Jayomi Lokuliyana, Co-Founder and CEO of Sri Lanka’s pioneering digital marketing company zMessenger has played a pivotal role in shaping the digital marketing industry in the country. Jayomi has led digital marketing and campaign strategies for major brands, corporate enterprises, agencies and social missions covering over 2000 campaigns interacting with over 10 million mobile users.
Under her leadership, zMessenger emerged as the country’s leading mobile and digital marketing solution provider. zMessenger has won numerous accolades over the years including the title; South Asia’s Best Digital Marketing and Social Media Company by the South Asian Business Partnership Awards.
Jayomi served on the Executive Committee’s of Chartered Institute of Marketing and Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing. She has also been a lecturer for marketing and has lectured at several leading marketing schools. She earned her Master of Business Administration from Postgraduate Institute of Management, University of Sri Jayewardenepura and a Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing from Chartered Institute of Marketing -UK.
In 2015, she was honored as Women Entrepreneur of the Year by the Women Chamber of Industry and Commerce Sri Lanka and as South Asia’s Best Female Entrepreneur of the Year by South Asian Business Partnership Awards in 2016. We met Jayomi last week to find out more about her entrepreneur journey thus far.
Excerpts:
Q: Tell us about your days at school and your career choice?
A: I studied at Girls High School, Mt.Lavinia and later went to Ladies College, Colombo. After my schooling I was keen on becoming a veterinary surgeon, as I had an aunt from the same field. I was selected to Peradeniya Campus, but was given the option of learning Agriculture. Through my first semester I found that this was not to my liking and I returned to Colombo. I then began studying for my CIM and enjoyed it very much. During that time I was able to understand consumer behavior and understand the different markets. I subsequently worked for Oriflame as a senior account manager. With that experience I realized the potential for digital media marketing, which at that time was dormant in Sri Lanka.
Q: How did you start z-Messenger and what has allowed you to grow so quickly in such a short space of time?
A: I got married in 2001 and during the time I was pregnant I was keen to put my idea for a digital media marketing company and make it a reality. I told my husband and he supported my idea. He introduced me to a likeminded friend, Janaka Rupasinghe. So we founded zMessenger in 2002. It was a new venture in the market. Initially we wanted to name the company e-Messenger, but zMessenger somehow had a better appeal so we went with that name. I strongly believe in team work; I think we have to always be conscious of the consumer’s adaptation to technology. Back in the day people did not realize the potential of a mobile phone as a communication channel. The first five years was a struggle, but we consolidated ourselves in this field. I was aware of the growth of the Indian markets in this field of business communication. Today we have our offices in Tokyo and Jakarta and we anticipate setting up our next office in Los Angeles in the US.
Q: What is next for zMessenger? Where do you see the business in five years time?
A: We are proud to introduce many firsts to Sri Lanka. When reality TV shows hit the scene we were the ones who came up with the entire system of text message voting (mobile opinion polls). During the elections of 2005 we were the first company in the world to set up a system of monitoring election based violence via PAFRREL, where people were able to text acts of violence which were subsequently directed to authorities, including the police. We try to innovate. As I mentioned we hope to have an office in USA. At present we have launched another valuable service called mymed.lk. This allows a person with a valid doctor’s prescription to send the details to us and we will in turn connect them to the nearest pharmacy that sells the required medication. This will be very helpful to senior citizens. We always upgrade our data management platforms. We hope to introduce video- enabled platforms.
Q: What good lessons have you learned throughout the years?
A: You have to be consistently updated about global business trends and how to make consumers reachable. Have a liberated mindset. Look deep and beyond always planning ahead. Capacity is a state of mind. We always try to impact people’s lives in a positive manner. I am also a mother of two sons, one is 15 years and the other is 10 years. Your family is also an important element of your life. You must find time to enrich your family whilst being a successful businesswoman. I do not model myself on anyone, as each business person is unique, but I try to learn from the business acumen of global corporate leaders.
Q: Do you have any favourite business related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?
A: I do read extensively. I have many books. Perhaps one of the best is Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. I have also read the Art of War by Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu.
Q: Being a woman-Entrepreneur, what is your advice to other women to get into the business world?
A: I reckon in Sri Lanka women are often constrained by an ‘island mentality’. We need to change this mindset. I entered a market that was not recognized a decade ago but today we are pioneers in this field. We have to take calculated risks and move forward. Our staffs are a key investment in our growth, so we have to facilitate their growth too and appreciate them.
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