Gap first to use illuminated bus format

The 10 special illuminated bus T-side ads will run on the side of 10 buses that travel on "gold" routes through central London. They will be supported by a further 140 central London buses displaying the ad on traditional formats.

The campaign was planned by Omnicom media agency PHD and bought by Aegis Media's outdoor agency Posterscope. The creative was designed by Gap’s in-house creative teams.

It is the second addition to CBS Outdoor's bus offering in recent months. In December CBS Outdoor added Bluetooth connectivity to brands advertising on 100 London buses operating in central London following a successful trial.

Dee Levison, media manager at PHD, said: "PHD has a long heritage of media innovation and we’re delighted to make Gap the first brand to use the illuminated T-side format.

"It is the perfect medium for Gap to communicate its 'Be Bright' message to a targeted shopping audience, particularly with the dark evenings throughout February."

CBS Outdoor plans to expand the illuminated format across London over the next four weeks.

Jason Cotterrell, UK country director at CBS Outdoor UK, said: "It's the first time the bus format has been used in this way and it’s a great example of its versatility and flexibility and how it can be used to really communicate a brand message."

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This article was first published on mediaweek.co.uk