Lifebuoy makes clean sweep at the SLIM-Neilson People’s Awards 2012

Lifebuoy, Unilever Sri Lanka’s flagship germ-protection brand, won all three key awards that it was nominated for at the recently concluded SLIM-Nielsen People’s Awards, marking a clear reflection of the lasting impact the brand had made in the minds of Sri Lankan consumers over the years.

People’s Awards is a prestigious event held annually by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing – the national body of marketers of Sri Lanka, in association with The Nielsen Company, the largest marketing research company in the world to recognise brands that are closest to the hearts of consumers.  The awards are extra special to marketers and brands as it is based on the choice/vote selection of the general public, as opposed to other awards that is based on the selection of a jury.  ‘FMCG Personal Care Brand of the Year’, ‘FMCG Youth Brand of the Year’ and ‘FMCG Brand of the Year’ are the three key awards that Lifebuoy secured this year and receiving ‘FMCG Personal Care Brand of the Year’ award for the fourth consecutive year, this year, is a great milestone in the history of the brand.

Commenting on the achievement, Unilever Sri Lanka Director – Marketing Ramani Samarasundera said, “Unilever brands are very close to the hearts of Sri Lankan people since they have been catering to the day-to-day needs of our people for generations by helping them to look good, feel good and get more out of life. People’s Awards is predominantly based on peoples’ choices on their preferred brands and therefore is a good indication of how Lifebuoy has touched their lives.”

Senior Brand Manager, Lifebuoy Saumya Perera said, “Lifebuoy has been the pioneer, providing trusted health and hygiene solutions to the entire Sri Lankan family for many generations. Today the brand has a breadth of choice given to consumers of all walks of life. The brand has a range of four soap variants – the core red, mild white, green herbal and aqua active fresh which has been a phenomenal success with the youth. In addition to the soaps Lifebuoy also has a range of hand washes, body washes and hand sanitizer thereby providing trusted health and hygiene solutions to consumers across income and social strata. In line with Unilever’s commitment to sustainability, and as a leading health brand, Lifebuoy has also initiated various programmes to create health and hygiene awareness among its consumers, especially children.”

She, therefore, feels that these awards are people’s recognition of what the brand stands for, and its contribution to uplifting and safeguarding their lives.  The brand has also become a popular choice amongst several key opinion leaders in the health sphere and continues to support health programmes at a community level.

To celebrate the Global Handwashing Day, on 15 October each year, Lifebuoy conducts a series of public awareness and education campaigns to increase awareness around the importance of washing hands, and its contribution towards saving lives and preventing illnesses especially among children. Lifebuoy has also been educating school children and inculcating the habit of washing hands at the correct occasions. These are some of the major initiatives that Lifebuoy is engaged in since 2008 and has shown positive results during the past few years.