Why branding is an uphill task
Jul 31, 2006
FOURTH May 2006, Kinyara Sugar launches its logo and tag line at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel. Housing Finance Bank has a new tag line and logo. The Nile Special logo has been upgraded too. The Monitor newspaper re-launched its identity some time last year. Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has also chan
EXECUTIVE TALK
FOURTH May 2006, Kinyara Sugar launches its logo and tag line at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel. Housing Finance Bank has a new tag line and logo. The Nile Special logo has been upgraded too. The Monitor newspaper re-launched its identity some time last year. Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has also changed its face and has a fresh tag line, “Developing Uganda Together.†Uganda telecom has a new look. So, what is the impact of logos and tag lines?
Be it the simple change or refreshing of the corporate logo or the humungous task of switching to a whole new brand name, managing transition in a brand’s identity can be a testing time for marketers. At stake is not just the new logo, but an entire generation of existing consumers, employees and trade partners.
Nile Special has acquired a unique identity. The refreshed logo will stand out. It is totally new. The die cut label will secure a position ahead of competition and keep the brand alive.
“Even after carrying out consumer research, there was resistance from within and outside. Why change a winning formula? Nile Special is Uganda’s top selling beer. It’s an identity crisis but we have instituted these positive creative changes,†Robert Kigula Nile Breweries brand manager said.
Many employees worldwide receive brochures, visiting cards, promotional items, all sporting the new changed logos and new tag lines. Though the process of change will have been set in motion many years back, when the final announcement comes, many employees and observers will still ask, “why change something which has worked so well for many decades?â€
Similar questions were raised when the stodgy, almost 100-year-old Bank of Baroda went in for a radically different image simultaneously across 2,759 branches worldwide.
With Kinyara Sugar, it’s an entire paradigm shift. It’s about moving from one positioning to another. The idea behind the change to ‘Leap Forward’ comes from the desire to be known and seen as a market-driven platform-oriented company as opposed to a purely sugar processor or manufacturer. When Jerry Allen, the marketing manager sent out new business cards to his colleagues, it will not surprise me that they were surprised by the speed at which the previous logo was loosing out, but as a marketer, he had to move forward.
Developing Uganda Together is the new tag line for URA. The tag line reflects URA’s ability to work together with tax payers. “The new identity represents all that we are and want to become. Our sight is set on building an image that will be acceptable to all our stakeholders,†says Patrick Mukiibi, the assistant commissioner for corporate affairs.
“It has been a long journey and some employees are reluctant but we shall not suffocate progressive change,†he said.
David Nsiyona is the marketing manager of Tilda Uganda
FOURTH May 2006, Kinyara Sugar launches its logo and tag line at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel. Housing Finance Bank has a new tag line and logo. The Nile Special logo has been upgraded too. The Monitor newspaper re-launched its identity some time last year. Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has also changed its face and has a fresh tag line, “Developing Uganda Together.†Uganda telecom has a new look. So, what is the impact of logos and tag lines?
Be it the simple change or refreshing of the corporate logo or the humungous task of switching to a whole new brand name, managing transition in a brand’s identity can be a testing time for marketers. At stake is not just the new logo, but an entire generation of existing consumers, employees and trade partners.
Nile Special has acquired a unique identity. The refreshed logo will stand out. It is totally new. The die cut label will secure a position ahead of competition and keep the brand alive.
“Even after carrying out consumer research, there was resistance from within and outside. Why change a winning formula? Nile Special is Uganda’s top selling beer. It’s an identity crisis but we have instituted these positive creative changes,†Robert Kigula Nile Breweries brand manager said.
Many employees worldwide receive brochures, visiting cards, promotional items, all sporting the new changed logos and new tag lines. Though the process of change will have been set in motion many years back, when the final announcement comes, many employees and observers will still ask, “why change something which has worked so well for many decades?â€
Similar questions were raised when the stodgy, almost 100-year-old Bank of Baroda went in for a radically different image simultaneously across 2,759 branches worldwide.
With Kinyara Sugar, it’s an entire paradigm shift. It’s about moving from one positioning to another. The idea behind the change to ‘Leap Forward’ comes from the desire to be known and seen as a market-driven platform-oriented company as opposed to a purely sugar processor or manufacturer. When Jerry Allen, the marketing manager sent out new business cards to his colleagues, it will not surprise me that they were surprised by the speed at which the previous logo was loosing out, but as a marketer, he had to move forward.
Developing Uganda Together is the new tag line for URA. The tag line reflects URA’s ability to work together with tax payers. “The new identity represents all that we are and want to become. Our sight is set on building an image that will be acceptable to all our stakeholders,†says Patrick Mukiibi, the assistant commissioner for corporate affairs.
“It has been a long journey and some employees are reluctant but we shall not suffocate progressive change,†he said.
David Nsiyona is the marketing manager of Tilda Uganda