That Poles willingly and frequently use public transportation has been known for a long time. According to the "Busradar" report from 2019, 88.7% of us use public transport, and more than a quarter do so every day or almost every day. We use public transportation primarily because it is convenient for us and has a good network of connections, especially in large urban centers.
Advertising in Public Transportation
The popularity of public transportation among passengers has not gone unnoticed by advertisers seeking opportunities to reach the many people using public transport. Inside public transport vehicles (buses, trams, trains), numerous advertising media appear, and the visibility of advertisements on these platforms is very high: as many as 67.39% of people notice advertisements inside means of transport.
What Advertising Media Are Used Inside Public Transport Vehicles?
For years, advertisers have been familiar with special frames used to display advertising posters, most commonly in A3 format. In some transit companies, it is also possible to use frames of a different format located above the exit doors. This horizontal format requires slightly different message design.
There are also campaigns where advertisements (in the form of posters or stickers) are placed on the backs of seats, ensuring that passengers seated have the message right in front of their eyes. Such a campaign was carried out in 2024 by the Business Consulting agency for the Historical Museum of the City of Krakow. It was a long-term initiative promoting various events and exhibitions organized by the Museum in different months. Stickers placed on the backs of tram seats advertised, among others, the exhibitions “Underground Market,” “Strong Women,” and “Rebellion.”
Inside public transport vehicles, advertisers also have access to a network of digital media in the form of LCD screens, which display not only important information and announcements for passengers but also advertisements. LCD monitors are an ideal response to the expectations declared by respondents regarding advertising. According to the 2024 report by the Inbound Marketing Institute (CAWI, N=1002), advertising should be credible and entertaining. Realism and entertainment are the two words respondents used to describe their expectations for advertising.
Advertising on LCD monitors combines informative and entertaining content, allowing travelers to better remember the details of the message compared to traditional, non-digital formats.
LCD screens are an advertising medium gaining popularity and attracting significant interest from advertisers. This should come as no surprise, as this medium holds enormous communication potential. The main attributes of LCD monitors include:
- Attractive placement of screens inside vehicles (in passengers' line of sight)
- Dynamic content that grabs passengers' attention
- No "off" mode in the operation of screens (no possibility to turn off the advertisement)
- High repetition of broadcasts, which leads to reinforcement and better retention of the message
- The ability to prepare campaigns for any budget (even a one-day campaign is possible)
- The ability to launch campaigns on any day of the month
- Quick content/spot replacement in response to changing circumstances
- An environmentally friendly form of advertising
Business Consulting offers over 13,000 screens in public transport vehicles (in nearly 50 cities across Poland), where advertisements and other commercial messages targeted at passengers can be displayed. This attractive network of media allows for broad reach across a diverse audience, nearly 3.5 million people daily.
Many of our clients take advantage of this offer. Recently, we have implemented campaigns such as "European City of Science. Katowice 2024", "Vectra", "Media Markt", "Amazon Prime Video", "Climate for Generations", "Poland's Cultural Capital. Katowice 2027", "Samsung", "PNB Paribas", "HBO Max", "Orbit".
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