It is a proven fact, pardon the tautology, that South African advertising is brilliantly creative. It is hailed to be some of the best in the world, and the recent Loeries Awards proved this to still be the case. There is passion, simplicity, honesty and forthright humour that are unique to South Africa.
The Dulux ad, for me, is such a case. It reflected the truth of where we are at in South Africa, and the ensued reaction to its launch, was proof. To quote one of the judges Matthew Bull, " Our work is uniquely South African because of its attitude." I agree with him to a point. The Loeries showcased some of South Africa's best advertising, some that was uniquely South African and most that is typically, purely just white advertising, in white media for a white target audience. If the Loeries are any indication, media spend is significantly higher in the white market.
In an earlier address to the South African advertising industry, Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, encouraged the industry to bring out experiences that are uniquely South African, and reflective of the nation. He also warned the industry against missing the mark, by romanticising Americanism, while being completely ignorant of its use by the target market. Sadly this was the case by one of the Loeries category winners; Metro FM. It proved to be off the mark in terms of the target market (16-34) with its heavy American iconography and culture in this period where South African is weaving its own national tapestry, against western influence. Trend Youth research, done by the Unilever Institute of Marketing, indicates, how South African youth love to celebrate their uniquely South African style, with local brands such as Paniki and Loxion Kulcha and choose to select elements of American style, to localise. The growth of local music genres such as kwaito and Afro jazz are also evidence of South Africa's celebration of itself. It seems to me that the media assisted by advertising are intent on ignoring the people opinions and interests to perpetuate the myth that 'eurocentrisim' and first world are cool. I missed the point with Metro's win. In fact, I may be forgiven, if I raised the suspicion that the aim of this win was to increase the 'Africanness' quota of the Loeries.
There is no doubt that there is a wealth of passion and creativity in South Africa. However, its single-minded focus is not intent on reflecting the South African view, but rather on maintaining the status quo. Advertising has the great responsibility of weaving a unique tapestry that is the dynamic South Africa. The world looks at our tapestry, the wrong side up. They do not see the colours of hope, tenacity, development and diversity coming together in a vividly exciting rainbow. They see the disease, crime and the economic slump. Our nation, sadly, also sees this and is influenced by it. I went to a caravan to get pap and vleis, the day after Bafana's defeat. Mami told me that, business had dropped significantly on that day and she had anticipated it, because everyone was sad about our defeat. Trevor Manuel had indicated as much in his address at the Financial Mail Adfocus conference. The feel good factor, boosts consumer spend. We have far too little of the feel good and cohesive advertising in South Africa, so that these stand out. I must mention and applaud at this point the outstanding grand prix win that Telkom and its agency received. As many have said before, we need to engender a South African culture. We need not begin one; we need only reflect what is there.
Addressing racism in Advertising is an imperative. But this in my opinion, is just one of the pertinent factors that have to be addressed to have advertising that is reflective of South Africa. We need to address what South Africa is in its entirety. As alluded to earlier on, South Africa is a diverse nation in terms, race, income group and cohorts (referenced as age groups). It is a nation continuously undergoing change, affecting its most fundamental social pillars. A case in point is the role of women in socio- economic leadership. This in a nation that is almost wholly patriarchal! Research indicates that a significant number of young black males still haven't come to grips with it and that young white males have merely caved in.
South Africa is a youthful nation, with a majority of its population being under 25 years of age. This is a group of people to whom racism is history. 'Stop dwelling in the past!' (Sowetan Friday June 14th) they say, voicing their focus that is on the present and the future. Their interests are diverse, and their consumption significant to marketers and leaders. They are fiercely independent and love to experiment. They are an ever-changing phenomenon, they cannot be pinned down. They are diverse, separated by income group and geography, yet have an influential impact on the society and economy. They have woven into their value system, a little bit of everything loosely held open for future elements. There is a significant absorption of African culture, products and style in their collective subculture, flavoured by their own interpretation of international trends. They have developed their own subculture against the national grain; they have their own language, style and secret codes. They are generally ignored and then communicated at, from both an economic and political point of view. They are not only our future, they are the currency we need to address, but we are not. But this target market is intent on integration, they believe in non-racialism and having equal access to opportunities. They have to deal with a deadly reality of the impact of HIV- Aids in their lives, which they take quite seriously, they are after all the most vulnerable. They are quite sophisticated in the manner in which they see advertising, they judge it, and some they choose to ignore. Advertising spent and our esteemed creativity does not reflect our youth. Let us not shelve them with this current debate, for future reference, we will miss the boat.
Can we really afford to ignore the majority of the South African market, the so-called grassroots, the lower end of the LSM scale? What price will we pay, by doing such? The majority of this market is reached via radio. Yet the ad spend on radio and print in this market is significantly lower that that in the white market. This market's story is hardly ever told in the creative awards we have annually, if done, it is minimal. They are not part of the visual advertising tapestry that we weave, save for the usual blacks only products, such as micro lending. The impact of electrification, technology in the form of the versatile cell phones, the influence of youth on this market will change the face of this group of people that we constantly ignore. They contribute significantly to our nation's value system, and have an economic impact as well. They are the legacy of African culture that is proving to be pervasive to developing subcultures. They have influenced and authenticated style, having inspired fashion 'square's' Stoned Cherrie, Sungoddess and Paniki, the youth style culture.
Then there is the gender issue to consider. Media reports indicate that the one of the most prevalent violence incidences in South Africa is violence against women and children. Some reports have even insinuated that these may be due to the rise of women power in South Africa, that men feel disempowered. The validity of this will be left in the capable hands of our researchers. However, the reality of this vulnerability of women and children is just one of the areas that have to be addressed in our advertising. Research indicates that even in the youth market, males have not yet made peace with the phenomenon of the woman leader. Our advertising still objectifies women, perpetuating the myth of women as sex symbols or accessories. It is one of our truisms; great car and great babe. Yet its impact in societal development can be quite crucial.
I believe in redressing the imbalances in the industry. However, if we continue to focus solely on race as the only pertinent issue that needs to be redressed, then we will continuously be off the mark. We must address issues that holistically affect the reflection of our nation. We must commit to a positive contribution of the South African dream. We are partly responsible for the tapestry that is our nation. We can influence how it is held for the nation or the world to view. Yes we must have controls in place, controls not only on empowerment. These controls must be in all facets of the industry, including the awards. Marketers, will have to play a significant role in selecting agencies that contribute significantly to this dream, at both the creative output level aimed at the south African population as well as advertising spend. It is my belief that what we reflect with our advertising is indicative of our commitment to South Africa. It is clear that the industry controls need to have measurables in place to monitor transformation. If we continue to ignore the youth, the development in the greater South African market segment and prevailing gender issues, our advertising will be missing the boat.
