Building discerning brands requires more than just marketing, it requires creativity, emotional intelligence and courage as postulated by varying brand analysts, which is what Fanta, a fruit-flavored carbonated soft drink from the stable of the Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited (CCNL) is currently doing with the branding of the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) across the city of Lagos.

This is the next phase in Fanta’s new thematic campaign tagged; ‘Play’ its natural” which was unveiled recently.

The BRT advertisements for many Nigerians are a colorfully display of creative that are eye catching and interesting. According to Bolanle Awoyinfa who boarded one of such buses from Ketu to CMS area of Lagos said the adverts are creative in the way it portrays ‘Play.’ “Even though I am an adult I can still connect with the adverts that were beautifully done, it will make you want to be a teen again.” She said.

Kabiru Iliya who boarded another of the buses along the Lekki/Ajah corridor also applauded the bus branding which he described as “colourful and creative.” He added that the target audience of the Fanta brand will no doubt connect and identify with the medium given the fact that the BRT buses are “presentable and neat.” Kunle Fashina, another casual observer also endorsed the iconic branding describing it simply as “splendid and creative.” The buses are currently plying Ikorodu road, Lekki/Ajah corridor and Badagry expressway giving conveyers of the bus a feel of Fanta fun and making life more appealing and stress free.

It would be recalled that Mrs. Bolajoko Bayo-Ajayi, Strategic Marketing Manager (Flavours) while unveiling the campaign in April said the consumers of Fanta believe in having fun and taking life easy and simple hence the platform – Play. “When we talk of play, we do not mean it in its loose or natural sense, but play as a mental activity, a mental state of mind and a call to action that keeps our consumers abreast of happenings around them and provide avenues for them to connect with their peers.”

She stressed that the members of core target of the brand are always playful with an exuberant and frivolous impulse that always keeps them on the go and the brand intends to meet them where they are. “One of the many great things about this campaign is that it appeals not only to our core target but indirectly to the entire family. It has the flexibility to communicate the great taste of Fanta in a fun way and to convey the things about the brand that we know families already love – natural flavor.”

The Play Campaign came along with three new Television commercials created to further portray Fanta as a fun brand. One of the adverts opened with a scene where a teenage boy answers a question his teacher throws at him playfully but correctly. The other TVC demonstrates how a teenage girl tricked a teenage boy in giving him her number in exchange of his Fanta drink.