The Brief
Your client is launching a new book and CD to educate South Africans about the different religions practised in this country, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism and Wican. The aim of the product is to teach South Africans tolerance toward other religions and it needs to be marketed across the local spiritual media to religious audiences from all spheres of society. The book and CD will be sold as one package for R99. Your marketing campaign will run over six months – three months before the launch, and three months after the launch. Your budget is R450,000.
Background
The client brief is clear on one objective: To launch a new book and CD, priced at R99, aimed at educating South Africans about the different religions practised in this country. The client assumption is that the book and CD needs to be marketed across the local “spiritual” media to religious audiences from all spheres of society.
While there is no lack of “spiritual” or faith-based media, from the unofficial “garage press” variety to the more mainstream, adopting this approach may be at odds with the aim of the book and CD package. The aim is to educate South Africans about different religions, religions other than their own. I doubt that most spiritual/faith-based media, aside from the public service broadcaster, have an interest in educating their audiences about religions other than their own, let alone in an objective way.
Add to this a “limited” budget over a six-month period and the argument for “spiritual/faith based” media becomes less compelling from a traditional advertising point of view. Not only is it fragmented along religious lines but it spans across media types such as community radio, press and TV.
R450,000 can only go so far.
The Challenge
Make R450,000 work harder so that it ensures a sustainable and profitable business model.
The Big Idea
The idea is to share synergies through strategic partnerships for the promotion of religious diversity.
Religious diversity is enshrined in the South African constitution. It is an issue of national importance. There are various government, state-owned enterprises and non-governmental policy frameworks and initiatives aimed at promoting religious diversity. Instead of limiting the promotion of this book and CD package through traditional advertising across various spiritual and faith-based media, there are opportunities to considerably widen the product’s business scope and ultimately not just launch the product but drive sales through sustainable strategic partnerships.
The following outlines a dual approach through two such partnerships – one aimed at the broader South African public and the other aimed at schools. Further synergies could be identified and then leveraged.
SABC Religion
As the public service broadcaster, the SABC is mandated to offer religious programmes and other broadcasting material on radio and television that reflects the diversity of faiths in South Africa. To this end, it has its own specialist business unit called SABC Religion. The idea is to partner SABC Religion, have them endorse the book and CD and promote it during its religious programming through a mutually beneficial business partnership.
Embedded programme content in various religious programmes, followed by a direct response mechanism advertising a toll free call-to-order line, as well as a website pointer for online orders, can be set up. This not only provides exposure but an immediate sales and distribution channel. Revenue can be shared with a fair mark-up and a percentage of proceeds donated to various inter-faith based community projects. Content from the CD could also be licensed and “serialised” and the book can be promoted off this platform. In addition, interesting facts about religions can be spun off on a subscriber based mobile content platform – one of which the SABC owns.
Department of education
Enabling teachers in South Africa to manage the complexities associated with religious diversity is an ongoing challenge to their professional development. A strategic business partnership with the department of education (DOE) will see the book and CD going a long way to equipping teachers from a curriculum perspective as part of the department’s policy on religion and education, which is aimed at promoting a co-operative model for schools. A DOE endorsement or a direct supplier relationship could see a sustainable market for the product.
Summary
The budget of R450,000 could either be spent through a range of faith-based and spiritual media to advertise the product with no solid guarantee of a return on investment. Conversely, R450,000 used to fund the back end and technical requirements (call centre, websites, delivery and postal infrastructure, etc) of these strategic partnerships will ensure a sustainable business model that will generate sales and hence, profit.
Put simply, it is cost effective, sustainable and hinges on the right markets and platforms.
Nazeer Suliman is general manager at Universal McCann.