The Tribune

A Bahamian start-up aims to transform the digital media sector by providing platforms that offer the greatest marketing potential for business clients.

"We're on the cusp of something big," said Marc Hohnstein, co-owner of TAHM Management and Marketing Consultants, a company that recently signed a three-year deal with Aliv for advertising on their digital media platforms. The transit digital platform allows for electronic advertising on select buses and along heavily trafficked routes. For its part, Aliv will power the buses with free wi-fi.

"The point of digital marketing is target group-oriented," Mr Hohnstein explained. "If I'm a Mercedes Benz dealer, I know a client from a middle class area like Carmichael Road is a rarity. They are not my target group. So where do I advertise? In areas like Lyford Cay and Paradise Island. In blasting the masses you are wasting 70 per cent of your advertising budget since those people aren't your target market.

"In digital marketing we have digital platforms, or monitors, that we purposely place in selected areas for the selected client. Digital advertising allows the 'Mom and Pop' store to have the same level of exposure as, say, a Honda dealer, even if they're on a lean budget."

TAHM currently provides two digital media platforms to its clients - transit digital media platforms located on 30 buses, and free-standing digital platforms at various locations throughout New Providence.

An electronic billboard allows businesses to display animated commercials and announcements on a flat screen placed strategically on their premises. It is popular in the US and elsewhere for being an effective and cost-efficient means of engaging with consumers.

TAHM's clients are able to update their digital promotions or change an ad display in real time at no additional cost.

Once the digital ad monitor is up and running, TAHM's clients could offer other vendors the opportunity to digitally blast their media message to the public, enabling the client to make a return off their investment.

Arthur 'Ray' Thompson, who oversees TAHM's management, is currently working with two Bahamian shipping agents to develop an online web control database that would allow customers to track their vehicle shipment in real time, in addition to being able to assess and pre-pay fees. The second phase is linking that online database directly to Bahamas Customs, saving the companies thousands of man hours.

"On the marketing side we aim to improve the visibility and popularity of our clients' businesses. If you don't keep up you'll get left behind," Mr Thompson warned. "On the management end, we help clients improve efficiency and profitability."

Following a 25-year career in the shipping industry, Mr Thompson, an accountant by training with a strong background in business, spent the last decade engaged in private consultancy work for various international companies, including the preparation of business plans and reviewing the viability of proposed acquisitions.

Mr Hohnstein, who has a Master's degree in finance, worked in the financial services sector in the US, holding key positions at Bank One (now Chase Bank) and Wells Fargo.

He got a taste for digital marketing when it came under his portfolio while serving as a member of the Economic Council to the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Party of German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. The Economic Council represents the interests of thousands of small and medium-sized firms from all sectors of the German economy.

In 2013, Mr Hohnstein co-founded an international consulting company, LCA Global Consulting, specialising in public relations campaigns for international brands, digital marketing and creating digital advertising platforms throughout seven cities in Germany.

He also served as the vice-president of German development for EVO Payments International, a company which processes ATM, mail order, telephone and point of sale transactions, according to its website. Mr Hohnstein built up five teams in Dresden, Köln, Hamburg, Munich and Berlin, providing training on how to use multiple formulas and tactics to achieve success in the sales industry.

Upon discovering his friend's interest in returning to the Bahamas to take up residency, Mr Thompson broached the idea of a business partnership to Mr Hohnstein.

"With my managing experience and his marketing experience we felt the integration into a consulting firm would be perfect," said Mr Thompson.

Earlier this year TAHM rolled out its transit advertising platform on 30 buses that collectively cover New Providence. Expansion plans to bring more buses on stream are in the works.

The buses are equipped with 18-inch TV monitors. Daily looping on the bus monitors allows for continuous advertisement streaming for TAHM's clients.

According to the company, the average bus operates from 6am to 7pm. Each bus accommodates up to 28 riders at a time, making anywhere from seven to 10 trips per day.

Each ad is slotted to run every four minutes in the present six-minute loop. Most ads are 35 seconds. Each advertisement runs 15 times an hour or 195 times per bus. That is 5,850 times per day for the 30 buses.

The transit advertisement platforms are currently on buses servicing South Beach, Cable Beach, Carmichael, Palmdale, Fox Hill, Blair and Montagu.

The company is also in talks with a few MPs who view the technology as a means of keeping their constituents abreast of their work, relevant community news and national emergency alerts in real time.

"It's all about being competitive in your niche market, whatever that market may be," said Mr Thompson. "We want to ultimately digitise the entire archipelago from Grand Bahama in the north to Inagua in the south."

For Mr Hohnstein, it all boils down to where an enterprise wants to be in a year's time with their business. "You want to be known everywhere," he said. "Standing still and complacency is the enemy of prosperity."