There was a time when Nigeria’s leadership changed frequently. Similarly, the names of the states of the Federation also changed in quick succession while new states were also created.
The headache then was in trying to remember what new leaders or new states or even renamed states. Children growing up in that era were just about firming up their knowledge of names as the names were being changed yet again. You get a headache trying to forget what you have just mastered in a bid to re-master the new and then it changes on you once more.The telecommunications company Zain is a case in point of Brand Fatigue.
Mo Ibrahim setup and ran Celtel, a successful telecoms company out of the Netherlands with extensive business reach into Africa and particularly the Sudan. Mo Ibrahim had once stated that he would not do business in Nigeria due to the unethical practices that existed there.
Like everyone else who has said that, there usually is a reversal when the numbers are crunched or competitors speed past you in the stakes race. Ask Vodacom.
When the South African MTN came into town and started painting the place yellow, celtel followed suit into Nigeria. Mo Ibrahim had probably made exit plans anyway. Something like $3bn from the Kuwatis is enough to make any sane person consider early retirement.
Celtel arrived as Celtel. Celtel soon became Vmobile. I am not sure if Virgin mobile was not in there somewhere. Both retained the colour red. MTN had yellow, MTEL war toying with orange and the Don was coming up the lanes with Globacom’s luminous green. There was no Etisalat, or is it Mubadala, at the time.
Numerous reasons have been alluded to the frequent name changes at the company now known as Zain. Board room crisis or not, the people were getting tired of wondering when the company would settle down to the business of providing telecommunications services.
Just when you thought it was safe to punch the keys on your phone and make a call, the company became Zain. The Kuwatis, having paid an enormous amount of money to Mo Ibrahim, wanted to keep their regionally-known brand name intact.
Zain was not only a change of name but also a change of colour. Now, lets not begin a debate on the merits of moving from a distinct red to a swirling mixture of turquoise, purple and black. The brand buildings and outlets will give you enough ammunition.
The company is in the news again. The Kuwaitis are apparently tired of the micro-wave in your ear business but a consortium of Indian companies has come to the rescue. $13bn is enough to make a group of sane men consider moving on in business and life.
What will happen to Zain in Nigeria yet again? We have just mastered the name, gotten used to the dizzying whirlpool of turquoise, purple and black and also just about forgotten about rumours of internal dissatisfaction or was it outsourcing core operations to some other company or the other.
What name do we anticipate this time? Rashmahan Tel or Bombay Wireless? Dare we begin to play with prospective corporate colours? If you have the time, I don’t.
With Branding and Re-branding high on the agenda for many troubled entities, one wonders why this particular company is struggling to settle down.
Some global brands are so strong that with eyes shut you can be shown their corporate logos and colours and still guess them right. Taste a Coca-cola while blindfolded and you could be village-slapped if you guessed wrong.
Have a heart for the shareholders and smaller investors in the company. Their share certificates must be in multiple colours by now. Which is which? They too may not be very sure.
The market place is moving along nicely in the meantime. Market share is being grabbed by competitors including new players. They have managed in that dizziness to keep their names and colours. How they do that remains a mystery.
How do you sustain a long-lasting brand? How does your brand maintain consistent recognition in a competitive market that is yet to reach saturation? How do you maintain employee confidence in the face of frequent name and brand changes?
How do you know which SIM card to use if you were once a Celtel customer?
Whatever the Indians intend to do with Zain, in Nigeria please avoid that Uxbridge fabric maker’s colours’ collective.
Over to the Brand Experts and consumers littered across the land.
What do you think?
