What kind of Vodacom is red?

Suppose this is only a sample of friends that are tuned but not impressed with the "new" concept.

Again, brand confusion came into play when my partner and I squabbled about the current Vodacom logo, which he mistook for Vodafone's. The difference is that I had read the last three letters of the word that is in the logo and he didn't, as do a significant number of consumers. The colour red is already associated with Vodafone, as well as the white circle in the middle.

In other words, the point is that there is no feature difference between the two symbols. Vodacom might as well be Vodafone; there is no point in keeping the name.

Without precise branding, the name is not important, which is at stake in the case of Vodacom. Rebranding means going for something that is totally new and unknown to create a new mindset, not adopting something that already exists.

Vodafone has the biggest pie

It is totally understandable that Vodafone, as a massive stakeholder of the business, would want to reflect this on the overall brand, but this is not worth jeopardising a well-established and healthy trademark.

Is Vodacom changing the face of its target audience?

According to the 2010 Telco Innovation Study by Innovation Agency, Vodacom has the biggest appeal for over-50-year-olds, while MTN is attracting the under-30's. Now, with Vodacom changing to red, words such as "surprising", "playful", "simpler" are being used to describe the brand.

I therefore assume that it is wanting to tap into the young market, which is already bombarded by MTN and 8ta. Vodacom is not communicating to or about the current blue market, which is older, reserved, ambitious, committed etc.

Cell C did a better job

Cell C deserves a gold medal for allocating some budget and time in the "communication" campaign that aimed to explain to the target audience the reason for rebranding. Vodacom could learn a thing or two - maybe even four. Instead of, all of a sudden, dropping buckets full of red paint in blue rooms, using lines such as "red is more" and expecting the audience to understand what the deal is.

One or two aspects of branding can be further learned from the yellow service provider. MTN is a master of branding, with innovative ideas that speak to the target market continuously being created and implemented very well, eg the totally new face (ambassador) and character that was taken and integrated into a brand and used for all campaigns.

For more:

• Bizcommunity Search: Vodacom Cell C
  
• TechCentral: Vodacom vs Cell C: the gloves are off
  
• Twitter Search: Vodacom Cell C or Vodacom Draftfcb

• Google News Search: Vodacom Cell C