Pre-paid becomes marketing tool

Pre-paid recharge vouchers have emerged as an advertising opportunity for those who want to reach mass market audiences in South Africa, including millions of people living in townships, informal settlements and rural communities around the country.

That’s according to Wayne Miller, head of Blue Label Media, a subsidiary of Blue Label Telecoms, which offers advertising that reaches the millions of South Africans who rely on pre-paid vouchers to recharge their cellular airtime and electricity.

This advertising platform allows advertisers to print a marketing message or call to action on pre-paid airtime and electricity vouchers distributed through Blue Label Telecoms, one of the largest producers of recharge vouchers in South Africa.

This form of advertising is cost-effective, immediate and impactful, says Miller, making it a perfect option for a wide range of brands and organisations. This relatively unsung form of advertising has a mass market reach almost wider than any other form of media in South Africa. Blue Label distributes some 100 million pre-paid vouchers every month, reaching an LSM 1-8 audience with its products.

‚”The average pre-paid mobile customer buys between three and six prepaid recharge vouchers per month, making these vouchers a prime slice of advertising real estate. These customers can be reached with a three-side, full-colour advertisement for as little as 12 cents per voucher,‚” says Miller.

‚”This makes it convenient and economical to reach low and mid-income South Africans, including those that don’t have easy access to TV, newspapers or the Internet. We provide a medium that offers more immediacy and a higher level of engagement than traditional advertising, in a format that drives a response from consumers. This environment gives you uncluttered exposure of your brand message, driving significant return on investment,” says Miller.

Pre-paid voucher advertising delivers a message to a customer as he or she recharges airtime or electricity, as eyeball fall is immediate. Blue Label Media can offer national, provincial or regional campaigns, so that brands can talk to either one of the biggest mass market audiences in the country, or to a specific geographic market.

Blue Label’s vouchers are sold through cash and carry outlets, wholesalers, retail outlets, hair salons, train stations, spaza shops, shebeens, and filling stations. The vouchers also reach markets that are more difficult to reach otherwise, such as remote rural areas and informal settlements.

With other companies in the Blue Label stable, clients are able to make use of Blue Label’s messaging aggregation and creative resources, adding up to a complete solution for mobile marketing.

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