The power of taxi advertising gathers speed

Every so often someone, often with justification, attacks our national transportation system - taxis. People, believed to have a more universal understanding of the lack of public transportation other than taxis, such as underground railways and adequate bus services, are responsible for those attacks.

Is it possible that 10 full years after the birth of democracy these individuals have made little or no attempt to look further than their own leafy suburbs? Are they qualified to speak about a media type if they have no experience or knowledge of either the target market or of the environment in which the target market lives?

And commuters? Do they too form their ideas through tainted first world, "I must be the target market" sunglasses?

Let me unpack the box.

You are sitting all alone in the purified air of your "green friendly" BMW, frustrated because the new complex development on your way to work has added another 200 cars to the pile and the traffic is grid locked. Along comes a taxi with 18 occupants. They have all been up and commuting at least 2am already, and have no other choice than this form of public transport to get to and from work.

They use taxis for three main reasons: there is no other accessible and convenient form of transport; it is a cost effective way of travelling; and they have an enormous affinity for the taxi industry. This empathy has been created because of the effort that was put into establishing and growing this industry despite the negative attention and pressure that was placed on it by the previous government. This same government ensured there was no other fit alternative form of public transport or a structure with public transport lanes to be utilised by these vehicles.

But I digress.

So the taxi comes and overtakes you and the single-occupant Range Rover in front of you on the dirt shoulder where the public transport lane should have been. You throw your manicured hands in the air and cry foul. Don't get me wrong; we do not condone reckless driving and yes; it is frustrating - we all want to get home. But understand where the driver is coming from. The taxi industry works on profit margins that most industries would call unsustainable and these crazy tactics are borne from the necessity of keeping this important wheel in our economy moving.

Remember that inside this taxi are two thirds of the economically active population of this country. The workers in the vehicle are the same ones who would be facing your wrath if they arrived 20 minutes late for work. Do you think they are peeved about overtaking you on the left? Have a look at their faces next time.

"But they drive badly" you say, "look how many of them get killed every year in taxi accidents". In fact the statistics prove otherwise. Taxis remain the one of the safest ways to travel in South Africa. For every kilometre travelled in your sedan, you have more chance of being involved in a fatal accident than does a taxi commuter. In 1993 there were an estimated 22.2 fatalities for every 100 million vehicle kilometres travelled versus 7.56 for motorcars. Once you factor in the number of passengers per vehicle you are faced with the reality that per passenger kilometre travelled on South African roads, taxis are safer than cars (Arrive Alive Fatal Crash Statistics and Road Traffic Information).

ComutaNet introduced a Driver/Owner insurance scheme some three years ago and to date has only had to pay out four times. Considering the vast number of vehicles on our books, this too is an authoritative statistic.

Importantly though, our branded vehicles are selected on the basis that they are roadworthy and that they remain so throughout the campaign. All damage is required to be repaired within two weeks so that they can be re-applicated with the appropriate branding. We have invested heavily into a national infrastructure to be able to manage this process effectively. If we receive specific complaints about reckless driving, we refer these to the associations who then address these with the driver through disciplinary structures and revert back to us on the action taken.

I also don't buy the "I will never support brand X again because I saw an accident where brand X was involved" argument. Firstly, there are not that many accidents of this nature as proven by the independent statistics. Secondly, if every negative emotion was attached to whatever commercial message was vaguely attached to it at the time, there would be no advertising. Do you give yourself the undertaking not to buy a luxury sedan every time one of those overtakes you in the left lane? Do you swear never to buy baked beans because a truck with cans of the stuff lost its load on the highway and caused a pile up?

In the final analysis what we end up with is as follows: some 12 million people who appreciate what the taxi industry means to them and their journey into democracy, the majority of whom feel even more positively about branded vehicles (Markinor 2003).
We have major brand marketers who through their support of taxi advertising understand this and who through their support are indeed making a positive contribution to the industry. This support is not only in direct monetary benefit to the industry, but also through the promotion of better driving via our direct links with the market."