Marketing Association of SA officially launches

An invitation is extended to all marketers, corporate representatives and industry stakeholders to attend this historic event, scheduled for 5 March at The Ill Grande Theatre, Nu Metro Centre, Montecasino, Montecasino Boulevard, Fourways, Sandton, at 1.30pm for 2pm.

MASA, which came into being soon after the collapse of the Marketing Federation of Southern Africa, has been developed pro-bono by a group of concerned marketing professionals : They Enrico du Plessis, Mark Jakins, Nicola Kleyn, Nonhlanhla Koza, Ivan May, Bonang Mohale, Kheepe Moremi, Connie Nkosi, Sarah-Anne Orphanides, Jeremy Sampson and Roger Sinclair.

Interim responsibility

With draft mapping of the strategic direction now completed, Mohale, the interim board chairman, says, "We are now ready to present the organisation to the marketing industry. Ours was just an interim responsibility and industry players must now elect those officials they deem fit to lead the organisation."

According to draft proposals to be presented at the inaugural general meeting, the association will propose that the new board act as an anchor point for all stakeholders, including companies, individuals and other related specialist bodies/associations, through an interdependent partnership model with limited costs.

It is proposed that the focus should be centred on the strategic positioning of marketing and marketers among business, government and civil society. The new board's function should, among others, be to lobby, mentor and monitor the principles of self-regulation, marketing governance and related collective services through corporate representations on established entities such as the ASA, SAARF, ABC, LCA, Services SETA and others.

Ideal positioning

The organisation will ideally be positioned as a promoter of the professional marketing discipline with relevant participation in all areas of society to table formal views or stances around marketing matters of national importance, rather than being a provider.

The interim board will also table a strategy viewpoint document designed to encourage debate around the future direction of the organisation. Industry players will, besides electing a new board of directors, be requested to comment on the document that will be the responsibility of the new board to implement as part of a process to legitimise the formation of the marketing association as the industry body.

MASA has indicated that these strategic viewpoints of national importance and relevance to the marketing industry comprise of the following:

• Contributing to the tripartite structure of the industry: media, advertising agencies and marketers;
  
• Marketing industry lobbying on legal risks, i.e. - alcohol, children in advertisements, comparative advertising, disclaimers etc;
  
• Academic accreditation within marketing - stamp of approval for tertiary, post graduate courses and chartered marketers etc;
  
• Transformation, BEE guidelines, formal viewpoints on guiding constituent members;
  
• Ownership of marketing levies collected by media owners on behalf of marketers and strategic deployment of such funds through the LCA;
  
• Providing a career guidance voice and promoting the marketing profession (similar to accounting profession);
  
• The Marketing Excellence Awards;
  
• Media, publications/programming to the marketing and consumer industry;
  
• Marketing industry protocols with regard to advertising agency pitch processes - including time, briefs, money, protection of rights etc;
  
• Election of new board and proposed constitution principles;
  
• Monitoring media inflation;
  
• Giving consumers a voice - essentially hosting dialogue through publications/programming and through a marketing partnership with relevant media owners;
  
• Monitoring performance of SAARF, ASA etc., through the funding levy. This includes addressing print contributions which have been lagging;
  
• Restricting dramatically the overhead cost burden of the marketing association going forward. This will include reliance on the new democratically elected board members and a very small operational team to deliver voluntary services on the mandate going forward.

RSVP by latest 28 February 2007 to the Marketing Association at:

E-mail or
Fax +27 (0)86 511 7137/610 7029