[By Duncan McLeod]

Vodacom is widely expected to take the wraps off its new brand this Friday at a concert at Soweto’s Orlando Stadium. It’s expected to adopt the red and white colours of its parent, Vodafone. But what, if anything, will it mean for ordinary consumers?

Prepare to be assaulted by wall-to-wall Vodacom advertising in the next few months. The cellular operator, SA’s biggest, is set to unveil its new colours, slogan and branding this weekend in what could be one of the biggest marketing exercises the country has seen in recent years.

There is already evidence that Vodacom is gearing up for the change. Earlier this month it took down its giant hoarding on top of the Ponte tower in Hillbrow, replacing it in the interim with a bland red and white placeholder. The new brand should light up the night sky over Johannesburg from as early as this weekend.

Then there’s the giant Vodacom “globe”, which used to feature prominently as part of a fountain at the entrance to the group’s sprawling Midrand head office. The globe has been an integral part of the operator’s logo since its launch in the mid-1990s. Last week, the globe structure was spotted being transported away from Midrand on the back of a truck.

All indications are that Vodacom is going to adopt Vodafone’s red-and-white branding — possibly even adopting the same font in its logo. The only thing that won’t change, at least for now, is Vodacom’s name.

Some reports suggest the group is planning to spend R200m on marketing its new image.

But it’s not only a new brand image that Vodacom is promising. It’s planning a “rejuvenation” of the organisation “across the board”, according to the group’s chief officer of corporate affairs, Portia Maurice.

UK-headquartered Vodafone now controls Vodacom after 2009’s acquisition of a further 15% of its equity, taking its stake to 65%. The “rejuvenation” includes a shake-up in reporting structures and a flattening of the management layer.

It makes sense for Vodacom to move now to get its brand back at the centre of attention, in light of more aggressive competition — MTN has turned the corner in SA after a tough 2009, Telkom has entered the cellphone market with 8ta, and Cell C is pumping billions of rand into its network and brand.

In many respects, Vodacom has fallen behind in the marketing wars. Cell C has become synonymous with “chief experience officer” Trevor Noah and MTN’s “Ayoba” campaign has also been ubiquitous. Vodacom, on the other hand, has arguably lost market profile.

I asked a few people last week what Vodacom’s current pay-off line is. It used to be “Yebo Gogo”, represented through the brilliant advertising skits of Michael de Pinna and Bankole Omotoso. None of those I polled informally knew what it was now.

If it adopts Vodafone’s brand image wholesale, it seems likely that the UK group’s slogan, “Power to you”, will be its new pay-off line.

However, in a mature cellphone market, where market penetration is estimated at somewhere between 70% and 80%, it’s unclear what impact the new brand and a pervasive advertising campaign will have on its market share.

Already, consumers are less likely to churn between networks because of the Sim-card registration law, which makes it more painful to switch operators.

At the end of the day, the real battle is going to be fought over network coverage, network quality, products that consumers want, and, perhaps most importantly, lower tariffs. Brand image is important, yes, but it’s by no means the only recipe for success.