to meet the celebrities from across the country, from Arkhangelsk to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
