BrandSouthAfrica.com

South Africans are at a crossroad. Both paths will shape our futures and thereby, our legacies. Through the Brand SA ‘Legacy’ campaign platform, South Africans will define and celebrate the country’s unique culture of success.

The International Marketing Council of South Africa (Brand South Africa) today launched the Nation Brand ‘Legacy’ campaign, which aims to align the brand to South Africans’ unique culture, while simultaneously improving the country’s global competitiveness. The campaign will focus on the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ success by defining the values that make South Africans unique.  These values are then aligned with the Brand South Africa value proposition to change the backward view of legacy into a forward looking perspective that will define the way in which we behave.  This will ultimately contribute to the country’s rating in international competitive studies in that we don’t only just ‘write’ about ‘how’ citizens should behave, but actually influence the desired behaviour we want people to adopt.

“The 2010 FIFA World Cup™ may be over, but its legacy remains,” said Miller Matola, CEO of Brand South Africa. The campaign identifies reasons why our nation is unique, from our sports teams to our children and renowned South African attitude. Founded on the South African brand values of Ubuntu, sustainability, possibility, diversity, innovation and creativity, it builds on the successful hosting of the tournament, which the organisation considers to have been delivered by the people of South Africa.

 “Our success was mainly about people - ordinary South Africans who came together to make the tournament the most successful in its history, though we cannot discount the incredible infrastructural development that contributed to it,” he said.

The ‘Legacy’ campaign platform aims to leverage the momentum gained during the World Cup to continue to mobilise South Africans including business, political and civil society leadership. It also aims to entrench the principles of pride, patriotism and solid citizenship that have been established over the past year. Thus as South Africans put their souls into making the World Cup a success, the next six weeks will call on all to “Put your soul into it” again and again!

Each Friday, for the next six weeks, South Africans will celebrate all the things that makes us who we are, the unique values displayed during the World Cup and enable us to be proud of our nation, culture and heritage. Themes include support the ‘Class of 2010’, do something different, our beautiful country and celebrate your South African heritage, with the events calendar available at www.southafrica.info, or provided below.

“This year, we have come together as a nation united and flown the flag high. Now we need to keep it flying and remind ourselves how we made the event the most successful FIFA World Cup™ in history. We’ve always known we had it in us, now let us celebrate it,” said Matola. ”Put your soul into it.”

“We will be providing platforms that will enable us all to continue to achieve and showcase our “South Africanness” to the world,” adding that it was the South African ‘can do’ attitude and commitment that was at the heart of the World Cup development, our successful hosting of the tournament itself and which will heavily inform our post tournament activity.

Supporting ‘Class of 2010’

This week, the campaign focuses on supporting the Department of Education‘s ‘Class of 2010’ initiative. Matola said that with the countdown to final exams well underway, it is up to us to support our scholars as they prepare for their final examinations.

Brand South Africa enables South Africans to formally pledge to help where they can. “Most importantly, we need to pledge to help learners realise how important their education is, but we can also give support by helping a scholar to write a study plan or assisting with revision,” he said.

The pledge (www.southafrica.info) states, “We the people of South Africa, recognising the injustices of our past, honour those who suffered and sacrificed to bring knowledge and education to our youth. We will respect and protect the dignity of each child and stand up for justice. We sincerely declare that we shall uphold the rights and values of our Constitution, and promise to act in accordance with the duties and responsibilities that flow from these rights. Nkosi Sikelel’ i’Afrika.”

Matola himself has pledged both his and Brand South Africa’s support for the Class of 2010. “My organisation has dedicated Fridays to distributing stationery to schools, donating 30 minutes of their lunchtime to teaching learners about Post-Matric career choices,” he affirmed. “What is your pledge to support the Class of 2010?  Visit www.flytheflagfridays.co.za to find out what you can do for a school near you.”

Building a South African legacy

South Africans offer fresh solutions to seemingly insurmountable challenges that face the world – just one reason why we are a truly competitive nation. “This campaign is significant because it fulfils a strategic communications objective for the Nation Brand, while providing us all with practical ways in which we can contribute to our country’s development,” said Matola.

He encouraged people to tell, even show the world why you are proud to be South African. “We have so much in common and so much humanity to celebrate.”

“There is no turning back, as we continue to define and showcase who we are as a nation to the world. We are a people who are proudly defined by Ubuntu, diversity, innovation and creativity. Our “South Africanness” undoubtedly opens up a lifetime of possibilities for us all,” concluded Matola.

About the International Marketing Council of South Africa (Brand South Africa)

The International Marketing Council of South Africa (IMC) was established in August 2002 to help create a positive and compelling brand image for South Africa. At that time, the world was unsure about what to think of South Africa, with many different messages being sent out by various sources. These did very little to build the country’s brand and it was evident that to attract tourism and investment there was a need to co-ordinate marketing initiatives to make them more effective. This led to the creation of the IMC, whose main objective is the marketing of South Africa through the Brand South Africa campaign.  There are many benefits to having a consolidated brand image, with the most important being that a consistent Brand South Africa message creates strategic advantages in terms of trade and tourism for the country in an increasingly competitive marketplace.