The Nation Newspaper

Category: Brand week

  • PDP had most ad billboards in 2014, says TMKG

    PDP had most ad billboards in 2014, says TMKG

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had the highest number of billboards in Nigeria last year, a report by TMKG Consulting, a media audit firm, has said.

    Also, the telecoms industry was the most active sector with beer billboards as the second most active category.

    In its latest yearly report, the firm said unsold inventory increased by 57 per cent while Digital Out of Home Hoardings (OOH) display grew by 22 per cent.

    “These are some of the findings in the latest out of home media audit. PDP has the most billboards in Nigeria in 2014. Telecoms category is the most active sector using billboards, while Beer is the second most active category. Unsold inventory increased by 57 per cent while Digital OOH display grew by 22 per cent. These are some of the findings in TMKG Consulting’s latest out of home media audit,” stated TMKG

    TMKG Consulting, Nigeria’s leading OOH and BTL audit and performance evaluation agency, conducts field work in the country. It audits all the billboards, recording key advertiser, site and media owner information.

    Titled: “Outsight!”, the Chief Executive Oficer(CEO), TMKG, Chike Oputa, said the report covers over 150 cities/towns.

    He said: “The report follows our comprehensive census of all displays in the country, numbering over 11,000, excluding indoor panels but covering over 50 OOH formats on road side, rooftops, walls and at the airports, including 105 product categories and 1000 brands with over 50,000 photos taken.”

    In the report, OOH media spend in Nigeria last year was N30.66 billion, representing seven percent increase from 2013 figures.

    The telecom category, long reputed for its big budget, topping ad spend on the medium followed by the beer, government/political, bank and carbonated soft drinks categories.

    Total category expenditure for the telecom brands was in excess of N6 billion. Among the brands, telecom advertisers also dominated investment on OOH with Glo emerging the biggest spender. The top five brands also included, Airtel, MTN, Etisalat and Star brand.

    In terms of spend by market, the report stated that Lagos as a commercial nerve still remains the city of choice for outdoor media investment accounting for about 50 per cent of total outdoor investment.

    Lagos along with Ibadan (in the southwest), Abuja, Port Harcourt (the oil rich city by the coastal south) and Aba (the market city in the east) were reported as the top five cities with the most number of outdoor media displays.

    With over 120 media owners in the sector, New Crystal Communications, Invent Media, Marketing+Media, Optimum Exposures, Afromedia and Rocana are among the top media owners by revenue.

    There appears to be a glut in the market with over a quarter of total Outdoor hoarding in the market unsold.

  • MTN offers free incoming calls

    MTN offers free incoming calls

    MTN has announced free incoming calls and SMS while roaming in 15 countries across the world.

    The countries are: United Kingdom, United States, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Netherlands and Belgium.

    Others are: Malaysia, South Africa, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kenya and Ghana.

    Announcing the offer, the General Manager, Consumer Marketing, MTN Nigeria, Richard Iweanoge, said the offer is an affirmation of MTN’s leadership in innovative provisions that aptly satisfy the need of its subscribers anywhere across the globe.

    ‘’This new offer which allows for free incoming calls, is a solution introduced to address issues of high cost of receiving calls whenever our esteemed subscribers travel out of the country. Driven by world class technology, this package will afford our subscribers an opportunity to constantly communicate with friends, families and business associates whenever they are on international trips, ‘’ he said.

    [ad id=”403656″]According to him, this service requires no registration as the customers’ MTN SIM connects when they switch on their phones at any selected destinations, if they have phones and gadgets that allow roaming.

    To benefit from the offering, he said MTN customers were expected to recharge with a minimum of N2000 (cumulatively or as a single recharge) within the same month of travel or spend N2000 or more the previous month before travelling. Post-paid customers, who have a credit limit of N2, 000 and above, will automatically enjoy the offer.

    While the new package will afford subscribers on the MTN network an opportunity to enjoy free incoming calls and SMS in 15 selected countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, subscribers will also be able to make calls for as low as N60 per minute whenever they are in these selected countries.

    Over the years, MTN has being at the forefront of seeking innovative ways of meeting its subscribers’ needs to enable them stay connected to their friends

  • Johnnie Walker launches Joy Will Take You Further campaign

    Johnnie Walker launches Joy Will Take You Further campaign

    Johnnie Walker, a premium Scotch Whisky from the stable of Diageo brands, has unveiled its largest-ever global marketing campaign tagged: Joy Will Take You Further.

    According to the brand handler, the campaign is aimed at encouraging Nigerians to aspire for success.

    The campaign, which is a global marketing activation, took place in more than 50 countries simultaneously, and it is  expected to reach over 350 million consumers in the first week of its launch.

    During the unveiling in Lagos, which was attended by industry leaders, chief executives, top management personnel and editors, top 100 individuals,who had demonstrated value  and achieved great goals were celebrated.

    The Corporate Affairs Director, Diageo Nigeria,Mr. Sesan Sobowale, said the campaign, which was based on decades of research, challenged the conventional wisdom that success guarantees happiness.

    He said: “Johnnie Walker has always stood for progress, it’s been the story of our whisky since our founder John Walker started it all nearly 200 years ago. What two centuries of experience have taught us is that progress doesn’t have to be an endless uphill journey, we can enjoy the steps we take and the more happiness we find in them, the more likely we are to achieve our goal. Evidence is confirming a conviction that sits at the heart of our brand: Joy Will Take You Further.

    “Joy Will Take You Further campaign is a step further on the evolution of the brand’s famous ‘Keep Walking’ campaign and represents a new perspective on personal progress, which has defined the brand’s philosophy for more than 15 years, helping Johnnie Walker become the most valuable spirits brand in the world,” he added.

    Based on new insights into how success is viewed by consumers today, he stated further that the campaign brings to life the concept that “joy can be a catalyst to the progress they seek, and aims to generate a positive culture shift by promoting and encouraging the idea that finding joy in the journey is part of the recipe for success.”

    Guests at the event shared their personal perspective on the impact of a joyful walk. They noted that the true way to success is not just hard work and determination but also taking time to enjoy the simple moments of the journey.

    Founder/Group Chairman, Dunn Loren Merrifield, an investment house, Mr Sonnie Ayere, while sharing his experience in the business world said: “It is joy that has been propelling me to do more and achieve greatness and I pray for a tribe-less Nigeria where everybody can be one irrespective of tribe.

    Other activities at the event included the unveiling of top music artiste, producer and CEO of Mavins Records, Michael Collins Ajereh aka Don Jazzy as the Joy Ambassador for the Campaign.

    Explaining the rationale behind the choice of Joy Ambassador, Head of Marketing, Diageo Brands, Adenike Adebola, said: “Don Jazzy has experienced different phases of success in his career up till now.

    ‘’He is a true achiever, a game changer and a model to emulate. He is passionate about what he does and it is that passion we celebrate. We believe he will be instrumental in propagating the message of and inspiring the rest of Nigeria with our core message that Joy Will Take You Further.’’

  • Why Maggi is number one, by Nestle chief

    Why Maggi is number one, by Nestle chief

    The Managing Director/CEO, Nestle Nigeria Plc, Mr Dharnesh Gordhon, has said the continuous dominance of Maggi in the seasoning market is as result of the company’s safety practices in the production of the brand.

    He spoke during a factory tour of the Maggi plant in Agbara, Ogun State.

    Gordhon said the tour was to let Nigerians know the secrets of the success the brand has enjoyed over decades, which could be attributed to the special ingredients in the product prepared in a unique way.

    He said such practice is maintained from the production line through the supply chain till it gets to the customers.

    Gordhon said each cube undergoes up to 300 quality controls during manufacturing and the adherence  to the original recipe as formulated by Julius Maggi, the founder.

    He said: “This is why over 60 million cubes are sold daily to Nigerians as the maggi cubes are iron fortified and appealing to the low rung of the seasoning market through the affordability of the products  as Maggi is all about innovation, constantly pleasing consumers, always one-step ahead of the game. We are always excited as the cube provides the best colour, aroma and taste to all of Nigerians dishes.

    On ensuring safety, he said: “Nestle always meet with officials of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), either in them visiting our factory to give the necessary certification on our products and also in checking the influx of counterfeit products as we always go to the markets with Nafdac officials to monitor and prevent our products from being counterfeited.

    “The uniqueness of Maggi in Nigeria is a testimony on the qualities of our workers, understanding of our customers and this tour is to open our hands to  our customers for them to know what we are doing as it is also an element of our marketing mix, which is part of our global strategy.’’

  • 15 things you need to know about TSA

    I have been worried. No, it is not about the weather. It is not about the fortunes of my team, Arsenal. It is about TSA. It is about what this acronym portends to so many brands in the country. I do not care about the name your call your brand.

    The present dispensation will affect your brand for good or bad. Do you want to know why? If the economy melts, it melts everything that is dependent on it, particularly the manufacturing and service areas. However, I digress.

    Before now, we have been living on good luck. Everybody just got lucky. Tompolo got lucky at NIMASA. Diezani got lucky with petrol-dollar. Aunty Ngozi got lucky coordinating the economy. Well, not any more. The drumbeat has changed. My mother had warned me not to depend on good luck but to work hard and earn my “pay.”

    With the advent of PMB, the concept of good luck is dead. PMB has cleaned the slate. He came to the party not with champagne and caviar, but with carrot, stick and a short acronym, TSA. Suddenly, everybody is talking at once. Some brands have even sponsored researchers to unveil the concept of TSA.

    What is TSA? Why are the banks afraid of TSA? Who is pushing it? Is it Buhari-nomics? Unfortunately, you will not get answers to these questions here. What you will get are 15 things you need to know about the Treasury Single Account or TSA. If you are not satisfied, refer to the manufacturer.

     

    Here we go:

    • TSA will promote transparency and facilitate compliance with sections 80 and 162 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
    • With TSA, all receipts due to government or its agencies will be paid into TSA resident in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
    • Since TSA is a unified structure of government bank accounts, it enables consolidation and optimal utilisation of government’s cash resources.
    • TSA provides a consolidated view of government’s cash position always.
    • The CBN, SEC, CAC and NPA, NCC as well as FAAN and NCAA, NIMASA, NDIC, NSC, NNPC, FIRS, NCS, MMSD, DPR and other government agencies will implement TSA.
    • When linked to TSA, the accounting system will be configured to allow the agencies access to funds based on their approved budgetary provisions.
    • The implementation of TSA brings transparency, efficiently and accountability.
    • TSA is part of the public financial management reforms under pillar three of the National Strategy for Public Service Reforms towards vision 20:2020.
    • TSA addresses impediments to effective and efficient cash management.
    • TSA ends problems of fragmented banking, which affected government’s ability to undertake efficient cash planning and management as required by the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
    • Wth TSA, government can track its expenditure in a timely manner.
    • TSA makes it possible for flexible operations, contrary to past regime where officers must get to their desks before effecting transactions.
    • SA enables online real time transactions, meaning payment can be made from any point in the world.
    • TSA instills fiscal discipline and prudence as over 1,000 dormant or idle accounts will remain shut.
    • With TSA, the average monthly overdrafts with the CBN fell from the overdrawn amount of N102 billion in December 2011 to N4.461 billion credit in September 2012 with 93 MDAs out of over 400.
  • Backing world record with consumer engagement

    Backing world record with consumer engagement

    Following the unveiling of the world’s largest advert poster, which broke the Guinness World Book of Record, Nigerian Breweries has adopted a national consumer engagement campaign to sustain its brand equity of Guilder, writes ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

    The competition in the Nigerian beer market has continued to generate rage. Even as Western beer consumption is reducing due to the global downturn, according to a market intelligence report by Corporate Nigeria, a research firm, the  brewery industry continues to thrive, while consumption of beer, put at 18.8 million hectolitres behind South Africa’s 31 per cent, has continued to heighten competition among brewers.

    This is however not surprising. According to FinTell, a financial intelligence magazine, Nigeria’s volume-growth in the beer market, supported by significant annual investment in capacity of over $1.5 billion in the last three years, is rising steeply. “Though second to South Africa, Nigeria is Africa’s largest fastest growing beer market; climbing six places to the 19th position in the most recent data for country rankings on consumption,” the report stated.

    Unfortunately, engaging this motley crowd of consumers has been the bane of brewers especially with the wave of consumerism which demands much responsibility and the spirit of giving back to consumers whose loyalty to various brands, have turned the industry to a cynosure of global investors.

    As a result, brewers commit fortunes to marketing communication in an effort to engage consumers and also sustain the brand recall in consumers’ minds through experiential campaigns. Based on Mediafact report, an industry intelligence survey, the surge explains why the sector has continued to remain among the top three highest advertising and marketing spenders.

    Striving for the souls of consumers, has lead to lots of brands from the industry top players – Nigerian Breweries, Guinness Nigeria and other brewers, launching world record-breaking projects, and each of these jumbo campaigns are also used as platforms for consumer reward campaigns.

    For instance, when Guinness launched the largest jersey in the world towards the African Cup of Nations in 2013, the brewer took about 200 consumers to South Africa to watch the matches through a tailored consumer promo. Also, NB, through its Legend Extra Stout and Heineken brands, has rewarded many consumers with all-expense paid trip to Dubai, Europe to watch live matches, among others.

    However, to deepen the crave for the heart of consumers and its share of the market, NB recently unveiled the world’s largest advertisement poster, again by following the same rule of consumer engagement. Coming at a time when the Nigerian economy is just starting to reflect potentials of buoyancy, experts have reckoned that the promotion is already causing ripples in the nation’s highly competitive alcoholic beverage market.

    First is the choice of words in describing the promo which is being positioned as, “Nigeria’s biggest consumer promotion. And just to put its money where its mouth is, Gulder unveiled the world’s largest poster on Monday, August 24, 2015, to coincide with the launch of the National Consumer Promotion.

    To build consumer trust as a way of engagement, the brand owners enrolled about 200 journalists for an experiential task, Gulder Ultimate Search where  winner emerged to win an Brand New Hyundai Elantra For N220 at the Enugu Stadium where the largest poster was also unveiled to commemorate a national consumer promo for the Gulder brand.

    The CEO of Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr. Nicolaas Vervelde, said the Gulder brand is synonymous with various innovative feats in the beer market, hence the production of the poster. Though regarded as another marketing gimmick, consumer promotions are desirable, as companies struggle for a bigger size of the market and a greater percentage of consumers’ disposable income.

    So how big is big? How big is the 2015 Gulder National Consumer Promotion, which necessitated the brand managers to refer to it as the biggest consumer promotion in Nigeria? “A simple way is to look at the prizes on offer. The grand prize is a brand new Hyundai Elantra car, and Gulder is giving away 15 of this model of vehicles. Well, there are 14 left to be won as Chuka Nnabuife, a journalist with National Light newspaper won the very first Hyundai Elantra car at the unveiling of the Gulder Ultimate Promo held on August 24 with journalists from all over Nigeria as participants,” said a brand analyst, Mr. Yemi Kushimo, CEO Kush Media.

    “Gulder has created three channels for its teeming consumers to win big at this year’s edition of its National Consumer Promotion. A peep into the prizes at stake may just give an insight into how gargantuan the Gulder Consumer Promotion truly is,” he added.

    To engage beer consumers, the brand handlers said there are three legs to the campaigm in which consumers will be rewarded with various prizes, the ultimate of which are the brand new 2015 Hyundai Elantra cars for 14 Nigerians, courtesy the 2015 Edition of the Gulder National Consumer Promotion.

    While willing consumers are expected to bond with the Gulder brand through purchase to unlock the various promises and treasures of Gulder under the crown corks, the brand handler said there are various stages of experiencing the engagement.

    “First is the instant prize crown corks. As the name connotes, the prizes can be claimed instantly. The second crown cork is the differentiated crown cork category with  alpha numeric codes inscribed underneath the corks. Holders of these crown corks have to send the codes to 20388 to be part of a national raffle draw that would be held forth-nightly. Holders of the third class of crown corks – the experiential crown corks- marked Ultimate Chase, will have to report at designated national chase venues with six of those crown corks to participate for an opportunity to win a brand new car. Aside the prizes to be won, the Ultimate Chase, gives consumers the opportunity to imbibe the brand’s core values,” the brewery affirmed in a statement.

    During a media launch of the promo, the first of the 15 brand new Hyundai Elantra cars up for grabs and it was won by Mr. Chuka Nnabuife who works with National Light newspaper, Anambra State. Nnabuife beat eight other journalists at the Gulder Chase to discover the key to the car that he eventually won. That leg of the promo was devoted exclusively to journalists.

    The Marketing Manager, Gulder, Life, “33” Export, Mr. Emmanuel Agu, said: “This is a promotion like no other, and that is the message we are passing to the consumers. We are trying to paint a picture of what it means to be big in the eyes of our consumers, hence the unveiling of the World’s largest poster to kick off the National Consumer Promotion.

    “The message we are passing to the consumers is that this year’s NCP is like no other. No beer brand will be able to do what Gulder has done this year and no consumer is left out as there are prizes for every category of people. We brought in the aspect of the chase because the brand is one that talks about masculinity, determination and resilience. It is a brand for successful people. So we brought the brand essence of Gulder to life by including the Gulder Golden Chase. If you are strong and energetic enough to run and jog, why not jog for a fortune,” he advised.

    As a result of these mega activations, industry observers said the Nigerian marketing communication is coming to global reckoning with the unveiling of the largest advertisement poster and world largest jersey in Nigeria.

  • PR Council warns unregistered consultants

    The Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria (PRCAN) has warned unregistered consultants, who have set up PR practice, to get ready to be named and shamed.

    Rising from an extraordinary general meeting in Lagos on the state of PR practice in Nigeria, the professional body warned all unregistered consultants and their clients to get ready for a legal showdown.

    Following a motion moved by the Chief Executive Officer of CMC Connect Burson-Marsteller, Mr. Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, members  passed a vote of confidence on the present leadership of PRCAN, while praising them for partnering with the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) to step up the fight to rid the industry of quacks and unregistered PR Consultants.

    According to him: “PR is a profession regulated by law just like medicine and accountancy. The law regulating PR practice in Nigeria  is an Act of the Parliament. You cannot just wake up one morning in South Africa and decide to float a PR agency. No, it is never done and this will not be allowed here in Nigeria. We must take the battle to the gates of these unregistered professionals just like our colleagues in advertising have done.”

    Responding, the PRCAN President, John Ehiguese, thanked members for their unalloyed support, saying the PRCAN leadership will continue to work with the NIPR to ensure that the crusade is pursued to its logical conclusion.

    He reiterated the resolve of the association to engage other corporate bodies and government establishments still patronising the services of unregistered PR Consultants, assuring those who are qualified to practise PR of the readiness of the professional body to welcome them to its fold.

    The PRCAN President further assured all private and public sector organisations in need of PRCAN consultancy services that the professional circle is the right direction to look.

    He said: “This is a win-win situation for us and for all private and public sector clients, who need the services of PR consultancies. If any of our members is not living up to the standards expected by the clients, such clients should know that they can make a formal report to PRCAN and we will ensure they get their money’s worth in terms of best-in-class professional PR services. But we can only hold our registered members accountable for standards and not the unregistered army currently parading themselves about as PR consultants in Nigeria.”

    PRCAN and the NIPR have challenged MTN Nigeria and Guinness Plc for appointing unregistered PR firms as Public Relations Consultants.

  • ExxonMobil, NB, others for SERAs awards

    TruContact CSR Nigeria, organisers of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) awards, known as The SERAs, has got 47 entries.

    They were from ExxonMobil, Nigerian Breweries, Lafarge, Total, Cornerstone Insurance, Etisalat, BATN, Airtel, DHL, Nigerian Stock Exchange, FCMB, Promasidor, First Bank, among others.

    The awards described as Nigeria’s top CSR and sustainability honour entries is in its ninth year. The awards process is designed to integrate principles and framework of the Global compact, global reporting Initiative and ISO 26000.

    The SERAs is reputed to be the major promoter and force behind galvanising businesses across various sectors and industries in Nigeria to imbibe the ethos of CSR and sustainability in Nigeria.

    The theme of the 2015 awards is: Building partnerships for a sustainable future; business leadership as a catalyst for development. This seeks to highlight the lessons learned from Nigeria’s inability to completely attain the millennium development goals targets and building on the lessons of the MDG’s to begin a move towards attaining the sustainability development goals (SDG’s), and also promoting the vital roles that cooperation and partnerships will play in efforts to achieve the SDG’s.

    All is set for the commencement of verification and facility visit to projects and locations entered by the organisations. The SERA involves the production of a yearly Nigeria Social Enterprise Report that documents the CSR and sustainability interventions of corporate organisations.

    Meanwhile, the organisers have released a call for entry for the Tunmise Adekunle Awards for CSR reporting, a category introduced in 2009, to promote media excellence in reporting CSR and sustainability in Nigeria.

    Entries for this category close on September 21.

    The awards is billed to hold on November 14 at 6p.m. at Shell Hall, MUSON Centre.

  • Fidelity Bank targets the millennial in new identity

    Fidelity Bank targets the millennial in new identity

    Brands pass through various stages. To remain active from one stage to the other, many try to stay connected to market forces. For Fidelity Bank Plc, the unveiling of its new brand identity “Millennial or digital natives”, appears to have been informed by the need to focus on the youth, while retaining its older generation of customers, writes ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

    There’s no such thing as the millennial – the generation of children born between 1982 and 2002.  This bold proclamation by a global advertising intelligence firm, Exponential Interactive, has continued to elicit responses from brand owners, especially the conservatives who want to maintain their grip on old generation  consumers and capture the market force.

    Hence, every business owner, with foresight on future growth and relevance in a market full of uncertainties, is constantly preparing the ground to carry the demography tailoring product and service design that suit its needs.

    This new thinking is understandable. The baby boom generation (people born during the demographic post–World War II, approximately between the years 1946 and 1964) are ageing, while trend spotters are mapping the millennial as the next target market. This position is further affirmed by a recent market intelligence forecast which stated that the “Millennial” generation is projected to surpass the outsized, as the nation’s largest living generation.

    Exponential analysed data revealed that three major forces have shaped the millennial experience: the economy, globalisation and social media.

    According to the firm, these forces define important millennial populations, and within each of these categories, are several subgroups, each with its own specific needs and preferences. While there is some overlap across categories, marketers find it important to map the groups they want to target, and how to appeal to each one, individually.

    This, perhaps, explains why Fidelity Bank Plc, is changing its conservative market orientation.

    Last week, the bank changed its brand identity-logo and colour to align with the new market realities.

    Established in 1988, the brand’s new identity comes with a block logo with green, deep blue, on two sides and light white line dividing the colours in a diagonal form, making the green and blue form triangles. The bank explained that the deep blue colour is a testimony of its “rich, solid background as a bank. It holds an accommodative path which inspires us to go into the future.” It said, the green colour symbolises fertility, growth and progress to the future, while the white line at the middle signifies safety, purity and a guiding light.

    But beyond the logo and new identity, trend spotters believe the bank is smarting out of its conservatism to connect with the new market forces before it gets cut in the web of market dissonance.  Hence, during the unveiling, the bank explained that the rebranding exercise is to bring about convergence in its services, to suit both the old and new generation customers.

    According to a brand analyst at Brandish, Mr. Ikem Okuhu, banking used to be this conservative. “Change used to be slow and very slow sometimes. And that sometimes explains why it takes some of them, well-schooled in the traditions of money management ample time and caution to change from the authodox ways it is seen by the external community.

    In the Nigerian banking ecosystem, it perhaps remained only a few banks and Fidelity Bank that were yet to refresh their logo and by that token, refocus their marketing dynamics.”

    Chairman of the bank, Dr Christopher Ezeh, said the bank is taking away its old garment for a new one in order to serve the customers better.

    However, the Group Managing Director/CEO, Fidelity Bank, Nnamdi Okonkwo, said the  changing trends mean that “over time brands age and require renewal.

    “For us, the motivation behind our rebranding project is a combination of several factors. Our business environment is changing and we realise that to remain true to the customers we serve, it is imperative that we stay in tune with the times.

    “We are not just giving our brand a new look, more importantly, we are actively changing the way we do business; becoming more focused on our customers’ needs and exceeding their expectations. Rebranding, therefore, makes this contract visible to our stakeholders. Major global brands also constantly evolve to remain relevant with the times and so it became obvious that we needed to reposition our brand as a modern and forward thinking bank,” he stressed.

    While stating that about 43 per cent of Nigeria’s population are youths, Okonkwo said any institution which fails “to connect with the youths today will lose tomorrow.” To connect with the group, the bank has also invested in technology to suit the needs of the new market force whose older generation rely on assistance in accessing digital experience in the banking sector, he stated.

    As a result, Fidelity Bank said it is leveraging on technology to drive into the future market. “We are leveraging technology to improve customer service experience. Your bank has re-positioned its electronic channels and banking products, to not only reflect our refreshed identity and the regulatory mandates of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), but also as a re-affirmation of our commitment to you.

    “We have implemented a bespoke online banking system that offers an improved modern interface and consistent features across all web based platforms. This is in consonance with our commitment to support the Federal Government’s cashless initiative by providing better customer experience and convenience across electronic channels.

    “Beyond that, our improved electronic banking system has drastically reduced the turn-around-time for online customers set up at all touch-points, a clear testament of our resolve to continually surpass customer expectation.

    “Today, customers can conduct bank-to-bank transfers seamlessly via our mobile platform. To support our innovation, we are in the final stage of migrating our core banking platform from Finacle version 7, to Finacle version 10,” said Okonkwo

    This, according to the bank, is meant to enhance its operational efficiency, strengthen innovation capabilities and support scalable growth.

    “Finacle version 10 will enable us to implement services such as enhanced SME banking, management information system reporting, application monitoring, and disaster recovery automation,” he said.

    Meanwhile, the bank has enjoyed strong performance in the last 27 years. The 2014 FYE, gross earnings of the bank grew by 4.3 per cent to N132.4 billion from N126.9 billion in 2013 while the Profit Before Tax increased by 71.9 per cent to N15.5 billion from N9 billion.

    By the first half (HYR1) of this year, the bank consolidated on its performance momentum of 2014 by recording a modest growth in critical indices despite the challenging operating environment.

    “Our operating income increased by 14.1 percent to N42 billion from N36.8 billion in HYR1 of 2014.”

    With the change in brand identity, Okonkwo assured that the bank’s promise and commitment to customers, whether old or young, remains strong.

  • APCON, AAG okay ‘Brand As King’ awards

    The Advertising Practitioner Council of Nigeria (APCON) and the Advertising Association of Ghana (AAG) have endorsed Brand As King Awards, which will hold on October 25 in Lagos.

    According to the Editor-in-Chief/Chief Executive Officer of the organising firm, Billboard World,  publishers of a magazine with the same title, Maureen Umanah, it is to honour advertising professionals, outstanding achievers, corporate brands, product brands and brand ambassadors from Nigeria and beyond that have performed excellently in various endeavours.

    She said the awards would be memorable, adding:“In its quest to uphold industry standards and position out-of-home advertising as a vital player within the advertising industry, this year’s award, the fifth edition of the BAK, has adopted a most appropriate theme: Out-of-Home (OOH) media as a veritable tool in aesthetics and environmental sustainabi-lity.

    ‘’This is in line with the need for us to nurture and protect our immediate environment from the dreaded global warming and its harmful effects.’’

    However, the organisers of the awards have called for entries in the following categories: most performing brand awards, excellence awards in media reporting, most performing industry associate awards, outstanding brand ambassador awards (Entertainment), excellence awards in environmental policy, best upcoming brands, industry merit awards and special recognition awards.