Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Public Transit

TO:	Cliff Galante, Public Transit Administrator
FROM:	Emily Lubliner, Public Relations Specialist
DATE:	March 20, 2007
RE:	American Public Transportation Association Conference 2007

I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for encouraging my participation in the APTA Marketing and Communications Workshop. The chance to meet and learn from my professional peers at transit systems all over the U.S. was very valuable. Following are a few highlights from the workshop:

Marketing is everything. The opening session talked about how marketing is not just the logo you develop and the advertisements you place. It encompasses every interaction a customer has with our organization, from talking with someone on the phone to interacting with a bus driver. Every time someone comes into contact with the “T”, their impression either gets better or worse. These brand impressions add up to an impact on the bottom line of the system, illustrated by this line of progression: Customer beliefs à Customer action à Results.

Dealing with a fare increase. I participated in a roundtable discussion on fare increases, led by Cindy Baker of the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority. Some agencies say that routinely increasing the fare by small increments each year is good practice, rather than making large increases less frequently. The downside of frequent fare increases can be the cost of reprinting all the materials that show the fare. Someone said that it’s easier to market a fare increase if you’re improving service. Other tactics have been creating a day pass that has a low price and is a good value or looking at charging for transfers. A practical suggestion was offered for introducing fare increases at the beginning of the NTD reporting year to reduce complications.

Summer adventure pass. One transit agency shared an example of a promotion they did to attract youth riders. They offered a discounted summer adventure pass for the months of June, July, and August. A monthly pass would have cost $18, but this pass was $30 for the three months. Participating businesses offered discounts to pass holders, including the bowling alley, movie theater, and other kid-friendly places. At the end of the summer, kids turned in their passes for a prize drawing to win a restaurant gift certificate.

Marketing materials exchange. One afternoon of the conference, we had the opportunity to share materials and pick up ideas from other transit agencies. I shared our annual report, route maps, and Carpool Connection bookmark and came back with a bag full of examples from other places. I picked up some great ideas for route maps and other promotional materials.

Because this conference was targeted specifically to marketing issues for public transportation, I thought it provided a great learning opportunity. I met many of my peers who share similar challenges and discovered resources available to the Transit System.