It is said that “A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.” Either way we look at it, BRT / LagBus have come to stay!

Like every form of advertising, advert reach in numbers should be considered while cost and demographic classification are also key in advertising.

As a mobile advertisement, you see BRT / LagBus running different routes in the metropolis. They stop at each designated bus terminal to drop and lift up passengers respectively. Many get stuck in traffic, some are chartered for religious or social events, few break down along the route due to mechanical fault, yet some others run a one-stop route from main terminal to the final destination.

The interesting feature about this is that whether you like whatever is advertised on the bus or not, it has a compelling way of drawing your attention as well as provoking your thoughts to whatever is being displayed. It is one aggressive marketing strategy for those hoping to rebrand businesses, launch new products, force new brands into the sub-consciousness of the average Lagosian as well as religious organisations planning a convention / revival programmes etc.

COMMON BRT ROUTES

Although BRT / LagBus initiative is not meant to take over the entire stretch of Lagos roads, 70 specific routes known to be chaotic and traffic prone were cut out to meet its purpose. The five major routes include:

· CMS - Ketu

· Maryland - Iyana Ipaja

· CMS – Lekki / Ajah

· Maryland – Ikotun / Igando

· Mile 12 – CMS



HOW IS BRT / LAGBUS ADVERTISEMENT DIFFERENT FROM NEWSPAPER, RADIO AND TELEVISION?

As mentioned earlier, advertising on BRT / LagBus is relatively cheap and reaches a wide range of people who would ordinarily not see your advert on TV, radio or newspaper. To clarify that statement, let us run a comparative analysis of daily rate card of three newspapers (coloured) to justify that statement.

Full Page (N) Half Page (N)
PUNCH 620,000 385,450
THE SUN 578,000 342,000
GUARDIAN 619,500 382,000

From the table above, we can see what an average full page / half page cost in the dailies. For the record, with the current deplorable state of the economy and the dwindling reading culture in the country, NO Nigerian newspaper can claim to sell 100,000 copies in a day. Yet your precious advert expires in 24 hours unless you book it concurrently.

Let us examine the pros and cons of premium airtime rate for television and radio.

Premium Rate For Radio
15’ 30’ 60’
BEAT FM 6,500 8,500 15,500
BRILA FM 6,500 9,500 15,000
INSPIRATION 7,085 8,874 13,865

The above rate is only for airtime alone, while every advertiser is expected to come with his own jingles with voice-overs which production alone ranges from N50,000 – N250,000 depending on quality, duration of jingles and negotiation reached. Secondly, for the advert to register into the subconscious minds of Nigerians, a serious advertiser knows that he needs to promote the jingles like three to ten times a day. That means multiplying the number of times by the fixed amount. Do the maths yourself...

Premium Airtime Rate For Television

15’ 30’ 45’ 60’
CHANNELS (6am – 3pm) 23,800 29,052 42,000 46,077
NTA (6.00am – 3.00pm) 10,000 18,000 20,000 25,000

As analysed under the radio premium rate, same thing applies here. Instead of jingles, you are expected to come up with a finished production (which cost varies, of course) before negotiating for the airtime. Just as explained in the former, for the advert to register into the subconscious minds of potential audience, advertisers know they need to promote the ad more than three times in a day. This also means multiplying the number of times by the fixed airtime rate.


HOW CHEAP EXACTLY IS BRT / LAGBUS ADVERTISEMENT COMPARE TO OTHER CONVENTIONAL ADVERTISEMENT MEDIA?
The cost of running an average advertisement on BRT / LagBus is pegged at N210,000 a bus per day (at the time of filing this report). What this connotes is that, regardless of the route, an advertiser is spending just N7,000 on a bus advertisement throughout the entire day. How does that sound?

Additional Benefits
· You might decide on the number of buses you hope to advertise vis-a-vis different route
· The stress of running after APCON, Lagos State Signage & Advertisement Agency (LASAA) and LAMATA will be taken care of at no extra fee.

· BRT / LagBus are great advertising platform that doesn’t require electricity, inverter or solar energy to pass its message

· Whichever side of the divide you are in traffic, you are bound to see the BRT / LagBus advertisement

· BRT / LagBus advert messages are clear and neatly branded
· BRT / LagBus has a general maintenance policy of cleaning advert materials on buses frequently
· Advertising on BRT / LagBus gives potential the luxury of maximising a 3-D dimensional space on each shuttle. Both sides of the bus measure 365 inches (length) X 54 inches (height) while the rear (including windscreen) measures 95 inches (length) X 58 inches (height).
· All advertisements on BRT / LagBus are insured against damages and vandalisation. Where such occurs, a replacement is made at no extra cost. Where else can you get that?


However, for an effective advertisement campaign plan, it is advisable that potential advertisers book for year or minimum of three months due to the limited number of BRT / LagBus carriages in Lagos.

Secondly, ad materials are produced and installed every quarter as the cost of producing and installing of a bus is N100,000. Of course, this cost would be bored by us as mentioned earlier.

Sidney Lanier, American musician and poet said: “If you want to be found, stand where the seeker seeks!”

If this prospect of advertising on BRT / LagBus in Lagos meets your demand, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

SOURCE: http:///1PMpufu