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Journal of Strategic Marketing Newsletter – October 2020

Journal of Strategic Marketing Newsletter – October 2020

A NOTE ON MARKETING THE FUTURE

I write this note as South Africans mark 200 days in lockdown. Yes, we’ve climbed down to reach level one of the lockdown ladder, but we are by no means out of the Covid-19 woods. We’ve just learnt how to navigate our way through these dark times a little better, and are starting to live alongside the pandemic in what is now a normal way of life.

While we’re not at the point of  ‘business as usual’, certainly in terms of marketing, brands are mostly back to work. Especially as it seems Christmas (marketing) is coming early this year. Research by WPP agency in the UK, Kinetic Worldwide, says more than half of UK adults say Christmas is more important than ever. While we don’t have such research in South Africa, the fact that we are already seeing Christmas products on the shelves – before Halloween and Black Friday – says something.

In our must-read lead story this month, Kantar’s Kent Diepraam writes how its BrandZ research and data shows strong brands are continuing to recover from the economic shocks earlier this year with more convincing performance and growth figures. Nevertheless, he says, marketers have to learn to do more with less, and balance these short-term gains with long-term brand building.

It’s something multinational snack food company Mondelez has considered. In a novel way to adjust its marketing budget, its chief financial officer is diverting the company’s travel, consulting and real estate funds to marketing and advertising efforts – and most of that spend will be on digital (rather than TV commercials). Now there’s a strategic solution to Covid-19 impacted marketing budgets.

iProspect’s head of ad operations in Kenya also has a positive story to tell. Kenneth Mutuma has investigated potential opportunities within e-commerce and marketing in light of the fact that there are now 500 million mobile money users in Africa. With mobile subscribers set to hit the 600 million mark in five years, marketers will be able to reach users from all economic classes via ad tech developments.

In another optimistic piece, we’ve taken a look at the importance of supplier development as a means of boosting local supply chains. As Fetola’s Catherine Wijnberg (who is also founder of the Absa Business Day Supplier Development Awards) says, when supplier development is driven as a strategic imperative from the boardroom, there is distinctly greater success and long-term impact. Leading companies are passionate about doing supplier development right and are going beyond a scorecard to a genuine desire to support lasting growth in the supply chain as a way to build an effective and transformed economy.

And finally, some very good news for students wishing to study in the Western Cape: The IMM Graduate School is launching its new campus in Stellenbosch in January 2021. As of 30 January 2021, 750 students will have the opportunity to study in the historic university town.

Glenda Nevill

Editor

Accelerate brand recovery in the next normal: How the new era of analytics can unlock superior marketing effectiveness

Hello Lucy. Accelerate brand recovery in the next normal: How the new era of analytics can unlock superior marketing effectiveness

It is time to shake off the doom and gloom of working under Covid-19 conditions and make more informed business decisions for more effective marketing results, now and in future, writes

KENT DIEPRAAM, Director of the Analytics Practice for Kantar Insights (South Africa).

Having lived with the global pandemic for six months now, economies are starting to slowly reopen, to breathe fresh life into markets under lockdown. Not a moment too soon, as this has been a crisis unlike any other. Marketing budgets were among the first to be cut and consumer spend is expected to only return to pre-Covid-19 levels in the next 18 to 24 months.

Transacting, saving and investing in digital Africa

Transacting, saving and investing in digital Africa

With an expected 500 million mobile-money users on the African continent in 2020, KENNETH MUTUMA, Head of Ad Operations at iProspect Kenya, investigates the potential opportunities within e-commerce and marketing

When the first mobile device was launched more than three decades ago, Africa wasn’t expected to be at the cusp of adoption and innovation. However, the growth of mobile in Africa has been unparalleled.

Mobile subscribers are expected to hit 600 million by 2025; this as operator revenues soared to over $51 billion for the period between 2019 and 2020. And 1.7 million people were hired (GSMA Intelligence, 2020). This is despite having less than two mobile subscribers to every 100 people in the last two decades, according to the World Bank.

3. SupplyDevelopment FNL.jpg[23]

Supply chains in South Africa need to be local, future-focused and world class

Unless we build a strong, inclusive economy, South Africa (and every company in South Africa) is in big trouble. Supplier development and transformed supply chains are key to this. GLENDA NEVILL reports.

The work many South African companies do in terms of supplier development is quite “remarkable” because they have to make both their SMME suppliers, as well as their customers, the focus of their supply chain management activities.

Supplier development and supply change management (SCM) don’t sit comfortably together, says IMM Graduate School SCM lecturer Marzia Storpioli. “Typically in SCM, the focus is on superb service to the customer and enhanced customer experience, and not the number of jobs added to a specific sector in the economy and the financial security of the suppliers,” she explains.

A dream come true for Stellenbosch students as IMM Graduate School launches new Winelands campus

A dream come true for Stellenbosch students as IMM Graduate School launches new Winelands campus

Demand from students wanting to study in Stellenbosch has resulted in the growth of the IMM Graduate School in this historic Winelands town. A new campus will open its doors on 4 January 2021.GLENDA NEVILL reports.

The IMM Graduate School has had a presence in Stellenbosch for many years, but increased demand from students wanting to study in the historic town has resulted in the need for a larger campus.

The new campus will allow the IMM Graduate School to grow its numbers in Stellenbosch by a third, says Irene Gregory, the IMM Graduate School’s National Head: Student Support Centres.

The new campus will replace the current Student Support Centre, and can house 750 students, with a maximum of 320 on site at any one time.

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Christmas marketing comes too early… or is it?

How can marketing for Christmas come ahead of marketing for Halloween? Social media users in South Africa suggested those who dared do so should be strung up – and used for Halloween marketing. Seriously, though, WPP agency Kinetic Worldwide says its research in the UK has shown more than half the country’s adult population believe Christmas is more important than ever this year and are already hitting the stores in anticipation. Chief planning officer at Kinetic, Nicole Lonsdale, says: “Our study suggests a remarkable resilience in people’s shopping behaviour and a steely determination among UK consumers to make the most of this year’s Christmas season.”

 

IMM Graduate School launches two new Supply Chain Management qualifications

From 2021, the IMM Graduate School will be offering two new supply chain management qualifications. Firstly, a Higher Certificate in Supply Chain Management will give students a basic understanding of the field, while also bolstering overall business management knowledge. It is designed to give a view of the processes and inter-relationships across the supply chain that enables organisations to create sustainable value. Then there is the Bachelor of Commerce Honours degree in Supply Chain Management, an essential qualification for those aspiring to specialise in the discipline. It places an emphasis on problem-solving, equipping graduates with the knowledge on how to approach various unorthodox situations. For more information on these new qualifications, please visit www.imm.ac.za

The colour red

The Pantone Colour Institute found itself in the news after collaborating with Swedish feminine products brand, Intimina. Pantone created a new colour, Period, which it describes as an “energizing and dynamic warm red shade encouraging period positivity to serve as the visual colour identifier for the Seen + Heard campaign; a campaign whose purpose is to inspire national and international conversations about periods through creative ideas that portray periods sympathetically and accurately”. But it seems it might have not quite hit the mark as women say it looks nothing like menstrual blood and label it a “gimmick”.

Liberty is ‘in it with you’

Insurer Liberty has made major changes to its marketing with a brand refresh and new messaging following the coronavirus pandemic and consumers’ desire to embrace more ‘human’ brands. Chief Marketing Officer Thabang Ramogase says Liberty wants a more holistic relationship with its clients, to be there for them in the best and worst of times, hence the payoff line, ‘In it with you’.  As Ramogase says, “People need more than just new products, advice and expertise. If they’re trusting a financial services provider with their money – even their livelihoods – they need to know that the people in charge of such important investments care about them, and truly understand them.”

The fine life, with Snoop Dog

The Corona beer brand has had a pretty strange year. A name associated with a dreaded virus. What do you do? Well, it kept quiet for most of the year. But now, ahead of the holiday season, it has unveiled its new La Vida Más Fina (the fine life) campaign. And in the pound seat, is the inimitable Snoop Dog. The brand says in a press release, “the campaign began to take shape earlier this year but was paused as unexpected cultural considerations came into play”.

Mondelez diverts travel, consulting and real estate funds to digital marketing

Mondelez is taking a new approach to its marketing. The global snack food manufacturer is diverting its travel, consulting and real estate funds to marketing and advertising efforts – and most of that spend will be on digital (rather than TV commercials). Company CFO Luca Zaramella told the Wall Street Journal he hoped the renewed focus on marketing would help them retain their recent sales gains in North America and stimulate demand in other markets. The company, in 2019, spent $1.21 billion on advertising.