The Nation Newspaper

Tag: marketing

  • Heirs Holdings appoints Marketing, Corporate Communications director

    Heirs Holdings has announced the appointment of Pelumi Fadairo as Director of Marketing and Corporate Communications.  Fadairo will be responsible for driving the Group’s strategic marketing objectives and co-ordinating brand management of its rapidly growing portfolio of pan-African investments in the power, financial services, oil and gas, hospitality and real estate, and healthcare sectors.

    Prior to joining Heirs Holdings, Fadairo was the CMO of BizzCloud, a Netherlands-based software company, where she designed and executed strategy and go-to-market plans. In this role, she led the internationalisation strategy for the brand and optimisation of customer acquisition, through improved customer experience. She has also provided consultancy for clients across the fintech, cloud services, cleantech and publishing sectors, combining her knowledge, experience and network across Africa, to develop market entry strategies.  Fadairo previously held senior positions at Dell, where she developed and executed marketing strategies across Europe and emerging markets.

    Commenting on the appointment, the Group CEO, Heirs Holdings, Emmanuel Nnorom stated, “Heirs Holdings is at an important growth stage, as we expand and deepen our investments within the twenty African countries where we operate. Pelumi’s experience in building strategies, managing complex stakeholder teams and executing marketing campaigns make her well qualified to take on this new role”.

    The Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony O. Elumelu, also commented on Fadairo’s role ” As we are increasingly impacting lives across Africa, through our investments and our commitment to growing social and economic wealth, the role of marketing and communications is increasingly important. Filling this critical role is a sign of our ongoing commitment to institutionalisation and our desire to ensure our unique African message is heard by audiences, globally and across our continent”.

  • Marketing Nigeria with KLM ‘Celebs Around Town’

    Marketing Nigeria with KLM ‘Celebs Around Town’

    Adekunle Gold is known to promote the African attire through his dress sense and music. Kunle Afolayan too, has undoubtedly promoted African languages, foods, attires and lots more in his award-winning films, just as AY’s hit movies are themed on how local characters triumph in foreign lands.

    AS KLM introduces journeys of inspirations to its esteemed clients through the “Celebs Around Town” campaign this summer, the Royal Dutch Airlines in partnership with Air France has showed its regard for the Nigerian market. Hence, driving this campaign for the entire Africa, are notable Nigerian entertainers whose experiences in some destinations in Europe and the United States of America will pave the way for others.

    Through anticipated interactions with their huge followers on social media platforms, these artistes which include singer Adekunle Gold, Nollywood actress Kate Henshaw, Kannywood actress Rahama Sadau, comedian Ayo Makun, aka AY, and rave-of-the-moment filmmaker Kunle Afolayan will be showcasing the most interesting sights and hang-outs in the cities they visit through video posts and live interactive sessions on KLM’s social media platform as well as theirs.

    The journey that begins on June 2, 2017 starts with AY who will be exploring London, to be followed by Adekunle Gold in Manchester; Kate Henshaw in Rome; Rahama Sadau in Berlin, and Kunle Afolayan in New York.

    In what seems like a reality show to debut on HipTV through daily recap of the celebrities’ holiday experiences, it is expected that this relationship with KLM and Air France will be explored maximally by taking Nigerian cultures to these destinations in a stylish way.

    KLM wants to be the most innovative customer-oriented carrier, hence the choice of these set of artistes who in the words of Arthur Dieffenthaler, Commercial Director, Air France KLM Nigeria & Ghana, embody innovations and style.

    He said: “KLM’s global ambition is to be the most innovative customer oriented network carrier in the world, hence we always aim to put our customers first.  In KLM Nigeria we have asked ourselves the question “How can we translate this into a Nigerian context?  In order to do this, we have selected five individuals who we believe really embody these ambitions.  They are innovative, and have a good relationship with their fans. I am sure this would be a unique experience not only for the celebs travelling but also for their fans”

    These artistes who I also have great regards for are tourism ambassadors in their own rights, and there is no doubt they will bring Nigeria to the front burner, as they interact with the world.

    Kate Henshaw showed a trait of what is to be expected, spotting an Ankara top, during the unveiling of this initiative to the media at the Air France Office, Lagos, on Thursday. Hausa language actress Rahama is every bit a Northern Nigerian diva whose elegance oozes with style. Adekunle Gold is known to promote the African attire through his dress sense and music. Kunle Afolayan too, has undoubtedly promoted African languages, foods, attires and lots more in his award-winning films, just as AY’s hit movies are themed on how local characters triumph in foreign lands.

    In tasking them to do more for Nigeria at this time when our tourism industry is in dire need of patronage, they should market our fabrics in the best possible ways and help to identify notable Nigerian food spots and entertainment rendezvous for potential travelers.

    In addition to the tourist attractions in these cities, we would like to see who the Nigerian artiste making us proud in some of these cities are, who the Nigerian entrepreneurs in Europe and America are, and so on and so forth.

    In bringing these cities to their numerous fans, they should showcase the impacts of Nigerians and Nigerian communities in those cities as well.

  • Online marketing boom for retailers

    Online marketing boom for retailers

    For retailers desirous of making sales without incurring unnecessary costs on advertising, online marketing aided by the social media is the way to go, reports TONIA ‘DIYAN

    Trading through online platforms and the social media networks is helping retailers have a wider reach to their prospective customers, both at home and abroad. This is because the barrier of distance can be successfully broken, making it possible to strike business deals, trade and shop with anyone.

    Besides, online platforms help to create mutual relationship between sellers and buyers, which gives both parties a first-hand communication where feedbacks from customers are guaranteed. For retailers, who transact business online, the feedbacks help to improve their services and maintain cordial relationship with their customers.

    Retailers, who do business online are at an advantage as they become easily accessible to all classes of people because of their activeness in the virtual society.

    Moving with the trend of trading online, convenience and time saving factor has made it possible for buyers to order their desired goods in the comfort of their homes.

    Raphael Afaedor, co-founder/ Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Supermart.ng, a grocery online store, saw the need to solve many everyday problems of households in Nigeria, especially Lagos, hence, he started Supermart.ng.

    “I have observed the stress people go through in order to shop for groceries,” he said.

    He continued: “Most times people move from one shop to another or visit the local market to buy local ingredients. This is due to the unstructured nature of the traditional retail and wholesale system.”

    Afaedor, who was a co-founder and managing director of Jumia.com.ng, from March 2012 to January 2014, partnered leading supermarkets and local markets and has developed the largest one-stop online market for customers to shop from over 60,000 items and have it delivered to them within three hours across Lagos.

    According to him, the initial response from people was not encouraging as most were reluctant, but later came to trust the system. From what it used to be when it started a few years ago, Afam Ayika, former Marketing Manager, Jumia Nigeria. said there has been significant progress.

    “For instance earlier in 2012 e-commerce sites were recording 2,000 orders per day. Between 2012 and now some of us have had an exponential growth to the tune of 100,000 orders per day and record over 50 per cent growth month-on-month. The major thing is to put in place a structure that customers can trust. For instance, Supermart.ng has put a system in place that customers can trust to deliver their groceries to them as early as three hours without any hitch,” he said.

    Speaking of challenges, the traditional wholesale and retail system is not organised. This is visible in the fact that it is quite hard for someone to get everything he or she wants in just one supermarket. Therefore, what these online stores have done is to partner leading supermarkets and local markets.

    According to operators, it ensures that customers can buy their groceries and everyday essentials (local and imported products) at one address online and have them delivered to their homes and offices in a short time. And with just a click a person can access everything he needs from the comfort of his home without having to move from one market to another.

    Another challenge, according to them, was logistics, especially in Lagos, where there is the fear of the unpredictable traffic situation.

    The traffic situation is a challenge both to the customers and to the e-commerce companies. For the customers, it is a discouraging factor from going to the stores. For the e-commerce companies, it accounts for their delay in delivery.

    Traditionally, it takes two to 10 days for orders to be delivered to customer’s doorstep. However, this approach cannot be used for groceries, considering that most of the orders are needed the same day. In view of that, what some operators have done was to embark on adequate city research to understand the flow of traffic so that they are able to deliver groceries in the shortest possible time against all odds. During the last fuel scarcity when telecoms companies and banks were shutting down, online stores still delivered and did not fail in their delivery promise.

  • Poly Ibadan marketing students’ reunite

    The marketing students of the Polytechnic of Ibadan 1987—1992 set would reunite on Saturday at the Pentorise event centre, Bodija, Ibadan, Oyo state capital.

    The administrator, Dele Oyadotun, in a statement said important issues regarding members and the institution will be discussed.

    The reunion, he said, is organised by Nigeria-based and marketers’ mates in the diaspora. He said it would bring about unity and progress in social, politics and economic life of the members and the school in general.

  • Tension as marketing institute ‘rightsizes’

    When a former Senior Strategy Manager at Nigerian Breweries Plc Tony Agenmonmen became President of the Nigerian Institute of Marketing Nigeria (NIMN)last month, the workers were happy.

    Reason: They thought he was the messiah they were waiting for. One, they were being owed many months of salaries and allowances.

    However, rather than get good news from the president, the workers got a’special yuletide package’. The members of staff of NIMN were on Wednesday, last week told that they had been disengaged with a caveat that those still interested to work with institute should re-apply by January 6, next year.

    Expectedly, the 32-workforce, excluding the Registrar, expressed shock on the development.  Their expectations that the new executive would improve their well-being, especially in clearing the backlog of their unpaid salaries, were dashed.

    A source at the meeting said the workers were miffed by  the development, saying it was contrary to the promises earlier made by Agenmonmen, when he met with the staff of the institute, shortly after being elected.

    One of such promises, the source said, was that the Council would sort out the backlog of salaries being owed the staff and embark on capacity development for them to equip them for the challenges ahead.

    “Everybody was surprised at the announcement. Nobody expected it. We were thinking it was going to be one of such meetings where the new president would announce some of those ‘goodies’ he had for the staff, “ he said.

    It was gathered further that the board has already instructed the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) to help it handle the recruitment.

    Confirming the development, a member of the institute, who would not want his name in print, said he had seen a memo, informing members of the development and the decision of the board to source for new employees from within and outside the institute’s workforce.

    Meanwhile, the new president reportedly denied the disengagement story saying: “I’m not aware that any staff of the institute has been disengaged for now. All I know is that staff are on vacation, and they are expected to resume first week in January, next year.”

  • Corps members float online marketing hub

    Two National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members have launched Goods2Go Hub, an online marketing service. Joshua Ojo and Obinna Isiwekpeni, graduates of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), are serving in Akwa Ibom and Abia states.

    According to them, they were inspired by the need to help resolve the difficulties faced by Corps members in sellig items used during their service year.

    Joshua said: “The National Youth Service lasts for a year and graduates of higher institutions are posted to places they have never been. They settle down and buy household items to make themselves comfortable during the service year. As service rounds off, Corps members face the challenge of selling the items they bought.

    “Some even give out the items freely and regret doing so, because they do not have the appropriate platform to sell the items. We came up with Goods2Go to enable incoming and outgoing Corps members exchange and sell items. The platform gives sellers and buyers value for their money.”

    Obinna added: “Goods2Go Hub will help promote business ideas among the outgoing, active, and prospective Corp members using the platform. It will help them display their items and services to Corps members across the nation.”

  • ‘Policy marketing crucial to national development’

    ‘Policy marketing crucial to national development’

    Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) President Dr. Rotimi Oladele has underscored the importance of policy marketing in the  drive by the government to restore investors and citizens’ confidence in the economy.

    Oladele, who joined other speakers to discuss the imperative of “Leadership, policy marketing and repositioning of the Nigerian Nation,” at Brand Campaign Magazine’s fifth anniversary lecture in Lagos, said successive governments did not put in place the right policies.

    He said Nigeria is fertile for “unbaked, disorganised, rotten policies. The issue of policy marketing is totally neglected as far as policy is concerned,” he said.

    He said development was anchored on the rectangle of policy, law, regulation and infrastructure. “Once these are put in place, you do not need to preach to anybody to know what to do and when to do what is is right,” he said.

    Oladele, however, lamented that the country’s policy does not allow the nation to grow.

    He urged leaders to rethink Nigeria’s policies so that followers can change their mindset.

    Also, Brandish Magazine’s Managing Director, Mr. Ikem Okuhu said the lecture was aimed at awakening in Nigerians the need to begin to think, considering the shallow educational policy.

    The Marketing Mix Limited Managing Director, Mr. Akin Adeoya  said Nigerians should watch the lifestyles of the leaders they choose.

    He stressed that those who create value for the little they have should be preferred against those who are profligate in their lifestyle.

    The Brand Campaign’s Publisher, Mr. Akinwumi Dickson described the birth of the magazine as a child of circumstance that grew to become one of the leading brand magazines in the industry.

  • Educator holds network marketing party sessions

    Foremost educator and proprietor of Standard Bearers Nursery and Primary School, Lekki, Mrs. Modupe Adeyinka Oni, recently held the maiden edition of her Network Marketing party Health To Wealth Sessions organised by The GP Team at Freedom Park, Lagos.

    Powered by Inspiro Productions, Mrs Oni said that the aim of the party is to provide an alternative to income earners, especially in the face of the country officially going into recession. According to her, against the perception of majority of Nigerians, network marketing, is more about personal development, so people have to understand that it actually is a real business, and it’s one of the biggest industries in the world today.

    “It is a $2.8 trillion industry,” she said of network marketing.

    “But we laugh at it here in Nigeria. We think it can’t work, we think it’s a scam and we make fun of people who are doing it but really and truly, we should be laughing at ourselves because in this economy that we have now, things are so hard and one way that any individual can actually come out of the whole economic thing is through network marketing.”

    One of the things she set out to do with the event, according to her, is to let people know that it doesn’t matter what the product is.

    Oni, who boasts of 33 years’ experience in the education sector, said that with a minimal initial investment, investors are up and running, especially as they already have the structure that will help them to succeed.

    With the cocktail and food served, the Organic Jazz and Movement bands were on hand to provide quality entertainment for the well-attended three-session event.

  • African marketing communication professionals gather for Maxim Festival

    Marketing, advertising and media industry professionals are expected to gather at in Accra, Ghana for a training and motivational discourse organised by Maxim Festival.

    The festival, according to the organiser, is premised around planned and documented growth of business, need for services to support this growth specifically in the continents marketing communication industry.

    In a release to The Nation, the Maxim Festival officials said rewards will be given to celebrate the great accomplishments already achieved by players, though noted that the differentiation and focus of Maxim Festival is around the training and inspiration to succeed.

    “A full day of inspirational talks on issues such as content in Africa, the Digital future of communication, modern business re-invention is an opportunity to consider new options to achieve personal and business success. The event is culminated with an exhibition of award winning short listed entries as well as exposure to selected leading Industry enthusiasts which will showcase their offering and allow for further networking opportunities. This is followed by an evening awards ceremony where the best work across 11 core categories will be recognized and ending off in celebration at the after party,” the statement reads.

    The organiser also stated that Maxim festival has been devised through experiences gained at attending Awards Festivals internationally and also through work and personal experiences in Africa by a wide group of Industry experienced professionals.

    “Maxim’s mantra is ‘Inspire, Educate and Reward’, with the key aim being to empower Africa to compete more effectively with the rest of the world. The attendees will be exposed to both local and global insights as well as the best creative work and most inspiring media and marketing strategies on the continent,” the statement reads.

    However, with the ever-changing and constantly developing media and digital landscape the organiser said: “this insight is important not only for the ad and media industries but for Clients as well.”

    Meanwhile, the regional West Africa Festival will be held in Ghana, Accra over a 3 day period: 23 – 25 November 2016. The regional East Africa event will take place early 2017.

    Maxim Festival is an enhancement and addition to existing in-country and International Festivals and goes beyond just rewarding great work or showcasing great work – its vision is to train and inspire people in terms of creating their own skill set to create great work.

  • Communication as tool in policy marketing

    Communication as tool in policy marketing

    Over the years, governments have executed policies without  engaging the people to get their support. Stakeholders in the marketing communications industry say for government policies to enjoy more support, factors, such as experiential marketing, community engagement and others, are critical, reports ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

    Experiential marketing, citizen engagement and community relations have been described as one effective way of engaging Nigerians and market government policies.

    This was the highlight at the Third Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Experiential Marketers Association of Nigeria (EXMAN) in Abuja.

    Its President, Dr. Rotimi Olaniyan, who delivered a paper titled: Building Nigeria through meaningful Experiences: The role of experiential marketing in citizen engagement and the marketing of government policy, said the relationship between experiential marketing, citizen engagement and community relations has some dimensions when using it to communicate government policies.

    “First of all, these concepts require the existence of people. They involve efforts, and activities aimed at engaging people, and they also seek to ensure positive relationships with people. For experiential marketing, it is a form of marketing that requires a good strategy for it to be as effective as intended by those undertaking it. Like many marketing campaigns, there is an underlying strategy guiding it to achieve its objectives and aims,” he said.

    Olaniyan also noted that community relations can serve as a strategy for experiential marketing. “For example, in Casanare, Colombia, where it is developing oil interests, British Petroleum invests in community activities that support the business plan and contribute to the region’s development. In 1996, the company committed $10 million to the region, setting up a loan fund for entrepreneurs, giving students technical training, supporting a centre for pregnant women and nursing mothers, working on reforestation, building aqueducts and helping to create jobs outside the oil industry,” he said.

    He said EXMAN is ready to help government put these strategies into use and create a strong understanding of government policies among the citizens.

    “We offer the opportunity for government to receive immediate feedback from citizens on the effects of public policies and projects. The association has healthy relationships with most communities across the country, thanks to many years of brand activations and engagements within these communities,” he added.

    According to him, having feedback is important for adjustments on public policies and projects to be made.

    Former Director-General, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr. Sam Amadi, who was the guest speaker at the event, said both concepts focus on engaging people.

    “Experiential marketing seeks to create experiences that are pleasurable and meaningful for consumers while community relations involves activities that help establish and maintain positive relationships with people in a certain community,” he said.

    Amadi, who faulted the failure of government reforms on lack of adequate communication, said since 1980, the Federal Government undertook several reforms and policies but many of them ended on the shelf because of inadequate communications.

    He said proper communication, which he called awareness, could help in marketing government policies.

    Stakeholders, however, urged the government to tap into the capacity of the current experiential marketing agencies to leverage their policies.

    “Given the worth of the experiential marketing industry in Nigeria and the capacity of its key players most of whom are active members of the EXMAN, it is fair to state that the industry contributes massively to the economy of the country and so cannot be ignored much longer,” former EXMAN President, Kayode Olagesin, said.

    Meanwhile, the association has launched Certified Brand Ambassador Programme and unveiled the association first newsletter. The programme, which seeks to protect and reward non-staff of the agencies that form greater part of the workforce, kicked off immediately after launch in Abuja.