Strange, I thought, as I ordered my Windhoek Lager and asked him what he meant... Something stronger with the Cola, maybe, like a double Captain Morgan, but how come a simple Coke?
He had worked it all out.
The 'Coca-Colas' were far more dangerous than the 'Yogisips' or the 'Fruitrees'. And worst of all, were the 'Love Life's'. He surmised that the message had somehow permeated the medium and that the drivers of the medium were involved in some sort of transference as well. Perhaps the fact that Coca-Cola were very aggressive marketers and that Love Life is a "do good" campaign, had something to do with it all. He was talking about minibus taxi advertising of course.
I chimed in that perhaps the driving habits were in fact paid for. Think about it, a normal, well driven vehicle does not generate any particular interest. Put a vehicle in your way, jump the queue, or the red light, stop where no-one should stop and you get noticed. Hoot incessantly and heads will turn.
Perhaps the taxi advertising guys have got a deal with the drivers... the more obnoxious and the worse their driving, the more they get paid to carry wrap-around messages. Certainly this is one way of explaining the phenomenon of bad driving by taxi drivers?!
I made a mental note to contact Brian Linquist at Commutanet to check whether this was in fact policy and, if not, to think about it. It would certainly improve their bottom line.
Topco Media 7 hours
