redBus launches ad campaign for the season

redBus, India’s largest online bus ticketing platform, announces the launch of a pertinent ad campaign at the start of the festive season amid a widely anticipated boom in domestic travel, triggered by a seemingly waning pandemic. The campaign outlines the differences in traveler experience when booking a bus seat using traditional offline methods and while booking online on redBus.

The commencement of the festive season in India in October also ushers in the travel season, with people undertaking travel to attend the festivities at their home towns and visit their relatives and friends. The festivals of Durga Ashtami, Dussehra, Eid, and Diwali are expected to witness the homecoming of millions of people. 

In order to capitalize and cater to the higher intent for travel during this period, redBus has developed this ad campaign, giving a strong build-up to aspects such as traveler comfort and convenience, made possible by using redBus’ online platforms for bus ticket booking. Accordingly, the campaign delivers its message through a narrative that espouses satirical eloquence for deeper impact in the form of two 30-second ad-films that call out the ‘Natak’ or the dramatic battles travelers endure when trying to get a seat using traditional offline methods. The first of the two commercials has just been launched, with the second one slated to be released a couple of weeks later.

 

Speaking on the launch of the campaign, Prakash Sangam, CEO, redBus, said, “With inter-city bus travel getting back on track with each passing day, the upcoming festive season will be a catalyst for greater recovery and return to normalcy, making this is a very crucial phase for the sector. While online booking of seats has witnessed widespread acceptance over the last 18 months for the convenience and benefits it offers, we are looking at inculcating this habit among a significant base of travelers who use traditional offline methods of ticket booking.  Our campaign, therefore, portrays the hardships associated with non-digital methods aptly, to urge them to try redBus. We would like to wish everyone a very happy and safe festive season.”

Added Pallavi Chopra, Sr Vice President, Brand, and Head of Marketing, redBus, “Our brand campaign makes metaphorical illustrations of the struggles of bus travelers in reference to traditional or offline methods of seat booking, depicting it as a drama to demonstrate the benefits of booking online on redBus. As such, it resonates well with the populace that will relate to it readily and appreciate our proposition. The messaging is simple and straightforward and compares the drama of offline vs online, to help achieve high recall and make us the platform of choice for travelers looking forward to visiting and spending festive occasions with their families.”   

Dileep Ashoka, EVP, McCann South, said, “The problem of booking a bus ticket at the retail counter and the anxiety to get the seat of one’s choice is nothing short of a drama. To show the plight of a pain-conditioned traveler, we chose TABLEAUX as a treatment and demonstrated the pain in a theatrical manner. The lyrics and music further amplify this, thus making for an entertaining and memorable piece of communication.”

redBus is focusing on a combination of electronic and digital mediums to take the campaign to the homes and mobile devices of millions of people across the country. Accordingly, the ad films will appear on national and regional TV channels & Social media platforms, till the end of the festive season around Diwali. 

The upcoming festival of Dussehra has already begun witnessing higher demand in bus ticket bookings, with the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi, leading the nation in bookings. With 70% of the adults in the country vaccinated with at least the first dose, redBus expects the spike in travel to continue all the way up to the end of the year and beyond.   

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