A brief introduction

I started this blog last year, when consumed with the South African branding industry. I have since left the country (so continuing to write about it will be a little more difficult), but thought I'd post what I had written thus far anyway. I am as yet uncertain what shape this blog will take in the future, but that's not, I believe, any reason to deny the past :)

South Africa has some of the best advertising in the world, I’m told, at least in part due to the multiplicity of different races and cultures that need to be reached. However, while our advertising industry is top-class, it might be argued that our branding industry is not.

Before the hackles rise, however, let me qualify that statement. Our branding people are very good, but what is lacking is understanding on the business side. Many South African businesses are only now beginning to realize how important branding is to the continued success of their business, and this at a time when the rest of the world is beginning to question the value of brands. Naomi Klein’s No Logo is one of the epitomies of this questioning, but other books (Beyond Branding, for example) are also taking an (albeit softer) look at the issue of brands. Indeed, local advertising giant Saatchi & Saatchi has said that they believe brands are dead, and that the new “thing” are what they refer to as “lovemarks” (for more on this, see their website).

South Africa also has a number of specific issues which not all the internationally published books in the world can address. It is these issues, and branding in South Africa in general, that this blog will focus on. A forum where local branders and marketers can discuss their industry with reference to our very specific circumstances.

As mentioned above, this is not a “blog” in the sense of so many blogs out there. It is not a dumping ground for my mental waste, nor is it an ego-stroking exercise. Rather, I want it to be an interactive forum for everyone interested to contribute to, and please do! I’ll try and post something every week, but any other contributions would be most welcome ☺

From your aspiring branding guru, adieu

aimee