• Ad Age , Monday, October 6, 2008 11:15 AM

The Tampa Bay Rays, which are one victory away from playing in the American League Championship Series after years of less-than-mediocre performance, have gone through more than good, old-fashioned product improvement, a name change, and new uniform colors on their way to respectability this year.

The Rays have gone through a Procter & Gamble-style treatment of their brand, complete with a mantra of five "brand pillars" and 30 carefully monitored consumer touch points that help the team measure consumer satisfaction.

"It's a lot like what P&G does with brand-equity models," says Darcy Raymond, who worked on fabric softeners and panty liners at Procter & Gamble and is the team's VP for branding and fan experience. "We know when our cleaning scores dip or when our security wasn't helpful enough."

The Rays have also taken a more microtargeted approach with sponsorships crafting, for example, a "Take a Player to School Day" for a local cell phone provider looking to target moms. Sponsorship sales are up nearly 35% this season and could double next year.

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