DMRC sites see dip in ad revenue despite increase in ridership
The DMRC has seen a growth of 150% since the resumption of metro services; however, advertisers' confidence in the medium has seemingly still not gained momentum
According to a recent statistics report by DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation), ridership has increased to 150% since September 2020. This is from the month when the metro services resumed after the nationwide lockdown. Nevertheless, this rise in metro ridership has yet to convert into positive momentum for transit OOH media owners handling advertising rights for the DMRC. The advertising in Delhi metros continues to remain slow-paced.
An OOH Delhi owner shared that new inquiries are coming in from clients but they aren’t converting into anything substantial.
The digital boards at the Delhi metro stations like Rajiv Chowk wear an empty look. While some brands have had their faith restored in the OOH medium, not many are investing in it aggressively in the post lockdown period. This slowdown from brands and the overall cut in OOH spends have led to a decrease in metro advertising.
However, an Delhi OOH owner who prominently advertises in metro media sites says, “There is a positive outlook for the year 2021. DMRC has invited advertisers for a bidding process to gain exclusive rights on the Red Line for 9 years. This will call for an increase in branding activities in metro media sites. We will have to see which advertiser is nominated for this bidding process. 2021 has begun in a hopeful direction with the vaccine rollout, so hopefully, advertisers will not shy away from investing in transit media sites going forward.”
The Delhi metro caters to 1.5 million passengers per day, providing an attractive media channel to advertisers. Branding on DMRC ensures eyeballs for advertisers from an ROI perspective and is the preferred outdoor media site for an ever-increasing number of brands. With the increase in traffic mobility and more patrons gaining confidence to venture out, DMRC may see a change from the advertiser’s front in due time, say OOH media owners from Delhi.
