SLIM Brand Excellence 2013 a stepping stone for brand custodians to reach greater heights
Tuesday, 23 July 2013 01:33
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By Charitha Jayasinghe Project Chairman, SLIM Brand Excellence 2013
“I am irresistible, I say, as I put on my designer fragrance. I am a merchant banker, I say, as I climb out of my BMW. I am a juvenile lout, I say, as I pour an extra strong lager, I am handsome, I say, as I put on my Levi jeans,” said John Kay, top UK economist as he reciting the power of some iconic brands.
‘Branding’ has been the buzzword of marketing for decades. Its significance has only increased over the years, as companies around the globe have been competing with one another to expand their mind-share in an environment which is competitive than ever before. In order to prosper in a challenging environment like today, marketers can’t just “work for” their brands, but have to just ‘live’ their brands and immerse into the minds of a consumers, so that they could craft distinctive identities for their brands that will capture the hearts of the consumers.
A few decades ago, the word ‘branding’ was never heard of in Sri Lanka. Today, the progress that Sri Lanka has achieved in the field of ‘branding’ is indeed noteworthy. The old marketing philosophies of “catering to” customer demands have been made obsolete by new philosophies of “creating” customer demand through innovative branding strategies. As Late Steve Jobs once said “You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give it to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.” In this ever changing field of marketing and branding, we as marketers and brand managers should be well versed with the changing dynamics of consumer behavior and competitive landscape if you wish to be a ‘winner’.
If Sri Lanka is to realise its full potential as a country, as professionals our role should extend beyond our organisations. I take this opportunity to urge you to look beyond the shores of this island when you draft your brand plans, if you wish to make your brand “global” which will eventually help Sri Lanka to produce brands that are globally sought-after. If we had a proper branding strategy for our traditional exports such as tea, coconut, rubber and most of our spices which are found to be the best in the world, we could have made the label ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ a truly global brand.
SLIM being honoured with the coveted ‘Most Admired Events for Branding & Marketing’ at the annual Asian Leadership Awards 2012 and ‘Most Admired Events for Branding & Marketing’ at the Asian Leadership Awards 2012, we consider to be a national achievement where we stood tall amongst our Asian counterparts. This is also in testament to our commitment towards the development of the country’s marketing fraternity.
The SLIM Brand Excellence is one of the signature events of SLIM and is undoubtedly one of the most celebrated awards ceremonies in Sri Lanka. Proliferating the knowledge of branding among the fraternity, uplifting the standard of business performance, improving quality of brand management and organisational development, improving efficiency of marketing, recognising and motivating exceptional performance of brands and organisations as well as the people behind their success were amongst the objectives of initiating the awards 12 years ago.
In its 12th chapter, SLIM Brands Excellence will delve on the theme ‘Will you be behind the next biggest brand?’ Every brand has its own story and behind every success story there is a winning team. This was the thought behind our theme this year. This year, as SLIM Brands Excellence moves from Sri Lanka to international platforms, we have introduced a new category for international brands, which we believe is of paramount importance.
I believe that this year’s Brand Excellence will be a stepping stone for brand custodians to reach greater heights. SLIM Brands Excellence is all about recognising brands, the brand champions and people behind the screen. My special appreciation goes to the Advisor to the Organising Committee, Head of Judges, judging panel and our valued sponsors whose contribution has made this event possible. I wish best of luck to all participants who will be participating for this year’s competition.
Will you be behind the next biggest brand?
