IAA’s workshop ‘Brand Mantra 2012’ a resounding success

The International Advertising Association (IAA) Sri Lanka Chapter recently concluded a two-day offsite training program for 50 marketing and advertising professionals at Bentota Beach Hotel.

The IAA’s annual workshop titled ‘Brand Mantra’ aimed to educate marketers and advertisers on effective marketing. The program featured local and international professionals from the brands and marketing fraternity, who made presentations on a wide range of topics related to marketing and advertising.

The participants from the advertising and marketing fields were unanimous in their opinion that the workshop was an ideal forum for young brand custodians to equip themselves with necessary tools to deliver best results for their respective organisations and brands.

The workshop comprised of interactive presentations, a case study as well as group assignments, where participants were required to present a marketing plan at the end of the program.

The themes covered at Brand Mantra 2012 included ‘engagement of consumers,’ ‘growth of our brands,’ ‘development of self and teams’ and ‘energy to win.’

This was the sixth successive year that the IAA Sri Lanka Chapter organised ‘Brand Mantra’ which has now become a regular feature in the IAA annual calendar. Dialog and Unilever stepped in as sponsors for ‘Brand Mantra 2012.’

“This year’s event was a much anticipated one as we had two exceptional speakers from overseas, namely the internationally acclaimed author of ‘The Habit of Winning’ Prakash Iyer, who is the Managing Director of Kimberly Clark Lever and Simon Ashwin, Head of Social Media – Mindshare Asia Pacific.

“The training program was a tremendous success as we have received very positive feedback from all participants. Our objective of hosting this annual event was to enable marketers and advertising professionals to bond and understand how to work together to ensure maximum exposure for their brand,” said Chrishani Kotalawela, Vice President of IAA Sri Lanka Chapter. “It is one of the most successful programs that IAA organises every year to provide a platform for participants to refresh their knowledge and also get updated of what is going on in the marketplace.” The success of the workshop was mainly due to the effort put in by Ramani Samarasundera, Director of IAA, she added.

Among the professionals making presentations were: Himalee Mudurasinghe, CEO, LMRB, Simon Ashwin Head of Social Media Asia Pacific – Mindshare, Viranga Wickramaratne, Head of Modern Trade, Unilever Sri Lanka, Murtaza Tajbhoy, Head of Brand Planning Leo Burnett Solutions and Sandeetha Jayasinghe, Marketing Consultant, Yasas Hewage, Marketing and Business Strategy Coach and Head of Channels and Retail/SME Business Development, NDB Bank, Prakash Iyer, author of ‘The Habit of Winning’ and Managing Director of Kimberly Clark Lever, Himanshu Saxsena, President JWT Sri Lanka, Nandana Wickramage, Group Director and Head of Marketing and Sales, Ceylon Biscuits and Kapila Dodamgoda, CEO, ICMA Australia – Sri Lanka Branch. The course director was Ramani Samarasundera, Marketing Director – Personal Care, Unilever Sri Lanka.