Sixteen years ago, SLIM made history by introducing the first awards ceremony dedicated to recognizing and rewarding the best brandsand brand custodians. Today the awards campaign that began with 26 entries has far exceeded the expectations of its founders. In September the organizers of SLIM Brand Excellence 2018 announced that there wasa record-breaking number of applications entered for the awards this year. This is a testament to the growing popularity of SLIM Brand Excellence as a prestigious awards campaign that serves as a platform of development for brands, brand managers and entrepreneurs. 

It has been observed that SMEs are the driversof business in the nation’s economic activity.As the national body of marketing, SLIM supports the development of this sector via SLIM Brand Excellence. It is hoped that the awards campaign will present members of SMEs with the opportunity to gain vital knowledge and encouragement to become a more significant part of the marketing fraternity of Sri Lanka. 

In a bid to increase the number of entries from the SME sector, the SME entry kit has been revised and simplified. The Sinhala SME entry kit was also introduced for the first time this year. SLIM Brand Excellence has been revamped over the past few months by a group of expert marketers. Also the International Brand Award has been included in the main awards category. Such strategic moves serve as a means of motivating participation and thereby supporting the participants’ evolutionto the next level in their business. Thisensures the development of the country’s marketing fraternity in the long term. 

The awards stand upon four primary pillars, which are intent, content, process and performance. The judging process consists of two stages – desk evaluation and the presentation of the brand story. The latter gives the judges an opportunity to assess the passion and creativity behind the efforts, recognize the individual behind the concept and to consider it a career achievement by recognizing the brand and the brand custodian. 

As the national body for marketing, SLIM serves to use events such as, the SLIM Brand Excellence Awards, NASCO, the Effies and the People’s Awards in order to encourage strategic and result-oriented thinking in the fields of brand development, sales, advertising and research.