TULSA, Okla. — Feb. 15, 2008 — ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE: OKE) today announced that it is launching a print and television advertising campaign in Oklahoma to build brand awareness and increase name recognition and recall.
"The ONE in Energy" campaign capitalizes on the "one" in the company's name and targets key ONEOK stakeholders -- current, past and potential employees, local and state policy makers and opinion leaders, energy producers and customers, business leaders and the general public.
"While we've had the name ONEOK since the early '80s, public recognition of the name and company would make you think otherwise," said John W. Gibson, ONEOK chief executive officer. "As employees, we all know how to pronounce ONEOK [pronounced one-oak]. Those outside of the company, however, seem to have some difficulty. This advertising campaign seeks to change that."
The campaign, which launches Saturday, focuses on ONEOK as a reliable, diversified energy company. Visual imagery includes practical, everyday uses of natural gas and the warmth and comfort it provides, and the campaign incorporates the company's growing natural gas liquids business' contribution to the quality of everyday life. The correct pronunciation of ONEOK is included in each print ad and television commercial.
"This is an important step for us as a company," said Gibson. "We have more than 100 years of history, and it's time that we're recognized for our commitment to our employees, customers, communities and investors, and the value we create for all of them.
"In many ways, we're a stranger in our own hometown. When our Oklahoma employees tell people they work for ONEOK, they are usually met with a look of confusion. It's only after they tell people that ONEOK's the parent company of Oklahoma Natural Gas that the name registers. If nothing else, we hope the campaign will build a sense of pride among our employees and awareness of the company in the communities where they live and work," he added.
The Oklahoma advertising campaign will run through the end of the year in Tulsa and Oklahoma City newspapers, the state editions of national news and sports magazines, local and cable television news programming including CNN and CNBC, as well as in selected entertainment and sports TV programming. The television time slots and outlets were chosen based on the most efficient and effective way to reach key audiences.
To view the television spots and print ads, visit the ONEOK Web site: www.oneok.com.
ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE: OKE) is a diversified energy company. We are the general partner and own 45.7 percent of ONEOK Partners, L.P. (NYSE: OKS), one of the largest publicly traded limited partnerships, which is a leader in the gathering, processing, storage and transportation of natural gas in the U.S. and owns one of the nation's premier natural gas liquids (NGL) systems, connecting much of the natural gas and NGL supply in the Mid-Continent with key market centers. ONEOK is among the largest natural gas distributors in the United States, serving more than 2 million customers in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas. Our energy services operation focuses primarily on marketing natural gas and related services throughout the U.S. ONEOK is a Fortune 500 company.
For information about ONEOK, Inc. visit the Web site: www.oneok.com.