Pat on Brands Podcast Pat on Brands Podcast

On the 42nd episode of the Pat On Brands Podcast, Pat & Mpumi sit down with Marketing extraordinaire Mr. Mosala Philips, who has close to 20 years experience within the marketing industry. Having first approached P&G for an Assistant Brand Manager position, with an Electrical Engineering qualification & no experience in Marketing, He now holds a position as the role of Chief Marketing Officer at Old Mutual.He speaks on the journey that leads to his Engineering qualification. A series of opportunities to represent his region, Motlana & Soweto - Funda Centre & the University of Pretoria in primary school. He shares fond and pivotal moments and extend gratitude to his then educator who helped pave his journey.Having the inclination for numbers, the natural progression in university would be a numbers course and Engineering was the best option! He later ventured into a Finance qualification which led him to his first marketing at P&G. He didn’t know what marketing was until his role at P&G commenced. He has been on that path since, which has paved a great path for him with opportunities to work outside of the country. He also gives some business expansion learnings and along his travels. The episode ends with a fun series of branding questions. How well do you know your brands, let us know in the comment section below. This episode is proudly brought to you by Lerato Agency & Lenala Nail Studio@pob_podcast @lenalanailstudio @patonbrands

This week, Pat and Mpumi share the latest from the Super Bowl, how valuable a platform it is for marketers and Rihanna’s surprise announcement there. They then touch on the latest news about brands, such as Burger King, and unpack their latest promise to the consumer. The first ever Advertising Week Africa is happening this week and Pat and Mpumi try to understand the impact it will have on the continent and the industry. Lastly, a much-needed candid conversation, about the state of the state brands that is South Africa and how it is not being looked after, is then had. The recent gunning down of AKA can be a representation of how things in South Africa are just going downhill, and the lawlessness is getting out of hand.

For this episode, Pat and Mpumi sit down with Nthabiseng Matshekga, the Executive Head of Group Marketing at Nedbank. We kickstart this episode with our Brand News segment – we touch on SABC’s streaming platform, a new entrant in this fast-growing industry. Second to that, we discuss one of the agile large corporates, Checkers. We looked at their print media advert that was published in the UK and Australia and how it kicked up dust with its boldness and unpacked what the campaign aimed to achieve.

The dialogue then dives into Nthabiseng’s journey as an accomplished marketer who first started in the Economics and Statistics industry. Out of curiosity of human behaviour and thinking she ventured into the marketing industry and transform the landscape.

Pat and Mpumi get to learn of more about the guests’ notable wins - she was involved in the calorie conversion programme, which changed the way the communities looked at the food and nutrients that pets need. It was shown to these communities how cost-effective buying pet food would be instead of just feeding them left overs.

For this week’s episode, Pat and Mpumi sit down and dive into the PR world with Njongo Mato, a specialist in Public Relations. The conversation goes deep into some of the inner workings of the industry.

The first aspect discussed is the meaning of PR. Thereafter, our hosts and guest touch on how the younger generation thinks achieving success is easy and that it can be attained by skipping steps. It seems as though the upcoming youngsters don’t care about their craft.

To close off the discussion, they touch on working with social media influencers and question whether brands that invest in them are actually getting any value in return for that investment. Since prices are seemingly freely decided by the influencer themselves, the question of whether the industry should be somewhat regulated rises. There is much more to uncover in this episode.

In this candid conversation, our hosts Pat and Mpumi begin by highlighting how they have hit the ground running, already striving to complete their goals for 2023. The conversation then presents some intriguing questions and discussions.

The first question raised is, “Are we our ancestors wildest dreams”? (referring to the Generation joy campaign). In answering the question, Mpumi touches on how her grandfather almost envies how lucky Mpumi’s generation is to have all the opportunities and success that were not available to his. The two then go on to discuss the rationale behind the wording in it and consider how a differently a message can be taken from place to place.

With the collaboration between Nike and Netflix, our hosts discuss the genius in timing of the collaboration. This is especially in the South African context. Pat mentions that with loadshedding affecting every aspect of our lives, this allows the consumer some freedom in enabling them to exercise while at home with downloaded episodes. Other effects of loadshedding are chewed over, giving perspective on how that one problem has a ripple effect.

Pat concludes the discussion with an interesting question, “How will AI affect the marketing industry and its jobs”? Realising how fast the technology is improving, he explains how people must be better than the machine to not get replaced by it. Mpumi responds by pointing out that humans are built to adapt, so we can adapt to this too. There is way more to unpack in this episode

In this episode, our hosts begin by reflecting on their holidays. Then, to kick off this new chapter in conversations around marketing, Pat Mahlangu and Mpumi Satsha look forward to the upcoming marketing trends for 2023.

The first trend the hosts touch on is the investing of brands in the metaverse. Since VR has become widely popular, the gigantic social media company Facebook decided to be a trailblazer and create their own virtual world. Before you knew it, global superstars jumped on it and companies had bought land in that world. It seems like that trend of investing time and resources into this platform will likely continue.

Employee Advocacy is now a big factor in the marketing strategy of big brands. As Pat mentions, the companies have realised this element is important because its where the customer gets in contact with your brand. That means that if people who are part of your business don’t spread good word of mouth about it, then you are quite likely to lose a large part of your customer base.

Mpumi touches on one of the most fascinating aspects of the influencer marketing strategy: how businesses are now looking at micro influencers to help their brand, as well as becoming smarter and more strategic with the influencer approach. It is also worth noting how Mpumi predicted the rise of nano-influencers. For any new trends or news in marketing, you can always be sure that the POB podcast has got you.