Advertising in South Africa

Abstract

The South African society have been involved in a process of transformation, a search for identification and a conscious effort towards nondiscriminatory practices, direct or indirect the past 8 years. This is apparent in current marketing and advertising practices, which remain firmly focused on the new breeds of consumers — including the growing young black market. This new challenge to marketers includes shifting from a production orientation to a truly marketing orientation — a paradigm shift from established practices to an embracing of new research methods, which could address the complexities of reaching, communicating and meeting the demands of a multicultural consumer society in South Africa. The marketing challenge also indicates the necessity of redefining the largest audience groups in categories that reinterpret race from a South African perspective. Perspectives and attitudes towards the changing consumer profile would ask for innovative interpretative consumer studies to contribute towards an understanding of the challenges facing South African marketers.