15th CIM Annual Conference a resounding success

• Participation from top corporates leads to lively discussion

It is vital that companies narrow their focus if they want to become market leaders, branding and positioning guru Al Ries said at the 15th CIM Annual Conference, held on 12 May at the BMICH. 

The conference saw lively discussion and engagement from participants, which included representatives of Sri Lanka’s top corporates. 

Keynote speaker Al Ries drew from his extensive experience consulting with top corporations around the world in the first session ‘Positioning Brands in the Digital Era’. In many cases, companies attempted to cater to all segments rather than focusing on one key specialisation, Ries said. 

He illustrated his session with many practical examples of companies such as Marlboro and BMW, who managed to increase their profits and forge ahead by narrowing their focus. 

Moving one step further, Ries’ second session ‘How to future proof your brand’ enlightened participants of the importance of prioritising category over product. Companies looking to break into a new product category should launch them under a new brand to prevent dilution, he explained. 

The panel discussion which followed saw lively debate and brought in practical aspects from a Sri Lankan point of view. The panelists included former Unilever Sri Lanka Chairman and Director of John Keells Holdings PLC Amal Cabraal, Hemas Holdings Chairman Husein Esufally, Jetwing Hotels Chairman Hiran Cooray, Al and Laura Ries. Each panelist weighed in on how they had ‘future-proofed’ their own brands, propelling them towards success. 

The visual aspect of marketing communications is as vital as the written, Al Ries’ daughter Laura explained in the session ‘Building a Brand with a Visual Hammer & Virtual Nail,’ using many practical examples. 

The final session ‘Positioning Strategies in a Crowded Consumer Mind’ was an interesting insight into the concept of positioning. 

Positioning was incidentally first introduced by Al Ries and Jack Trout in a series of articles which took the ad world by storm. The concept was voted by AdAge as one of the most important advertising ideas of the past 75 years. 

Brands need to own a word in the mind of the consumer in order to become a leader – and this is the true essence of positioning, Laura explained in her talk. In this sense, positioning looks at the mind of the prospect rather than the product. 

This concept was discussed further in the panel discussion, ‘Creating a Sri Lankan brand’. The panellists included Siddhalepa Group Chairman Asoka Hettigoda, Mlesna Managing Director Anslem Perera and Sarva Integrated Managing Director Chrishantha Jayasinghe together with Al and Laura Ries. 

Moderator of the discussion SLIC Deputy General Manager Marketing Niroshini Pethiyagoda encouraged the panellists to talk about the challenges they had faced in order to build their brands in Sri Lanka, while Jayasinghe weighed in on the importance of marketing communications to drive brands forward. An informative discussion was had, with the leaders behind some of Sri Lanka’s most iconic brands sharing their origin stories and how they had adapted to changing times. 

Conference Chairman and CIM Annual Conference Vice Chairman Brian Selvanayagam thanked the strategic partner Sri Lanka Telecom PLC for its unwavering support over 15 years to the CIM Annual Conference. “It was great to give everyone the opportunity to listen to Al and Laura Ries share their expertise. It has been a lively and engaging session and I’d like to thank everyone, especially the corporate sponsors, who helped make this event a success.”

The Chartered Institute of Marketing is the largest community of professional marketers in the world with 100 years of heritage delivering education, membership and insight offerings to the marketing and sales profession. 

The CIM Sri Lanka Region is the first international branch of CIM UK and comprises of the largest number of members, both professional and students, of CIM outside the UK. Celebrating the 20th Anniversary this year CIM SL has always campaigned for high professional standards, greater recognition for the profession and marketing excellence in Sri Lanka, through education, training and Continuous Professional Development (CPD).