Keep Rolling Media is a bus-advertising company. The company shares the basic idea of having advertisements on buses as a way of keeping your brand name on the move. It provides a cheap and cost-efficient method for local and global brands to gain recognition and brand awareness. With advertisements becoming more important but expensive at the same time the new initiative shines as a beacon of hope.
Story Behind The Initiative
Four school best-friends are today both founders and business partners of Keep Rolling Media. However one of the Co-founder Praveen Chaudhary acts as the Managing Director of the company. He shares the reason for the start of the company was the realization of a void in the market for cheap but still effective advertisement. He was firstly interested in Digital Hoarding Boards but dropped the idea as it was too expensive. Then in search for something new they found Bus Advertisement as the solution. A popular concept in the west the company tried to establish the same business model in Nepal.
The founder didn’t get satisfaction from the job he was doing and wanted to build his own company so started the initiative with his friends. Without funding, family support and experience it was his desire to have a company of his own which gave birth to Keep Rolling Media.
About Keep Rolling Media
Keep Rolling Media is a cost-effective system of advertisement in Nepal. As buses go where people go it’s bus advertisement are excessively effective. In the present world where even the print ads are decreasing Keep Rolling Media survives because of its mobile nature. As the advertisements are moving more and more people can see the ads. Clients who had 6 months contract are so satisfied with the service that they have renewed their contract for 2 years. With around 3 lakh people watching ads just inside the bus the company has been able to go to for brand awareness.
The Challenges
The Founders claim that the company was established at the right time as the void for advertisements was increasing at the same time when new buses were also entering the market. The company, however, saw bumpy roads while rolling to success as companies with the same concept also existed. The company got its first advertisement on buses of Nepal Yatayat. Praveen recalls having to wait until midnight to put an advertisement on buses as the vehicles were on route.
The company faced lots of other problems at the start. As the company was founded by a young entrepreneur they faced many problems in gaining clients. Clients didn’t trust the company and demanded past experience which was none existent. The company also didn’t get any help from the government and laws didn’t exist. The company, however, passed through the hurdles as they got their initial clients as consultancies.
Customer Response
The first company was Professional Consultancies. The company got its first major client i.e. Shivam Cement and then now has been growing at an amazing rate. The company today can boost 200 buses in major cities of Nepal like Kathmandu, Pokhara, Biratnagar etc. It has large clients like CG, Mero Job etc. They are now offering a 6 month and 5 bus package and then advertisements are changed at the end of the package. The self-funded company started with a seed funding of Rs. 8 lakhs. The company decided not to accept any outside fundings and so is a self-funded startup till date. The customer response is amazing and the popularity of the company is growing. The company has not been able to fulfil the demand in the present market while they have become a prominent name in the city.
Future Plans
The company now wishes to gain more momentum by expanding and fulfilling the demand in the market. The company also wishes to expand towards the taxi and other vehicles. The company also sees a perspective of using the digital display in taxis and buses to make it more dynamic.
Message to Youths
Praveen concluded, “Different people will say different ways to gain success. But I believe success can only be gained by doing something that feels right.”
By: Saugat Pokharel
