Marketing & Selling

I speak to business owners every week. Many have been using Artificial Intelligence (AI) for marketing for months. However, they still cannot explain what it has done for their revenue. These businesses have content going out. They run ads. They stack subscriptions. Yet no system connects any of it. As a result, the AI stays busy. The business does not grow.

Why does the government think it can clamp down on a budding sector? This sector allows ordinary people to exchange ideas freely. We strongly condemn Parliament’s exploration of regulatory measures. These measures target South Africa’s rapidly growing podcasting sector. Such intervention poses a direct threat to freedom of expression and democratic discourse. In this context, concerns about a potential podcast crackdown continue to intensify.

South Africa has a thriving and growing tourism market. It attracts local, regional and international tourists to our shores. Visitors come here because they want to experience something uniquely South African. They seek experiences that cannot be replicated anywhere else. Against this backdrop, hospitality emerges as a powerful catalyst for accelerating localisation.

South African businesses are showing real interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI) voice agents, and for good reason. The technology has advanced significantly. These technologies can now respond quickly, hold more natural conversations and create a better, locally relevant customer experience.

Small retailers are not under-digitised. They are over-apped. POS, stock, payments, loyalty and marketing all sit on different systems, each with its own login, cost and learning curve.

There is a particular kind of exhaustion that sets in around the third unsolicited LinkedIn message of the morning. You know the one. “Hi [Whatever your name is], I came across your profile and thought you might be interested...” Delete. The irony is clear. LinkedIn was built to make professional connections easier. However, it has become a sophisticated cold-calling machine with a blue logo.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) commentary often falls into two extremes. On one end, highly technical forecasts dominate the conversation. On the other end, lightweight takes focus on the latest viral demo. However, most people live somewhere in the middle.

Over the last several decades, governments worldwide have pushed strongly to regulate tobacco and tobacco products. Their goal is to reduce tobacco consumption. These efforts increasingly focus on stricter rules for cigarette packaging and related marketing practices. Beyond standardised packaging, governments now introduce complementary policies.

The recent resignation of Angelo Swartz, CEO of Spar, marks a refreshing break from corporate tradition. By leading with candour and sincerity, Swartz delivered a masterclass in transparency. He moved beyond the usual PR-scrubbed departures that dominate executive exits.

Marketing used to be built on predictability. A brand would broadcast a message, drive awareness, move audiences through consideration, trigger conversion and then hope retention follows. The funnel was neat, linear and traditional. But today, the funnel is breaking. Not because marketing stopped working, but because people changed, attention fragmented, and trust became the real currency.