Wilken Communication Management
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Communication Management for the Retail
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www.automobil.co.za
October 2022
driVer’s seat
For information on the RMI and its workings, visit www.rmi.org.za or call 011 886 6300
editOr’s letter
n 2019 and 2020 the RMI embarked on a major rebranding exercise where
we launched vibrant new branding for both the RMI and its eight associa-
tions. We are proud of our heritage, representing more than 8 000 members
nationally and the new identity elevated the status of our brand, both locally
and internationally.
It is the one element that makes us distinctively recognisable in the indus-
try, with key stakeholders such as government, insurers, OE manufacturers and
warrantee administrators, and most importantly, amongst the motoring pub-
lic. For decades companies have realised the value of this recognition. One of
the first and most famous examples of this type of branding was by Coca-Cola.
In simple terms they wanted customers to be able to identify them from all the
other brown, sweet, sparkling drinks available at the time and the rest, well we
know is history. Great brands definitely stand the test of time. They may need
to be carefully refined, as was the case with ours, but they remain strong and
easily identifiable.
Branding has evolved over the years to become much more than
just the name or label of a type of product or service. In contempo-
rary marketing, your ‘brand’ is not just the name, it is also what peo-
ple think about when they see or hear that name. Brand identity
today encompasses the whole experience your customers have
with your company, product or service. Whether we realise it or
not, many of the purchases we make are influenced by brand
and design.
At the time we appreciated that our brand change
would pose certain challenges and cost implications
for members and realised we would need to allow
a reasonable time for members to run down stock
and rebrand merchandise, transactional documents
such as quotes and invoices, buildings and vehicles.
Almost three years later however, we are still not seeing a uniform and con-
sistent application of our new logos across all businesses. You must remember
our logo is the most visible part of our identity. It is a guarantee of profession-
alism and peace of mind and unless we display the correct logo we are creat-
ing confusion in the market and diluting the power of our brand. A brand, for
any company, is much like a reputation for a person. We earn this reputation
through consistency in application and attitude.
We are pleased to share with you that the RMI Board has approved a special
project to fund production of RMI branding material to assist members who
are struggling with the change. In this regard an in-depth branding workshop
was held with all of the Associations’ national directors last month to discuss
the roll out and implementation.
This project will provide excellent branding opportunities to the RMI mem-
bers and help them to transition from the old to the updated new RMI brand-
ing, thereby ensuring that the RMI Corporate Image is upheld consistently.
It will allow the RMI to provide our members with tangible evidence of the
importance of belonging to the RMI. The initiative seeks to create a feeling of
cohesion amongst our members and may well serve to introduce more con-
sumers to our members.
A Corporate Identity manual is in place with very clear directives on how
the logo should be applied and used in different applications. I would like
to encourage members to review this manual. If you don’t already have a
copy, you can liaise with the RMI’s Brand and Communications Manager,
Danelle van der Merwe who can forward you a copy.
It is also key that any of your suppliers that are displaying the RMI branding,
do so correctly. Every single manifestation of our brand needs to be consis-
tently applied.
I look forward to your support and co-operation and to more of our mem-
bers appreciating and embracing the change.
Jakkie Olivier
RMI Chief Executive Officer
Showing our best face
utomechanika recently returned to Frankfurt after a
forced hiatus due to COVID-19 and the automotive after-
market is clearly ready for this new normal. 78 000 visi-
tors from 175 countries descended on the Messe Frankfurt fa-
cility to experience products and services relating to workshops,
industry and retail while participants took full advantage of the
networking opportunities to meet one another in person and
make new business contacts.
The focus of this year’s event on increased digitalisation, re-
manufacturing, alternative drive systems and electromobility
are a clear indicator of where the industry is heading and where
opportunities lie within the industry. The industry is progressing
at an astonishing rate and expertise in these fields will become
absolutely essential if workshops and dealers are to continue
playing a major role. While the need for these institutions will
most certainly remain, their offering and the way they attract
and treat customers will need to be refined.
The event also confirmed that despite an ever-increasing dig-
ital world, something that was accelerated and normalised to a
large extent by the pandemic, at the end of the day doing busi-
ness still comes down to people and relationships. Speaking to a
person, visiting a stand and shaking hands are elements that are
irreplaceable.
What was also interesting to see is that on the brink of a new
era for the automotive industry, with alternative fuels soon be-
coming more mainstream, suppliers and technology providers
seem to be more open to collaboration. Companies have realised
that it is more beneficial to focus on the particular areas in which
they are experts rather than trying to offer a complete solution
and then work together with industry partners in order to offer
consumers or end users the best solution possible.
It is certainly an exciting time to be involved in the automotive
industry and the automotive aftermarket with numerous oppor-
tunities available for those that are not afraid to look ahead and
embrace the latest in technology.
reuben van niekerk
reuben@automobil.org.za
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