SLIM-Nielsen People's Awards, sets the stage for 2013

The 'SLIM-Nielsen People's Awards' will be held for the eighth year at the Waters Edge on March 19. The awards ceremony organised by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM) and the Nielsen Research Agency in Sri Lanka is held annually to recognise brands and personalities who have made an impact in the lives of the people.

The People's Awards allows the public to rate their favourite brands, personalities, advertisements, films and teledramas. No independent person or company can apply for recognition for the awards, and instead the winners are adjudged by the consumers.

"SLIM, the national body of marketers in Sri Lanka and Nielsen, one of the leading market research agencies in the country is excited to hold this event," a spokesman for the organisers said.

"This forum provides an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing strategies adopted by organisations and brands and how well it has connected with consumers who are the ultimate judge and jury in gauging the success in the market-place," said SLIM President Tilan Wijeyesekera.

"SLIM is extremely proud to bring about this platform which would help the fraternity and the marketeers in Sri Lanka to feel the pulse of the people who have the power to make or break and organisation or a brand," he said.

To select the winners, Nielsen conducted surveys from September 2012 for five consecutive months, interviewing individuals across the country, includingthe North and the East, which provides insights to the entire country.

"To ensure accurate feedback, we adhere to stringent quality control measures that are on par to the WatchBuilder standards, a process, globally unique to the Nielsen Company," said Managing Director of Nielsen, Shaheen Cader.

"The sample represents the diverse population of Sri Lanka. The sample is equally split between males and females, and reflects representation between the ages 16 and 65 years in urban and rural areas," Cader said.

The findings of the survey reflect the brands which are strongly positioned in the consumers' minds, shifts in preferences compared to the previous year and will share insights for marketeers and decision makers on the changes in consumer trends and growth in the current market.

The People's Awards Project Chairman, Upul Adikari said, "There are 40 award categories, including six new categories which we are introducing this year. It would be of interest to see if traditional brands and personalities have retained lives".

The categories will fall under main themes such as FMCG, Service, Durables, Personality, Media, Entertainment while there will be an overall award for the Brand of the Year.