This is the view of Miller Matola, Brand SA’s CEO, who believes that the 60-second commercial – which will first be screened on e.tv at around 20.30 on Thursday, 5 July - encapsulates the 'can do' spirit of South African people across various walks of life, illustrating the determination of the country’s citizens to overcome obstacles and find new and better ways of doing things.

The commercial features well known South Africans such as Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Baby Jake Matlala, Natalie du Toit, Trevor Noah, Lucas Radebe, Brian Mitchell, Greg Minaar, Trevor Rabin, John van der Ruit, Shaun Thomson, David Tlale and Khotso Mokoena and lesser known ones who have also defied the odds to become top achievers in their fields – such as Toya Delazy, Colin Thornton, Oyama Matomela, Andile Dube, Andy Higgins, Tebogo Skwambane, Nhkensani Nkosi, Emile Engel, Simon Ratcliffe, Zibusizo Mkhwanazi and Fatima Vawda.

“Through this television commercial we want to get across the message that 'Inspiring New Ways' is an over-arching country position for South Africa relating to everything we do and what we are including our people, our culture and heritage, tourism, exports, governance and investment and immigration,” said Matola.

“Since our hugely successful hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2010, our inclusion in the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) grouping of nations and in the G20, South Africa has matured a lot and come of age to a large degree. We are no longer an adolescent nation and this progression needs to be reflected in our brand identity and positioning.”

According to Matola, the South Africans who feature in the television commercial ideally characterise the quintessential spirit of the country as they found ways to realize their dreams and achieve their goals. “Whether it’s Baby Jake Matlala proving that he was not too small to become a world champion boxer, or Oyama Matomela becoming a commercial pilot at the age of just 20, or astronomer Simon Ratcliffe who helped to bring the SKA (Square Kilometre Array) project to our country, these people all portray the essential spirit of South Africa and South Africans,” added Matola.

“The people in the commercial have all found ways to get ahead, improve themselves and make a contribution to society. At Brand SA, we want to inspire all South Africans to play a role in shaping the future of our country.”

Founded in 2002, Brand South Africa’s over-riding objective is to build a positive, compelling and consolidated image for South Africa. Managing the country’s brand reputation, boosting national pride and improving global competitiveness are also among the organisation’s major goals.

While the 'Alive With Possibility' slogan was appropriate for South Africa while it was establishing and proving its potential as a fully democratic and functional nation in the post 1994-era, 'Inspiring New Ways' has been devised to reflect how far the country has come in recent years and the increasingly significant role it is playing in international affairs.

Not only has South Africa been the only African nation to host the FIFA World Cup, it has become a leading force in the African Union, the Southern African Development Community, NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa’s Development), BRICS and the G20 group of nations.

“In many ways, we punch above our weight in international affairs and we also occupy a strong representative position on behalf of Africa, the developing world and emerging market economies,” stressed Nomsa Chabeli Mazibuko, Brand South Africa’s strategic marketing and communications director.

“We have our own challenges as a country, especially with regard to issues such as education, poverty, inequality and corruption, but we as South Africans have demonstrated that we will be inspired to find new ways to overcome these challenges.”

Importantly, said Chabeli Mazibuko, Brand SA wanted its new slogan to be aspirational, creating a vision to which people want to aspire. It also wanted to endorse and affirm the country’s abilities and capabilities which show progress and advancement from the notions of potential and possibility.

In addition, Chabeli Mazibuko said Brand SA sees the 'Inspiring New Ways' slogan and television commercial as “a call to action” for South Africans to find new and better ways of doing things for the benefit of themselves, their communities and the country as a whole.