Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
To besedilo lahko preberete tudi v slovenskem jeziku
By: Borut Odlazek
Photo: Simon Furlan
Telekom Slovenia was awarded the Advertiser of the Year 2015 recognition for professional, innovative and original work in the field of marketing communications reflected in excellent performance in the market in 2015. In this interview with Simon Furlan, Director of Marketing, Telekom Slovenia, you can see what this award means to the company and what they are planning for the future.
What does the Advertiser of the Year 2015 award, which you received from the Slovenian Advertising Chamber, mean for Telekom Slovenia?
We at Telekom Slovenia understand the award Advertiser of the Year 2015, which we won in competition with excellent brands, as recognition of our consistent, innovative and strategically managed marketing communications over a long period of time, not just in the last year. It represents professional recognition that we, as a company, successfully adapt to market conditions, that we have successfully implemented the consolidation of the brand by creating a powerful umbrella brand and that we have simplified communication with customers. It means that we have, therefore, become dynamic and that we know how to listen to our consumers. In the intensively competitive telecommunications industry, operators are constantly looking for new ways and platforms through which they can offer customers the most technologically advanced services that will satisfy all their communication needs. At the same time, customers expect superior service and more communication for lower prices. The guild award is confirmation that we have managed to achieve a balance between a clear communications platform and the concrete promise we give to our customers on the one hand, and the overall sales and after-sales support that we provide for them 24 hours a day on the other.
What are you particularly proud of in your market presence? Besides, of course, the awards you have been given by a number of expert juries.
There can be no successful brands or success in the market without a good team of employees. Linking marketing, communications, sales, business, service and development goals and activities is a challenge faced by all corporations, but all goals are achievable if you have a superior network, differentiated infrastructure and efficient support. In Telekom Slovenia we recently made a significant step forward in this area through connecting all our business elements. And this is reflected in our overall market presence.
Is there a secret to the success that brought this award to your company this year?
As for why they voted for us, you should probably ask the participant voters and the professional committee. I believe that in our work and market approach they recognized innovation, consistency and work projected on a long-term basis. Telekom Slovenia doesn’t believe in the sprint. I could almost say that we are closer to mid-distance races. And partnerships are far more important to us than short-term success, regardless of whether it’s partnership with our customers or business partners, through communication, our visual identity or socially responsible activities. Each of these elements is important in creating a success story.
How and why did you arrive at the practice of loyalty to Slovenian music in your advertisements?
Telekom Slovenia is the leading national telecommunications operator. Hence our responsibility to the wider and narrower social environment in which we operate. Through our actions we are trying to give back to society, and part of those activities is the promotion of Slovenian music through our marketing communications activities. This doesn’t mean that we don’t use foreign music of course, but we prefer Slovenian.
What is your outlook on the work of other marketers and their brands that also competed for this award? Are there good, enduring stories in Slovenia, in the spirit of the slogan of this year’s SOF?
All the brands in this year’s selection for Advertiser of the Year were great. Companies are aware of the importance of their brands, and that’s why they manage them in a planned, long term manner adjusted to their values. I am convinced that in this area Slovenia need not fear regarding many more good stories in the future.
The mission of the Slovenian Advertising Chamber also includes seeing to the introduction and application of standards of the advertising industry. How does your company make sure that standards are followed, applied and respected (self-regulation provisions, education, documents of good practice)?
Adhering to self-regulatory standards is an integral part of our marketing-communication process and a subject of much debate with agency experts when we prepare a marketing communications campaign. I think it’s good that all of us in the advertising triangle are aware of the standards and responsibilities which we as advertisers have in this area.
Since no one should rest on their laurels, what are Telekom Slovenia’s plans in the area of advertising in the following year, when you will again compete for the Advertiser of the Year?
Everyone loves to win a medal or two, and a place on the podium, but it’s a long way to the big crystal globe. Let’s say that the Advertiser of the Year award is a medal, but that we have not yet reached the big advertising globe. Telekom Slovenia has adopted a strategy for the company up to 2020, which will introduce a number of changes in our relationship with customers and even in our business. We will have to actively support these innovations and set business goals with marketing communication activities. I suggest you wait and let yourself be surprised with what will come on this road.
What advice would you give to other advertisers who will also compete for this award next year?
We should learn from others instead of giving advice. Learn from both good and bad examples. Get to know your customers, users and the environment in which you operate. Be brave, patient, innovative and have clear goals. And then come the good stories that are worth sharing.