For years, South Africa’s commuter class has been treated as too broad, too hard to reach, or too low-value to matter. But fresh data tells a different story. Far from being a passive audience in the ‘backseat’, commuters are a powerful growth engine hiding in plain sight.
Here are five reasons every brand and agency should be paying attention:
They’re not ‘mass market’. They’re diverse decision-makers
The term “mass market” is often used to lump everyone outside of LSM 9–10 into one homogenous bucket. But commuters are anything but. They include salaried professionals, students, entrepreneurs, and parents making daily purchase decisions. What unites them is mobility: over 15 million South Africans travel to work or school each day, nearly half of them on public transport. That’s a huge, active consumer segment hiding behind a lazy label.
They’re digitally fluent, but data is the barrier
Commuters aren’t offline. Smartphone penetration in urban areas is above 90%. The challenge isn’t digital literacy, it’s affordability: South Africans spend more than double the global average on mobile data. That means traditional digital campaigns often miss the mark. Not because people don’t care, but because they can’t afford to engage. Data-free platforms are changing that.
They’re highly engaged when reached the right way
When you remove the data barrier, commuters don’t just scroll, they interact. Sebenza’s in-taxi Wi-Fi platform served 137 million ads in the first half of this year, with a platform-wide click-through rate of 2.38%. That’s more than double the average CTR on Meta. For brands chasing measurable engagement, this is a market that’s ready to respond.
They convert, and the proof is in the campaigns
Campaigns aimed at commuters consistently deliver results. Post-campaign surveys show a majority of commuters go on to purchase after seeing an ad, while click-through rates on banner and video placements regularly outperform global digital benchmarks. In some cases, short video spots have achieved double-digit CTRs and nearly half of all viewers watched them through to the end. These aren’t vanity metrics, they’re proof of real buying power.
They want brands that respect their context
Commuters are brand-aware, values-driven, and aspirational, but also discerning. Winning them requires designing for mobile-first, low-bandwidth realities, offering genuine value (entertainment, information, or incentives), and moving beyond impressions to build real relationships. Do that, and you’ll find an audience that rewards the effort with loyalty and action.
South Africa’s commuters aren’t a “hard-to-reach” fringe group. They’re the next big growth market. One that’s already engaging, converting, and shaping consumer trends. The only question is: which brands are ready to take the wheel?
Wesley Dorning is director and co-founder of Sebenza.
