BRANDING-Some Kenyan lessons on the power of emotions.

Safaricom,Tusker and Judge Ian have to be the most recognizable brands in the country.Safaricom flaunts its proudly Kenyan heritage in whatever it odes,from its Niko na Safaricom advert that has everyone talking to its mpesa money transfer service,why lie even its promotional ads all carry Kenyan slang language like the Masonko na safaricom.Moving on to Tusker,everyone agrees we have good beer and Tusker stands tall among its peers having won several awards.And there is Jude Ian he of the Tusker project fame show,he is brutally honest,tells it like it is and never shys away from voicing his opinion on anything-I like him.

If Kenyan companies could learn anything from the above,whom ni have just picked randomly is that you need to know what you stand for .Tusker evokes good times it reminds one of a party and nyama choma.What does your business stand for,what emotion does it evoke in your customer or potential buyer?The importance of emotions in branding cannot be overlooked and there was no better example of this than in the Safaricom IPO that generated an overwhelming response from the general public because people felt they were buying into a Kenyan company.I don't think the stock market will ever generate such excitement for some time to come.No matter what you may think about the company it has made its stamp in the Kneyna psyche.

Judge Ian never disappoints he is known as the straight talking judge who never sugar coats his criticism.Love him or hate him his opinion holds sway with the general public and i think thats why we like to hate him.He never wavers in his opinion.He has been able evoke certain emotions in us,he never falters and you will never catch him having a wishy washy opinion on anything.That is how brands need to be,know what you stand for and stick to it.A good example of a company that need to work on its image is Air-tel,which was formerly Zain and before that Celtel and when it started it was Kencell.I always ask myself ,whatever do they want to be known for apart form their constant battles with the dominant market player in the mobile industry.Hope this time,their freedom strategy stays.

As sure as he sun will rise tomorrow,change follows us our hole lives and it is true any company or business needs to change its strategy with the times but at least be known for consistency in whatever direction you are headed in.

WHY KENYAN COFFEE NEEDS TO FIND ITS WAY TO CHINA

The Chinese are consuming cup loads of coffee so much so Starbucks is planning to start growing coffee in China.

Kenya today has become a Chinese business hub and we have a lot of our products on our shelves.While i do not qualify to comment on what we could be exporting to China apart for our beautiful wildlife we have the Chinese stamping their authority on all things construction from apartments on Mombasa road to our superhighways to stadiums to our homes .Just talk a walk on biashara street in Nairobi and there is even a shop selling Chinese baby products.

In my opinion this is an opportune moment for the Minister of Agriculture to schedule a meeting with the Chinese ambassador to discuss how this can be mutually beneficial for both sides.Probably we could start paying these contractors working on our roads with bags of coffee thus creating a win win situation on both sides.