Botswana Insurance Company (BIC) has embarked on a brand identity transformation adopting its group symbol of a bull. The brand refresh saw BIC recently revealing its new logo which celebrates the company’s history, values and vision.
Former Minister of Investment Trade and Industry Bogolo Kenewendo who was the guest of honor at the brand refresh event held at Masa Square Hotel applauded the move and challenged the brand to go further.
“We take pride when heritage brands such as Botswana Insurance Company revamp and refresh their mandate for a renewed purpose and cause but still rooted on their legacy and heritage. We live in a highly competitive global market where firms, industries and countries alike reflect on their natural endowments and more to deliver value,” said the Former Minister Kenewendo during the event.
It is the story telling and the message behind the BIC brand refresh that had the minister say, “Botswana Insurance Company (BIC), your story makes me nostalgic, in memory of our origins of our country, our way of life as Batswana, and how success is nothing more than unwavering commitment and a strong value system. Your growth is also synonymous with the country’s, we are both going through transformation which we hope brings many folds of prosperity”.
Blended with a new strategic focus for its competitiveness and aggressive market penetration goals, BIC rebranded to usher a new direction for the future and modernity yet balancing it with its heritage.
It was not only the minister who was impressed and endorsed BIC after witnessing the insurance company’s rebranding move.
Sanlam Pan Africa Regional Executive, Margaret Dawes also endorsed BIC and did not shy away to express it in words. “As everything else in life, over time a brand must evolve and cosmetic changes may be necessary at some point in the life of a brand. From Sanlam Group, I am proud to say that we endorse Botswana Insurance Company’s agility, competitiveness and business impetus all of which make this brand a market leader,” said the Sanlam Pan Africa Regional Executive.
After a comprehensive scientific research gathering opinions on top of mind association, loyalty behavior brand iconography amongst others, it was clear from the diverse stakeholders that the BIC name has strong recall as is bears the name of the republic, however the iconography that drives its brand identity did not fair positively.
“We usher in a new brand created from the very core of our purpose – Making life better. We bow to our founding predecessors, architects of this beast that has led the market for decades, changed lives and inspired generations of men and women who followed the path to insurance before anyone knew what insurance is. We were the ones who defined it and taught it to the market and industry alike,” said BIC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Newton Jazire during the new brand launch.
The BIC CEO went on to state, “this very night will go down as a critical path of celebrating our heritage whilst we forge a new brand icon, representing a refreshing brand expression whilst building on an enduring brand equity which our customers celebrate, our brokers stand for and our competitors dread, and yes our name will be remembered. They shall remember our name and mark this day as a day a heritage brand that respected and enhanced its foundations and ushered its brand into the waters of modernity”.
Also present at the event was Botswana Life CEO Ronald James Samuels who also congratulated and endorsed BIC on its new move.
On the same night BIC launched a chatbot named Nkamo which is a first of its kind in the country. Nkamo is primarily aimed at driving business on the digital platforms as well as closing the gap between insurance end users and BIC.