'Fragile' marketing industry regrouping

Services SETA CEO, Ivor Blumenthal has invited stakeholders in the industry to a meeting on Friday, 7 October to discuss and agree on the future of the marketing industry. The meeting will be co chaired by James McLuckie, previously CEO of the Institute of Marketing Management of South Africa.

"With the recent closure of the Marketing Federation of South Africa due to financial constraints, it is now time that those of us responsible for the welfare of this industry decide on its future and eventually find a home for the industry," Blumenthal said.

The Services Sector Education and Training Authority is responsible for ensuring a relationship of engagement between organized business and labour for the marketing sector and hence the urgency for the industry experts to come together and decide on the way forward, the body said in a statement released today, 4 October 2005.

There is anger in the larger marketing fraternity at the inability of the marketing leadership to present a united front and keep its own house in order. The marketing fraternity feels it has been made to look the fool, that it doesn't take its own business seriously enough - a hard pill for an industry where business is all about marketing.

Blogposts on Bizcommunity.com which broke the story of the MFSA's dissolution with a debt of R5 million, called for the Board to be held accountable, asked where the money had gone, and said it was tragic in an industry which builds brands, not to be able to rescue its own.

Two issues of primary concern for the South African marketing industry currently relates to the absence of a truly representative voice for the sector, which in the process leaves the sector vulnerable to attacks from leadership capable of distracting the marketing sector from it's true purpose, said Blumenthal's SETA statement.

"This is the decade long struggle between marketers and advertisers, where the latter would have us believe that advertising is the be-all-and-end-all of marketing. We all know the fallacy of this argument and would argue that advertising is part of the marketing mix but certainly should never be considered to be at the forefront of that mix.

"Another issue is the threat from the public relations industry where again that profession has seen fit to disassociate itself from marketing services within the Services Sector and instead choose to be classified as specialised business consulting practices.

"While we do not have a truly united force capable of uniting these various industries leading the marketing communication, the marketing sector remains fragile and under represented in every forum that matters including NEDLAC, the NSA and also in front of parliament, which has long accused the sector of being anti-transformation in its practices and deeds," Blumenthal asserts.

This may be so, but industry pundits are cautioning that no one organization, body or company can take responsibility for the whole sector. Whatever form a new marketing body takes - they must not proceed without complete buy-in from all relevant stakeholders, Bizcommunity.com was told.

Blumenthal continued: "The second concern that is more of a challenge, relates to transformation. The perception is that the marketing sector requires far more transformation-directed initiatives than it has launched to date. Concerns are not only reflected in business ownership within the sector but also in participative management and decision-making process statistics.

"There is no charter for the sector and government, business and the trade unions are becoming intolerant of the current state of affairs."

And while the Services SETA believes it is time to resuscitate brands destroyed by the establishment of the MFSA: the IMM, the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), and ASSOM, there are many in the industry who do not believe there is any going back to the past, that transformation of the industry is still lagging behind and that there should be one professional body representing all marketing stakeholders to liaise with Government, business and the media, continually explaining the importance of marketing to the economy and represent the industry in meeting legislative challenges.

As marketing analyst Chris Moerdyk put it so succinctly: "There is a lot of hysteria out there right now, but at the end of the day, it's the big marketing companies that will decide which organisation they are getting involved with."

To RSVP to the Services SETA invite, contact Shainaaz Rambehary on: +11 276 9644, email: shainaazr@serviceseta.org.za to book your place.