ECDC appoints new marketing agency

The Eastern Cape's economic development agency, the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) has awarded a nine-month marketing and communication contract, worth R10 million, to local marketing consultancy, SMG Africa (Strategic Marketing Group), effective from 1 April 2008.

The contract was awarded after a rigorous tender process, adjudicated by Yardstick, a strategic consultancy specialising in performance measurement and evaluation within the marketing and communication environment.

The contract incorporates the full ambit of branding, marketing and communication activities including a brand audit of the six-year old brand.

ECDC chief executive officer Mxolisi Matshamba, a former Trade Invest South Africa (TISA) CEO, believes that the brand audit comes at an opportune time for the organization which has recently finalised its executive team.

"We realise that an astute brand, that talks to stakeholders' needs, will create further impetus for us going forward in terms of our turnaround strategy which is entering its second and final phase. SMG Africa is a marketing service provider which has a proven track record in strategy and implementation and their inputs will be valuable to key ECDC initiatives planned for 2008," says Matshamba.

SMG Africa director Ashley Cocks says that the ECDC win is a welcome addition to the business whose other clients include the East London IDZ which is one of only two operational IDZs in South Africa, Novate Property Investments, developers of the Triple Point mixed-use development in East London, Aspire, the Amathole District Municipality's economic development agency, the recently Alt-X listed Hardware Warehouse and the Hluma Development Agency, an Old Mutual/DBSA initiative focusing on economic development on the Wild Coast.

"Our team is small but skilled, with years of experience in the investment promotion sector. This, together with intimate knowledge of the province and its role players, makes us a very suitable partner to an economic development agency," ends Cocks.

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For more information, contact

Dee van der Byl

ECDC marketing and communication

Telephone 043 704 5600

Email dvdbyl@ecdc.co.za

Ashley Cocks

SMG Africa

Telephone 043 726 8833

Cellular 082 770 2505

Email Ashley@smgafrica.com

For ECDC/SMG media relations

Antoinette Panton

SMG Africa

Telephone 043 726 8833

Cellular 083 419 8939