Advertising is seen as being mainly about brands and not about corporate entities. Campaigns tend to focus on services or moving products. The company itself - a Unilever or Barloworld - plays second fiddle in the communication mix.
It's usually a special event that inspires a company to run associative advertising, possibly in an effort to entrench its credentials in the mind of the consumer.
So it was no surprise that during the euphoria around SA winning the right to host the 2010 soccer World Cup, we saw a number of organisations flighting patriotic corporate advertising.
Telkom and SAA are masterful exponents of this and their stirring work not only tugs at the heartstrings but reinforces their commitment to bigger national ideals.
Another recent example of successful corporate advertising was Anglo American's multimillion-rand print, radio, television and billboard campaign seeking to assure South Africans, but more importantly its key local stakeholders, that in spite of a London listing it was still committed to SA.
Watch out for a similar campaign in coming months from brewer SABMiller as it, too, seeks to assure South Africans of its home-grown roots despite global aspirations.
Corporate advertising seems to be here to stay and it may even intensify, as marketing experts now speak of a growing phenomenon called brand anchoring.
As consumer options increase, leading to more purchase confusion, a solid name backing the product makes consumers feel more confident.
For some time now Unilever has been placing its logo on its products and in its advertising. The Barloworld brand, too, is being used much more as an umbrella name over its offerings, which vary from cement to insurance. And beverages company KWV expects that its strong international reputation will help it gain a 10%-15% local market share within 12 months, as it starts selling its previously export-only multibranded products in SA.
Says one brand consultant: "In any purchase decision, customers look for a combination of value for money and quality. If you have a reputable name behind the product, it's foolish not to use it."
Another factor to bear in mind is the image-beating that many companies have suffered in recent years, since the Enron/Andersen scandal. Accounting and consulting firms felt a strong public backlash and many embarked on advertising campaigns to reinforce their credentials.
Government departments are also latching on to the power of corporate advertising and this trend is likely to accelerate.
The SA Revenue Service has even gone as far as appointing an advertising agency and attributes much of its collection success to specially timed campaigns by Cape agency King James. It has sought to make tax payment not only a responsibility but a patriotic duty. We've even seen Sars-branded sweatshirts and water bottles.
The department of trade & industry skilfully uses a combination of print and radio advertising to promote its various services.
The SABC sales division even has a person whose job it is to seek government business and design special tactical campaigns. It makes good sense. In 2003 government spent just over R350m on advertising and that's expected to increase by over 30% this year.
But many big companies still rely on their public relations companies to produce advertising - often with diluted effect. The trend seems to be to hire an agency that is able to provide a seamless advertising and PR service. That means designing a complementary communications strategy.
Agencies that are noted for successful corporate advertising include Ogilvy for Old Mutual; TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris for Sasol; Berry Bush BBDO for Sanlam; and the FCB Group for clients such as FirstRand, AngloGold and Altron.
Another trend to watch out for is increased corporate activity elsewhere in Africa and with it the need to establish and secure meaningful brand identity.
When MTN recently looked for a new agency, it insisted on African experience. And it was Ogilvy Africa that won the coveted Stanbic Africa account, which covers 14 countries.
"The appointment of Ogilvy Africa marks the beginning of a new era of brand building for Stanbic and Standard Bank outside SA," says Stanbic Africa marketing head Daniel Erasmus.
And that's probably a good indication of where corporate brand building will head.
