Blueprint appointed by SANRAL (The South African National Roads Agency Ltd) to develop a comprehensive brand campaign

Blueprint Strategic Marketing Communications won the above-the-line account based on the strategic and consumer insights that would form the basis of the repositioning of the brand through being more people-centric.

Blueprint's aim is to change the way in which SANRAL is perceived by bringing a very clear "human" element to the brand. "The first of a series of advertisements have just gone to press. It is an attempt to close the emotive gap between SANRAL and the 6 million plus road-users in South Africa," says Groovin Nchabeleng, Managing Director at Blueprint.

"For so long SANRAL has been seen as a government organisation that builds and maintains our world-class national road network, but very little is known about them from a road-user's point-of-view. Our new campaign, we believe, will close that gap winning the 'hearts and minds' of the public and various interest groups who would benefit through their association with The South African National Roads Agency Limited".

Connie Nel, Communications Manager at SANRAL, believes a move towards a human touch will differentiate SANRAL from other organizations and it would be one of their key objectives. She explains, "In the past we did not develop a relationship with our audience at large and through our repositioning of the brand in our advertising imagery and messaging, we are attempting to create more of an awareness of our role in the everyday lives of all South Africans who, literally, come into contact with us."

Blueprint admits the road ahead will be a challenging one, especially during the Festive Season when thousands of migratory holidaymakers take to the roads. Blueprint's first campaign looks primarily at the safety aspect from SANRAL's perspective, reminding road-users of the importance of road safety, as well as the role of SANRAL. The various campaigns are strategically placed to bombard the consumer with a plethora of messages to entice, remind or generate a response.