The Nation Newspaper

Tag: marketing

  • X3M Ideas bags ‘Telecom Marketing Company’ award

    Lagos marketing communications agency, X3M Ideas has won the coveted award of the “Telecom Marketing Company of the Year” at the 10th edition of the Nigerian Telecom Awards which held last Saturday in Lagos.

    Top contenders for the popular award and their relevant portfolios include 141-Worldwide (for Etisalat Portfolio); DDB Lagos (for MTN Portfolio) and X3M Ideas  (Etisalat Portfolio). All three agencies were shortlisted on the nomination list for the ‘Telecoms Marketing Company of the Year” award under the telecom & Allied products segment.

    At the end of the judging session, X3M Ideas defiled book makers’ predictions  to beat the more experienced agencies to cart home the landmark 10th edition award in “Telecoms Marketing Company of the Year” category.

    According to the organisers, the rationale for the nomination and judgment parameters are very clear and independently carried out by an autonomous panel of Assessors & Judges. These include analysing available statistics, creative portfolio submitted and the rationale behind them, researches are conducted while we also interviewed relevant contacts.

    Speaking on the awards, Secretary General, Nigerian Telecoms Awards, Otunba Biodun Ajiboye said the awards organised by TelecomNews has passed the litmus test having been on for 10 years and known for its credible evaluation process.

    “If we have got to this stage, it means that the award has sailed through the tides of time and has come to stay as an elixir for the telecoms industry and allied service providers.”

    Steve Babaeko, Creative Director/CEO, X3M Ideas, speaking on the Telecom Marketing company of the year award won by his agency, said: “we are grateful to God and our clients for giving us the opportunity”.

    He, however, noted that as an agency, the intention is to create ads that work for our clients by moving their stocks. If awards are won along the way, “we are happy but will never get carried away by the euphoria. We will always have our eyes on the ball – our client’s marketing objectives and our reason for being their agency”

     

  • Apple’s product marketing: So far, so good?

    Apple’s product marketing: So far, so good?

    When developers started building Apple’s phones in 2007, they were given one format for the four-inch iPhone screens. A larger format came along three years later, when the iPad made its debut.

    Google, on the other hand, gave developers an array of options, so they could build apps for its ever-evolving cache of hardware partners and devices.

    With Apple, the format options remained limited.Until June, when its latest software update blew those restrictions apart.

    It was one of several signs that the nation’s top smartphone-maker was ready to expand its portfolio. On Thursday last week, the New York Times nailed several persistent rumours: at Apple’s much-anticipated Tuesday event in Cupertino, Califonia, it will unveil two iPhones with larger screens, a wearable computing device and a mobile payment system within its devices.

    For the coming holiday season, there are various things to be gleaned from Apple’s history of launching products. The company has given significant support to new product launches. And it typically couples expensive media buys – in high-profile television, print and outdoor ads — with lucrative product placement, a tactic the company pioneered.

    There are other considerations. For one, Apple may be venturing into two categories — wearable devices and mobile payments – unproven in consumer adoption and untested in the ad world. Apple’s wearable device will not ship until 2015, according to multiple reports. Also, Ad Age extensively reported that Apple is undergoing a significant marketing overhaul, building a sizable internal creative team to pit against its long-time agency TBWA/Media Arts Lab.

    Apple’s creative strategy has also evolved since the death of its founder, Steve Jobs, in 2011, and the rise of its combative competitor Samsung.

     

    Hello iPhone

    Little netted Apple more media attention than Mr. Jobs, in his token black turtleneck, unveiling the first iPhone on stage in 2007. Yet, Apple still felt the need to advertise.

    The first iPhone spot, “Hello,” made debut during the 2007 Oscars. It showed the Apple logo, but not the iPhone name — Apple was battling Cisco over the rights.That year, Apple reported an increase of $129 million in ad spending, to $467 million.

     

    Big support for new products

    As digital media expanded, Apple avoided a centralised strategy, letting its videos proliferate across the web. Its first commercial for the iPad, in March 2010, went viral. The new tablet also found its way into mainstream television shows, such as Modern Family, a coup that came, quite likely, without paid promotion from Apple.

    The handset-maker still spends a considerable amount on TV. Last year, 80 per cent of its measured media spending – $626,972 – was spent on TV, according to the Ad Age DataCentre.

    For its size, the world’s most profitable company spends little. Only 0.64 per cent of its revenues went to marketing last year. Samsung spent 1.82 per cent of global revenues on ads and 3.51 per cent on sales promotion. But Apple’s revenues are massive. When it needs to spend on ads, it can.

    The firm dropped $51.9 million on adverts for its new iPad in the second quarter of 2010, and kept up that pace for the remainder of the year, according to figures from Kantar media.

    Apples’ ad spend leapt three-fold between 2010 and 2011, and its revenues grew faster than that. Apple spent $31.1 million in the fourth quarter of that year to promote the new MacBook Air. It spent about the same amount two years later, during the holiday season, for the MacBook Pro.

     

    Shape of ads to come

    Apple has run ad campaigns promoting specific services, like its App Store, in 2008, and its FaceTime video feature, in 2010. But the iPhone, the source of more than half of its revenues, remains the biggest beneficiary of ad spending. More than 40 per cent of Apple’s measured media spending, from 2009 to 2013, promoted the smartphone.

    This year, however, it has hinted at the shape of ads to come, as it builds devices and services that orbit the iPhone. “Parenthood,” a spot from June, slyly featured plugs for Apple’s growing presence in the connected home industry. Two more spots, “powerful” and “strength,” showed off the numerous ways iPhone consumers deploy the device, including for fitness-tracking.

    Apple has also increased its marketing presence abroad, particularly in China. In August, it released a mini-film with a Chinese electro-pop band. Its marketing shift is following sales. In 2009, China and Hong Kong accounted for 1.8 per cent of sales; this past quarter, they neared 16 per cent. For Apple, Asia is an incredibly competitive market – one that, incidentally, loves large-screen phones.

  • A marketing tool in their hands

    A marketing tool in their hands

    Corporate event sponsorship has become a tool for promoting firms and their products. At the just-concluded Osun-Osogbo Festival, alcoholic beverage manufacturers promoted their low premium products targeted at low-end markets. ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI reports.

    For the people of Osogbo, in Osun State, the month of August is very symbolic. It is a month of celebration, traditional cleansing of the city and cultural reunion of its people with their ancestors and founders of the Osogbo Kingdom.

    Yearly, the Osun-Osogbo, a traditional festival unique to the town, has proved to be a rallying point for both residents and the sons and daughters of the town in the diaspora. Besides, seven years ago, the festival received a further boost with its elevation to the status of World Heritage site by UNESCO, attracting tourists globally.

    With the international status of the festival comes huge business opportunities for both individual and corporate bodies, as well as various sponsorship opportunities for the event. It is, therefore, not surprising to find several organisations falling over themselves to exploit the week-long Osun-Osogbo celebration to the advantage of their product or brand.  The just concluded edition of the festival was not an exception, as it enjoyed greater sponsorship than previous editions from several organisations.

    Though many brands are yet to feel the significance of the festival in building their brand, however, operators in the alcoholic beverage sector now have a better understanding of the potentials for their products, especially in the low-end markets. One company that is taking good advantage of this is Nigerian Breweries (NB). The firm is capitalising on the inherent opportunities offered by the festival to build a sustainable brand awareness in the Southwest regional market for its Goldberg Beer brand. With this, NB may have strategically positioned its Goldberg beer to eat into the market share of this region in a market where Trophy Larger beer from the staple of International Distilleries, has held sway as leader.

    However, with the struggle for the regional market, especially in the low premium beer segment becoming more intense between NB and International Distilleries, findings by The Nation revealed that the NB is building up a war chest to further take over more market share. Trophy beer, which is also growing in brand equity in the region, also enjoys the financial backing of SABMILLER, a South African firm, which just acquired International Distilleries, the producers of Trophy beer. The effect of this acquisition is that the brand has become more popular and visible as seen in its demand across various bars visited in some Southwest states.

    “I have personally observed that Goldberg’s involvement with the festival this year hss actually taken the long-standing support from Nigerian Breweries Plc. to a new level with their activities. A look around the palace today tells me they are ready to do some outstanding things this year and I think that is quite good for the brand,” said the Araba of Osogboland, Chief Ifayemi Elebuibon.

    He is of the opinion that the festival has provided a viable platform for the Goldberg brand, considering the sales recorded at the festival. From his observations, Elebuibon said Goldberg appears to be gaining more market share around Osogbo town and its precincts, especially since the NB began to actively associate with the festival.

    Said he: “I noticed that a lot of beer consumers around here have switched to Goldberg since they started sponsoring the Osun- Osogbo Festival. The reason is simple; anybody or corporate organisation that shows interest in what the people are passionate about will gain the people’s loyalty. Osun-Osogbo is one thing Osogbo people are passionate about.”

    In a  similar vein, Goldberg brand manager, Mr. Mfon Bassey, described the brand as one that identifies and celebrates the cultural/traditional values of the people. “The aspirations and passions of our consumer are of importance to the Goldberg brand. The Osun Oshogbo Festival is the encapsulation of passion, aspirations, cultural and traditional values of not just the Osogbo people but the entire western Nigeria. It is about the traditions and cultural heritage of Osogbo people which they hold in high esteem. The festival, therefore, is a veritable platform for the brand to connect with the consumers in the region through their traditional values,” he affirmed.

    Also, the Managing Director, INFOGEM Ltd, the official consultants for the festival, Mr. Ayo Olumoko, said the corporate presence brought by Goldberg to this year’s edition of the festival is unparalled. “In the 26 years of Nigerian Breweries’ sponsorship of this festival, I have not seen the level of corporate presence that Goldberg is bringing to the festival this year. Their branding is unprecedented. Their presence is practically swallowing those of the other stakeholders. People around here are quite impressed with what they are doing,” he said, adding that the sponsorship of the festival by the brand has increased and it has become a stirred competition.

    Not long ago, NB hosted its key distributors as well as selected stakeholders from the South West to the re-launch of its Goldberg premium lager beer in the city of Ibadan; the event served as a formal introduction of the repackaged Goldberg beer.

    The marketing director of Nigerian Breweries, Mr. Walter Drenth, gave an insight into why Goldberg is targeted at the low premium market consumers. “A lot of our consumers who desire high quality premium lager beer who cannot afford the likes of Heineken, Star or Gulder lager beer now have Goldberg, a premium beer with excellent bottle look, stamped with a crest quality, now brewed under the supervision of Nigerian Breweries Plc.”

    Analysts at Financial Derivatives Company suggested in a recent report that beer market generally witnessed a decline of about 10 per cent in 2013 on the back of increased pressure on flexible income resulting from high cost of living, and heightened security concerns in certain parts of the country which has added pressure on distribution and cost of commodities thereby restricting beer consumption to safe locations, among other factors. This, experts say, may work for the new brands to survive in the south west market.

    For now, the three big operators in Nigeria’s beer sector, which are among the biggest global operators in the sector are on their wits end to ensure that they maintain, if not improve on, their market share. Nigerian Breweries Plc, Guinness Nigeria Plc and SAB Miller are making sure that they supply enough of their various brands. Apparently, Beer is a very big business in Nigeria, and it is growing all the time. It is said to have been expanding at 10 per cent per annum for some time now. The average per capita beer consumption is still only 10 litres a year, a sixth of the rate in South Africa, meaning the potential for growth remains huge, especially given that Nigeria has a population of about 170 million people.

    As the brand waits to benefit from the sponsorship of the festival, the structure of the market share still give the maker of the brand an edge as the market leaders opportunity to harness its fortunes to challenge any threat to his various product categories across the country. According to Financial Derivatives Report, Heineken controls 71 per cent of the Nigerian market share through its subsidiaries, Nigerian Breweries and Consolidated Breweries with Nigerian Breweries Plc (NB Plc) having 61 per cent market share and Consolidated Breweries with a 10 per cent market share; Diageo has a 17 per cent market share through its stake in Guinness Nigeria. South African Breweries Miller (SABM) is a more recent entrant to the market and has a growing but very significant stake in the industry but expert feels it will be a tall dream for the brand to edge a brand from the market leader.

    NB Plc has the largest capacity and coverage, with about eight breweries located across the country, (estimated to have total annual capacity of 13.5mn hl). Guinness operates four breweries (total annual of 7.5mn hl by 2014 due to on-going capacity expansion).

    SABM has built up its capacity (by acquisition) to approximately 1.8mn hl, which includes Pabod Breweries in Port Harcourt, International Breweries in Ilesa and Onitsha.

    The Osun-Osogbo Festival is a two-week long programme. It starts with the traditional cleansing of the town called ‘Iwopopo’, which is followed in three days by the lighting of the 500-year-old sixteen-point lamp called ‘Ina Olojumerindinlogun’.

    Chief Elebuibon, who is also a top member, Advisory Committee for the Osun Osogbo Festival, said in the last hundred years, the festival never had sponsors while the little financial support coming from government has not been enough.

    He told The Nation that with the growing popularity of the festival across the globe and the huge number of spectators, visitors, media coverage enjoyed by the festival; it has become a platform for brand promotion and brand awareness optimisation. “We are amazed by the number of sponsors coming to talk to us and it is growing day by day,” he said.

    And just as the festival grows, so may the market share of the sponsors continue to grow, a situation that will continually ignite competition.

     

     

  • What future for women in marketing?

    What future for women in marketing?

    Women are perceived as better managers of resources. Yet, only few are in leadership positions, especially in the marketing communication industry. These few have made their marks in an industry dominated by men. Is there more room for women at the top? This issue, among others, dominated discussions at the first Women In Marketing Conference and Awards (WIMCA) in Lagos. ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI reports.

    THERE is concern over the shrinking number of women in top management in the marketing communication industry.

    There are many at the entry level only a few make it to the top. Marketing communication experts expressed worry over the development at the Women in Marketing Conference and Awards (WIMCA), organised by a  marketing magazine, Brand Communicator, in conjuction with Procter & Gamble (P&G).

    Managing Director of Noah’s Ark Lanre Adisa noted while 80 per cent of those who make purchases are women, there are none in the creative director cadre in advertising agencies.

    Adisa said: “There is a need for a balance which must however be driven by merit not feminine sentiments.”

    Some are worried that to reach the top, many women sell their pride and yet, hardly achieve their aim.

    President of Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), Mr. Kola Oyeyemi said a woman who got an edge because of “her sex and romance with a man who could help influence opportunities for her becomes a slave”.

    Oyeyemi affirmed merit rather than sex appeal to enhance promotion to the higher level in the industry. “Women should always think about merit and not their sex,” he advised. He believes that women are better managers because they have the innate talent to multi-task.

    Despite some of the challenges they face, the chairman on the occasion, Sir Steve Omojafor, believes women will take over the industry soon. Noting that there is no better time than now, he said women are not just pretty, but goal-getters and resourceful.

    “The women have arrived and this is their time. We need your leadership and feminine touch,” he said.

    Omojafor said in the in course of his foray into advertising after quitting journalism, he was inspired by the women he met on the field, especially at Lintas, Nigeria’s first advertising agency.

    Meanwhile, the Managing Director, Biola Alabi Media, Mrs. Biola Alabi, urged women to have a grasp of research and sound education to get to the top in the marketing communication industry.

    Mrs Alabi,a former Mnet boss, said to  make a success of a career in the industry, women must be good in data, understand their environment within and outside the workplace, remain focused, understand that they are unique and always willing to acquire new information. She also advised unemployed women marketers who are willing to acquire experience to explore volunteering as a good way to start.

    She also tasked women to leverage good network, build a support team or personal board of directors. “Women should always build a support team to get to the next level. It should be a support team you trust so that they could guide and support you. She, however, maintained that for the relationship to be fruitful and long lasting, it must be a two-way relationship that is beneficial on both sides. She also believed that women are not telling their stories enough. “Always market the brand and yourself,” she urged.

    Also, the immediate past President of Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Mrs. Bunmi Oke, re-echoed the need to have a support team, said women must be their own challenger by motivating themselves to always want to get and do better.

    With inability of female marketers to identify opportunities, the Managing Director, Goals and Ideas Communications, Mrs. Yinka Ogunde said ability to identify opportunities remains a critical ingredient that could foster career growth in the profession. Drawing inspiration from her career in marketing, she said she had to resign from one of the advertising agencies to set up her own agency which specialises in education marketing.

    Despite discouragement from friends who wondered aloud why she ventured into such niche marketing, Ogunde’s doggedness despite initial challenges gave her an insight into education-marketing field, which has become a success.

    With many marketing women facing family crisis because of job demand, the Associate Director, Brand Operations, Procter and Gamble Nigeria, Mrs. Ehinomen Enekabor, is of the opinion that if female marketers married the right person, their family will support them rather than put pressure on them.

    Meanwhile, the Managing Director, L’Oreal West Africa, Idorenyen Enang, maintained motivation remains key to career growth whether for a man or women in marketing. To protect women from some of the challenges Enang believed legislation would be a right step to have more women in higher cadre. He argued that working with women give room for better transformation within the work place.

    He also noted that women must understand that it is not about employment but what they do with the opportunity given to them. Enang also believed every practitioner must learn to adopt the qualities of an iconic brand, which are authenticity, staying power and consistency.

    The convener of the conference and Publisher of Brand Communicators, Joshua Ajayi, disclosed that he and his team decided to come up with the conference because they noticed that there were fewer female CEOs in the marketing and integrated marketing communication fields.

    He said that when the issue was raised among practitioners, they were asked if they are a feminist organisation. According to him, they were later accused of not even being gender sensitive as fewer women had featured on the cover page of Brand Communicators.

    “Amongst many other things, WIMCA seeks to ignite the potential in women towards attaining enviable heights in marketing and management, create a platform for networking among women in the marketing and communications industry, inspire the entrepreneurial spirit in women towards creating and sustaining enduring marketing and communications industry businesses, as well as providing a mentorship platform for young and prospective professionals,” he said.

    During the conference, some female professionals were given awards. The Outstanding Female Marketing Professional in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (Marketing) Category, went to Mrs. Iquo Ukoh, Executive Director (Marketing Services), Nestle Nigeria Plc. In the Financial Services Category, it was Mrs Folake Ani-Mummuney, Head, Marketing and Communications, FirstBank of Nigeria Limited; in the Telecommunications, (Corporate Communications), Ms. Funmi Onajide General Manager, Corporate Communications, MTN Nigeria, smiled home with it; in the Creative Advertising Category, Mrs. Mowumi Owoduni, Managing Director, STB McCann Lagos, got the award; in the Public Relations Category, Ms Alima Atta, Managing Director, SESEMA PR was awarded while In the Out of Home Advertising Category, it was Managing Director, NAS Advertising, Mrs Ify Onukwuba, that emerged tops.

  • ‘Marketing research is huge’

    ‘Marketing research is huge’

    Marketing Research is key to the success of brands, yet most companies do not consider it important. In this interview with ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI, the Managing Director, Millward Brown Nigeria, Mrs. Ugo Geri Roberts, speaks on branding, marketing research and investments.

    Is Nigeria doing well in marketing research?

    You know, no success is an accident. Nigeria is an evolving economy, and even in European countries where research has evolved, it is always like that. You have to start somewhere. I guess it is the same everywhere. Here in Nigeria as practitioners of research, I don’t think we are where we should be. There are yet several remaining untapped grounds. Right now, we see research as a global terrain, just what global agencies are doing for clients. But remember that just as global clients in other climes started somewhere small, they were not always this big, which is what we are trying to pass across to our middle level organisations, and then to the smaller organisations that look, do not just look at research in terms of what is in it. No! Look at it in a futuristic and strategic way.

    Research is like a small compass that gives you direction when you are out there in the middle of a vast sea; the compass is there directing you so you don’t get lost. We are saying “take another look at research and see it not as when one goes to the market to buy something and get results immediately”. You might not see the result immediately, but you need it if you must stay ahead, if you must stay fresh, if you must stay relevant. As a brand, you need research to tell you where you are at every moment in time we think brands need research.

    How can the government encourage research?

    The truth is the government can’t force anybody to do research. It is not done. Organisations are entities, you can’t force them. But I think what the government can do is to encourage them. Again, we have observed that the terrain is very porous allowing everyone to come in. You see all manner of people jump into Nigeria with their brief cases and want to conduct research. And when they come they do it and run out the same way they came in. And I ask myself why I can’t do the same in South Africa, for example. If I go to South Africa I am not allowed to moderate, there are some things I can’t do. But there is nothing like that on ground to restrict here. Anyone can just come in with their accent. All they do is pick someone on the street, stay by the road side do what they like. So, we need the government to put policies in place. The same principle should apply here to also enable us grow.

    Looking at the Nigerian research market, is it good enough to attract foreign investments?

    Everybody knows me as a passionate Nigerian without apologies. My answer will be yes. You could begin to talk to me about safety issue, about poverty level, but am really not moved by that, because the question I will always ask is, if you talk about poverty level, people will tell you about the 70 per cent living below poverty line in the rural areas, leaving 30 per cent in control of the economy. What is the size of that 30 per cent that is not living below one dollar a day? You will join 10 countries to get that 30 per cent in some regions. You as an investor, why look for reasons, you can’t come when you have a ready made market; just hit the ones that are there. You know the middle class is growing, they will come on board. So, I will tell you yes, Nigeria is a fertile ground for investors.

    Milward Brown Nigeria has just opened a multi-million naira office complex. Isn’t that an indication of confidence in the market?

    Yes, it is. What is about to happen is just not going to be me and the staff we have here, our Sub-Saharan boss will be here; our Africa and Middle East Managing Directors will all be here for the grand opening. That speaks a lot for the event. For them to leave their busy schedule and fly down to Nigeria, I don’t think we should just trivialise it. So, I will say it is going to be big; it is a demonstration of our commitment to the economy. They know that Nigeria is big, it is central to our operation in Africa. You and I know that we are the biggest economy in Africa, so I think that the world is taking us seriously, and Millward Brown is not left out. We are interested in Nigeria and that is very important to us. We want to grow the market and help brands fulfill their dreams; we want to be in the centre of Nigeria’s marketing research projects.

     

  • Women in Marketing Conference, Awards holds on Thursday

    Women in Marketing Conference, Awards holds on Thursday

    Awesome Communications, the publishers of brands and Marketing journal, Brand Communicator will hold the maiden edition of the Women in Marketing Conference and Awards (WIMCA) on Thursday, July 31 in Lagos.
    The theme of the conference scheduled for MUSON Centre, Lagos is ” Inspiring Change in Marketing: Taking the centre stage”.
    Publisher of Brand Communicator, Joshua Ajayi explained that, “WIMCA was born out of the need to identify the challenges holding back female executives from attaining the zenith in their chosen career, and proffering workable solutions to those challenges.”
    ” We also conceived this idea due to a need to recognise and celebrate women who have weathered the storm and have risen through the ranks to attain remarkable heights in the field of marketing, and marketing communications.”
    He added that, “amongst many other things, WIMCA seeks to ignite the potential in women towards attaining enviable heights in marketing and management, create a platform for networking among women in the marketing and communications industry, inspire the entrepreneurial spirit in women towards creating and sustaining enduring marketing and communications industry businesses, and provide a mentorship platform for young and prospective professionals.”
    Guest speakers already confirmed for the conference include, Idonrenyen Enang, The Managing Director, L’Oreal West Africa, and Biola Alabi, Principal Partner, Biola Alabi Media who was Former Managing Director, Mnet Africa, Kola Oyeyemi, (General Manager Consumer Marketing, MTN Nigeria) and Kachi Onubogu, Executive Director, Commercial, PROMASIDOR Nigeria.

    Idorenyen Enang
    Idorenyen Enang

    Others are Yinka Ogunde, Managing Director, Goals and Ideas Communications, Ehinomen Enekabor Associate Director, Brand Operations, Procter and Gamble Nigeria, Lanre Adisa, Managing Director, Noah’s Ark Communications, Ayona Aguelle-Trimnell, Head Corporate Communications, Diamond Bank and Deborah Shepherd, Head Of Marketing, Nokia West Africa who have been confirmed as discussants.

    Enekabor
    Enekabor

    The second part of the event is the awards, which seeks to honour senior female marketing communications professionals across various sectors of the economy. For this inaugural edition, the awards would be spread across the following categories; Financial Sector, Fast Moving Consumer Goods (Marketing), Fast Moving Consumer Goods (Corporate Communications), Telecoms, Creative Advertising, public Relations (Agency business), Out-Of-Home Advertising.
    The Eighth category is a life time achievement award to an individual who has contributed to the founding and sustaining of a key marketing communications enterprise.
    Procter and Gamble Nigeria, makers of Always Sanitary pad, Ariel, Oral-B, Duracell batteries, Pampers, Safeguard are the Platinum sponsors for the event while Bronze sponsors are Dark&Lovely, Nokia and Promasidor.
    Strategic partners for the event include Plural Media, New Crystal Communications, Poster Prints, Heritage point Media, Noah’s Ark Communications, Kiss events, Verdant Zeal Communications, Brooks + Blake, and Streettoolz.

  • ‘Marketing wars among telcos, others healthy’

    The marketing wars that heralded the telecoms industrry when it was liberalised more than a decade ago and the ‘wars’ that took place among big brands such as Bournvita vs Milo, Cowbell vs Peak Milk, Legend stout vs Guinness Stout were healthy for the development of the industry, experts have said.

    A book, Kill or Get Killed, The Marketing Killer Instinct, written by MTN General Manger, Consumer Marketing, Kola Oyeyemi chronicles these ‘wars.’

    According to marketing experts, the book is replete with many case studies of marketers’ wars which shook the consumer landscape. It also showcased the major marketing contentions in the telecoms industry spanning over ten years and involving all the major players including MTN, Glo, Airtel and Etisalat.

    The book presents the exciting behind-the-scene thinking and results of the great price wars occasioned by commoditisation in the industry, how creativity has been used to sustain market leadership consistently and how the networks’ marketing mavens constantly strike hard at the competition’s jugular in the search for new customers or in the effort to keep current customers.

    The case studies are comprehensively treated with major focus on Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and a few markets while the author also provides some critical insights into African markets in general.

    Kill or get Killed (KGK) is regarded as the first serious attempt by an African marketing practitioner to pen real life case studies of the great material, intellectual and nerve-racking battles that characterise the rise and fall of brands in Nigerian and to an extent, the African theatres of war for the consumer’s mind and wallet.

    The book presents some good case studies depicting a multitude of brands fighting for market space and the dynamics that shape success or failure in different African markets. Specifically, is the effort of the author to identify the key differentiating factors affecting or determining mode of operations in the African environment, excluding South Africa and Africa north of the Sahara, which has fundamentally different tendencies in terms of culture, human psychology, climate and history.

  • Marketing tips for small business

    Marketing is essential, if you want to get your business noticed by potential customers. These top tips will help give you some valuable ideas. If you’re just starting your own business, you will hopefully have a marketing plan. If not, then you need to get busy – here are some helpful tips to get you started.

    Business plan + marketing plan

    Even the most simple of enterprises needs a business plan, setting out how your business will operate and grow, importantly defining what you are selling, who to and why. This may all seem startlingly obvious but it is surprising how many seemingly good ideas fall down because of lack of demand or customer engagement. Whatever the business proposition it must be unique or special enough to create customer demand. The basis of any good marketing plan is defining the ‘customer need’ you are targeting with your product or service (and of course the competitive landscape). Do your research, define your target audience, then think about your marketing plan.

    So what’s in it for your customer?

    Make sure you communicate a clear proposition to the customer and keep their needs in mind. Where’s the benefit? What value will this deliver to them? Who else is selling to them and why are we different? Keep content and marketing messages clear and to the point and answer those needs.

    Targeting

    Set down key characteristics of your target audience, demographics are key and will help you determine how best to communicate with them. Gender, age, profession, location, lifestyle are just some of the important factors you need to consider when positioning your product or service. Twitter can be a hugely successful profile raising tool, but only if your target audience are using it.

    Getting started does not necessarily mean big budgets and big websites

    So many people invest heavily in developing expensive websites or big products before they have started engaging with potential customers. Of course, sometimes this is core to your business, if it is a web based company, for example. But as a general rule, start talking to customers as soon as possible. Always manage your costs carefully and minimise your risks, start small if you can to test your business concept and grow in proportion with your customer base and incoming finances.

    Marketing mailings

    Using direct marketing is a great way to launch your business and stay in contact with your target customers. Think about whether your customer would respond well to email, hard copy or a mixture of both. However, keep it targeted and carefully controlled. You will need a direct marketing mailing list and use a specialist company to help you gather the right data for your marketing efforts. This is where your customer research and demographics will prove useful.

    Show me results!

    Marketing results can be difficult to measure but always ensure you use tracking tools in email marketing software and where possible, keep things controlled. Use tools such as Google Analytics to help you monitor visitors to websites and blogs. Don’t embark on expensive advertising or logos unless you really need to. If you do, make sure you research your customer base and product positioning thoroughly before committing.

    Culled from www.smallbizpod.co.uk

  • Marketing tips for small business

    Marketing is essential, if you want to get your business noticed by potential customers. These top tips will help give you some valuable ideas. If you’re just starting your own business, you will hopefully have a marketing plan. If not, then you need to get busy – here are some helpful tips to get you started.

    Business plan + marketing plan

    Even the most simple of enterprises needs a business plan, setting out how your business will operate and grow, importantly defining what you are selling, who to and why. This may all seem startlingly obvious but it is surprising how many seemingly good ideas fall down because of lack of demand or customer engagement. Whatever the business proposition it must be unique or special enough to create customer demand. The basis of any good marketing plan is defining the ‘customer need’ you are targeting with your product or service (and of course the competitive landscape). Do your research, define your target audience, then think about your marketing plan.

    So what’s in it for your customer?

    Make sure you communicate a clear proposition to the customer and keep their needs in mind. Where’s the benefit? What value will this deliver to them? Who else is selling to them and why are we different? Keep content and marketing messages clear and to the point and answer those needs.

    Targeting

    Set down key characteristics of your target audience, demographics are key and will help you determine how best to communicate with them. Gender, age, profession, location, lifestyle are just some of the important factors you need to consider when positioning your product or service. Twitter can be a hugely successful profile raising tool, but only if your target audience are using it.

    Getting started does not necessarily mean big budgets and big websites

    So many people invest heavily in developing expensive websites or big products before they have started engaging with potential customers. Of course, sometimes this is core to your business, if it is a web based company, for example. But as a general rule, start talking to customers as soon as possible. Always manage your costs carefully and minimise your risks, start small if you can to test your business concept and grow in proportion with your customer base and incoming finances.

    Marketing mailings

    Using direct marketing is a great way to launch your business and stay in contact with your target customers. Think about whether your customer would respond well to email, hard copy or a mixture of both. However, keep it targeted and carefully controlled. You will need a direct marketing mailing list and use a specialist company to help you gather the right data for your marketing efforts. This is where your customer research and demographics will prove useful.

    Show me results!

    Marketing results can be difficult to measure but always ensure you use tracking tools in email marketing software and where possible, keep things controlled. Use tools such as Google Analytics to help you monitor visitors to websites and blogs. Don’t embark on expensive advertising or logos unless you really need to. If you do, make sure you research your customer base and product positioning thoroughly before committing.

    Culled from www.smallbizpod.co.uk

  • APCON, NBC to rejig trado-medical marketing communications

    APCON, NBC to rejig trado-medical marketing communications

    The Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria(APCON) and National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) are to restructure trado-medical marketing communications to sanitise their advert space from unwholesome messages in their campaigns.

    APCON made this known during a stakeholders’ forum with trado-medical practitioners.

    Its Chairman, Mr. Lolu Akinwunmi, said the council had been making efforts to address violations of adverts code by trado-medical practitioners.

    With realisation by the government that the two regulating agencies need to do their job well, Akinwunmi said the bodies should be involved in the trado-medics since it launched the new APCON code.

    “The government does not want to stop or completely control the practitioners in terms of advertising, but it is part of the government’s responsibility that the communication being dished out is true, honest and credible,” he affirmed.

    Akinwunmi urged the practitioners to partner with APCON. “We are going to organise seminars so that people who are spoilers of the credibility of the genuine practitioners are not allowed to operate. So we need your support,” he said.

    The Minister of Health, represented by the Director of Traditional Medicine in the ministry, Mr. Moshood Lawal, maintained that new move is in the interest of all, especially the practitioners.

    Also, the Minister of Information, represented by the Director-General, NBC, Mr. Emeka Mba, said there are guidelines for broadcast of trado-medical programmes and maintained that nobody could stop the practitioners from advertising.