South African firms listed abroad must 'stay in touch'

EAST LONDON -- It was important that major South African companies that delist and relocate overseas should not distance themselves from South Africa, says International Marketing Council of South Africa (IMC) acting chief executive Steve Griessel.

Griessel, who addressed business people here, said it was not unpatriotic of major companies to list overseas.

"Many of those companies will not grow their business by remaining in South Africa.

"If a group like SA Breweries did not list overseas it would not have been in the position to make all the acquisitions," said Griessel.

The IMC is presently embarking on a multimillion rand campaign to transform the image of the country, both internally and externally, by creating, co-ordinating and integrating a compelling South African brand proposition, said Griessel.

He said the IMC would focus on investments, exports and tourism and would support the initiatives of its stakeholders.

"To create more messages, however good they may be, simply adds to the confusion," said Griessel.

He urged various provinces to speak and promote their areas under one name -- that of South Africa.

Griessel said South Africa was one of the most sophisticated and promising emerging markets.

But IMC research has shown that there were pockets of negativity, despite the overwhelming sense of national pride.

"The most negative people are the expatriates now living overseas. They are to be found in all the major business centres and they are the ones which we should target," said Griessel.

Griessel said positive aspects of South Africa were the political stability, African leadership by President Thabo Mbeki, a world-class legal framework, sophisticated financial markets and a modern and efficient infrastructure.

He said the IMC would target countries such as the UK, US, Western European countries and neighbouring African states.

"It does not help to target Libya and Cuba. They cannot help us," he added.

The IMC also intend to liaise with journalists to help bring a positive image of the country across.

Well-known overseas consultants and originators of global brand names have been commissioned to assist the IMC.

The IMC would identify clear projects in its effort to brand South Africa.

"This is what Australia, Hong Kong and Ireland did," he added.

The branding of South Africa would receive a major boost when the World Summit for Sustainable Development is held here next year.

Griessel said many world leaders and more than 60000 delegateswere expected to attend the summit.

The IMC also intends to work on a communication model which would assist government in dealing with and analysing news events.

These developments would be monitored and government departments would be assisted to respond timeously to queries from the media.

An important development would be the establishment of a website project which would create a gateway for the country.

It would provide easy access to investors, importers and exporters, tourists and media who wanted information on South Africa.

The website will be linked to all South African websites and the South Africa brand will be reflected in essence.

The IMC has also budgeted
R5 million per year for three years to assist with e-commerce and the website. -- DDR