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Tag: Outdoor

  • LASAA begins clampdown on outdoor advertising debtors

    LASAA begins clampdown on outdoor advertising debtors

    The management of the Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA) has started a clampdown on debtor agencies, its Managing Director, Mobolaji Sanusi, has said.

    This followed the directive of Governor Akinwumi Ambode, to ministries and agencies to begin the enforcement on defaulters and debtors.

    Sanusi said: “We have just finished our strategy session to know how best to enforce those on our debtors’ list.

    “We are scaling up our compliance and enforcement to ensure that outstanding dues to the agency are paid up before the end of the year. For clarity, we have categorised our enforcement teams into billboards, business signs and mobile advertising vehicles.

    “For billboards, we are going after all the defaulters who have refused to pay up their yearly permit fees.

    “In line with our collection model, all billboard owners are subjected to a payment plan every year. We have discovered that 60 per cent of the categories that are supposed to have paid up their outstanding to the agency are still in default.”

    Sanusi said corporate businesses would also feel the enforcement.

    He said: “Some big corporate organisations are still in default for their business premises signs and the branding on their official vehicles. We will ensure they are all captured for enforcement.”

    The managing director stressed the need for businesses to always ensure tax compliance at all times rather than wait for government agencies to carry out enforcement.

    Sanusi said: “The revenue we collect forms a reasonable fraction of what His Excellency (the governor) needs to provide his super structure infrastructural demands of our dear state; hence, the need for those owing the state, not only in the realm of outdoor advertising but also in other spheres of public commitment to our government. After all, our administration has been delivering and meeting public expectations in this regard.”

    The agency chief said LASAA remained committed to the growth of the outdoor advertising industry as well as the aesthetic of the commercial city of Lagos.

    He urged stakeholders in the industry to join hands with the agency to develop the industry’s professionalism and prompt payment of rates.

    Also, LASAA recently launched its 2018 mobile advert sticker for branded vehicles in Lagos.

    It urged branded vehicles captured as fleet to register for a permit with the agency.

    The agency has also warned its clients to desist from patronising middle men and do business directly with its offices in the local government areas.

  • Legal challenges of outdoor advertising

    Legal challenges of outdoor advertising

    It is indeed with excitement that I take advantage of this privilege to share with you certain issues that are of serious concern to members of the Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria, (OAAN).We really cherish this opportunity as it will enable us share some of the burden of our practice in our industry with this gathering with the expectation that this platform would be able to proffer solutions to some of the issues.

     

    Outdoor Advertising

    Association of Nigeria

     

    Brief introduction

    The Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria is a body of all firms that have been duly licensed to engage in the practice of Outdoor Advertising (or out-of- Home Media – asit is popularly known) by the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON). APCON as you all know is a creation of law, as it was established by Act No. 55 of 1988, as amended by Act No. 93 of 1992 and Act No. 116 of 1993 and is charged with the primary responsibilities of:

    • • Determining who are qualified advertising practitioners;
    • Setting the standard of knowledge and skills required of such practitioners;
    • Compiling, maintaining, and keeping the register of practitioners;
    • Regulating and controlling the practice of advertising in Nigeria;
    • Conducting qualifying examinations in the profession;
    • • Performing all such other functions as are incidental or conducive to the aboveresponsibilities or any of them.

    Where these responsibilities affect the practice of outdoor advertising, the Council has vested such powers in the Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria (OAAN).

    Thus OAAN has been duly recognised in law to regulate and control the practice of Outdoor Advertising in Nigeria.It is therefore reasonable to conclude that the Outdoor Advertising Media industry is an important sub-sector of the economy as it is a major employer; and the members pay substantial part of their income as taxes to all the tiers of government. It is also reasonable to conclude that this very important sector of our economy should be given all the necessary assistance and encouragement to flourish.The reality however is that operators,especially members of my Association, are groaning under the burden of practice, most of which are unnecessary yokes placed on us by the powers that be.

    It is a well-known fact that the place of outdoor advertising to the success of all forms of marketing communications efforts cannot beover emphasised. As a matter of fact, its influence has continued to be on the increase.This is largely because of the dynamic nature of the platform .It is one that can always easily adapt to prevailing trends. It has consistently been influenced by and has benefited tremendously from prevailing technological advancements. Furthermore, outdoor advertising has also helped to light up and beautify our environment.It makes the skyline of our cities more beautiful.

    Above all, outdoor advertising is the most viewer- friendly platform when compared with other media platforms.It is the only platform from which the viewers get valuable information at no cost to them.

    As a group of highly responsible professionals, our association is committed to the highest ethical standards. We are also committed to making the practicebetter and to accommodate the desires and expectations of the advertisers to the extent that we continue to help  in the actualization of their visual communications objectives – there by further elevating their high level exposure in the market place. We are also committed to making our environment a great beneficiary of the beauty of outdoor advertising.

    There are within this gathering ladies and gentlemen that can attest to it that we are investing more than ever before in the business, and in the environment.

     

    Some of the challenges

     

    I am mindful of the fact that this opportunity you have given me may not allow me to present and discuss all the nagging issues in details, I crave your indulgence, however, to present and briefly discuss some of them here.

    Prominent among the industry’s headache arethe twin yokes of unrestricted government regulations and multiple taxations. Lack of appropriate and inadequate infrastructure (electricity) and influx of illegal operators are also issues that are of serious concern to us and a potential threat to the survival of the sector.

    There is also the issue of huge indebtedness, especially by the clients.Permit me distinguish ladies and gentlemen to briefly discuss some of this issues.

     

    Unrestricted govt regulation

     

    It is a common knowledge that a section of the laws of the land recognises the local government for the purposes of controlling and deriving revenue from Outdoor Advertising, by way of permit fees. Lately, however, a number of states have hijacked such powers from the local governments and have now warehoused, so to speak, the powers in a new creation (perhaps not known to the laws of the land) called Signage and Advertisement Agencies. In the Federal Capital Territory, it is known as the Department of Outdoor Advertisement and Signage, DOAS.

    And there is the issue of federal highwayshere both the respective states and the Department of Federal Highways have separate controls that the Outdoor operators have to cope with. There is so much Confusion; so much headache.

     

    Multiple Taxation

     

    Closely related to the issue of multi – level regulation is that of multiple taxation. Each level of government now arbitrarily fixes rates on the basis of which are largely – unknown. As it is, most states have identified Outdoor Advertising as a surer source of revenue after oil and gas.The effect of this on our business is that it has grossly discouraged our clients, who ultimately pick the bills from patronising us. Unfortunately they have other alternatives that they go to, to the detriment of our sector. The multipliers effect is the loss of business to us; the loss of employment to our staff; and the loss of lives in some cases.

     

    Lack of Appropriate

    infrastructure

     

    The dynamic nature of our media platform demands the availability of the relevant infrastructure, especially unhindered supply of power. It is a well-known fact even at this gathering that this has not been the experience in a long while now. Thus, it has become fashionable for operators to invest in alternative sources of energy.This has also added to the cost of doing the business.

     

    Influx of Illegal operators

     

    The relevant laws, especially the APCON Acts, forbid anyone who has not been approved and licensed by that body to practice advertising in any aspect for gain in the country. And for a firm to practice Outdoor Advertising, it must have been duly registered as a member of OAAN, or must have obtained the APCON’s license to practice without being a member of the Association. The experience however is that a number of individuals and firms are operating in the industry and they are neither legally registered by APCON to do so; nor are they registered with OAAN.

    This has been made possible by the Signage and Advertisement Agencies who allows anyone with the financial means to practice in their states, even when such violates the laws of the land.

     

    We need your help

     

    The list of our challenges is endless. But we, sincerely, believe the problems are not insurmountable. And that is why we are delighted at this opportunity to make this presentation. Our expectation is that you will help with the interpretation of the relevant laws and, beyond that, assist us in communicating it to the right places that the laws must be obeyed and respected and that illegal structures created by government (aka Signage Agencies ) should be dismantled anddouble taxation stopped forthwith. We do, honestly, think that the signage and advertisement agencies are an aberration, and unknown to the laws of the land. They are illegal structures that must be dismantled. But we need you to help us in this regards.

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Outdoor Advertising practitioners for top US varsity

    T0 give Outdoor Advertising  Marketing Communications, members of the Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria (OAAN) have mapped out for training, starting with a forthcoming Executive Education workshop in the United States.

    Focusing on the theme of “The Art and Science of Outdoor Advertising in the Age of Digital Media”, the five-day Training Event will hold from April 12 to 17, at the Department of Communication, North Dakota State University (NDSU), with Resource Persons drawn from other American Universities and the field of American Professional Outdoor Advertising Practitioners.

    North Dakota State University is ranked among the top two percent of American public and private universities.

    The curriculum for the training, which was drawn up by OAAN members and NDSU Advertising Professors, shows that participants will be exposed to topics that include business aspects and return on investments in outdoor advertising, managing the creative Process, working with governments and public institutions.

    Other include: Innovations in outdoor advertising practice, media relations for outdoor agencies, and leadership paradigms for outdoor agencies.

    The Professor/Chair of NDSU’s Department of Communication Dr. Mark Meister, said his team was excited about the opportunity to collaborate with OAAN in co-hosting this special training, which demonstrates the university’s commitment to serving its publics, locally and internationally.

    He added that since Communication Coursework started at NDSU in 1907, making it one of the pioneers in providing university-level education in communication, the emphasis has always been on leveraging Professional practices with high quality academic instruction.

    OAAN President Mr. Charles Chijide, expressed optimism that the forthcoming training would be  beneficial to its members and their clients in Marketing Communications.

    In recognition of the collaboration in the sector, Chijide has extended invitations to OAAN’s peer associations in advertising, marketing and media to encourage them the proposed training.

  • LASAA unveils outdoor magazine

    LASAA unveils outdoor magazine

    he Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA) has unveiled Outdoorable magazine, its trade publication.

    The magazine is designed to provide information on the agency’s initiatives and happenings in the Outdoor Advertising sector.

    Its Managing Director George Noah said: “The goal of Outdoorable is to provide a platform for accessing information about LASAA and on the latest trends in the outdoor advertising industry, new initiatives and campaigns breaking forth, ideas and institutional development, fundamentals of outdoor advertising practice as well as promote a ‘one corporate culture’ in the industry.”

    The glossy publication will be published bi-annually. Noah explained that Outdoorable “will fully represent the Nigerian outdoor advertising industry while reaching a mass audience and readership that cuts across the borders of Nigeria and extends to the rest of Africa and beyond”.

  • ‘Our plans for outdoor advertising in Cross River’

    ‘Our plans for outdoor advertising in Cross River’

    Many old billboards dot the streets of Calabar, the Cross River State capital. The government is determined to turn them into money spinners through tourism branding, writes ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

    The Cross River State Government is eyeing outdoor advertising and signage to boost its economy.

    It plans to adopt the Lagos State Signage and Advertising Agency (LASAA) model to attract stakeholders to partner with it in tourism branding.

    Officials of the Cross River State Signage and Advertisement Agency (CRSSA) have been to Lagos to rub minds with their LASAA counterparts in the matter.

    CRSSA Director-General Godwin Iyala said the agency has learnt few things from the Lagos experiment.

    He spoke in Lagos when he visited LASAA Managing Director Mr George Noah after an outdoor advertising conference organised by the agency.

    He said: “We have seen a lot of innovations here; we have seen collaborations; we have seen good ideas that we would like to bring into fruition in Cross River State. Above all, we are going to synergise with other stakeholders to ensure that we have a uniform landscape environment for outdoors and create an enabling environment for operators, investors and regulators to have a win-win situation.”

    He said he was banking on tourism branding to attract investors.

    Iyala said: “The face of outdoor advertising in Cross River is changing to synchronise with the tourism drive that we have. Don’t forget that Calabar, especially is noted for its cleanliness and we can’t but use outdoor to enhance the beauty of the environment, not just Calabar, but the entire state.

    “Don’t forget that we also have the biggest street party in Africa called the Carnival, which attracts over 800,000 visitors every year, and we have gradually transforming from a civil service state to an industrial and tourism hub.”

    With its many vacant billboards in Calabar, the state capital, Cross River which is regarded as “The Peoples Paradise”. It is also one of the fastest growing states in the country, with an improved investment climate and a rich historical and cultural heritage.

    Iyala pledged to change the face of outdoor by rallying the state’s tourism touch points to rub off on the “vacant billboard” markers and drive more brands to put their posters.

    “Since our arrival, we have put quite a lot of things in place. We are gradually eliminating the obsolete signage and billboards and we are gradually replacing them with LED displays; we are gradually replacing them with modern gantries; we are gradually replacing them with modern drapes and other forms of modern displays advertisement like portraits,” he said.

    According to him, the opportunity for small scale businesses, especially outdoor, is growing and the state is busy confronting the challenges. “The beauty of it all is that we arrive at the time the glut came in, and we are regulating from day one,” he said.

    Iyala said regulating the outdoor business is not all about generating revenue. “We regulate to add beauty to the environment, and then we regulate to generate revenue as well. Those are things you can’t do without generating revenue. Sometimes you generate revenue and use it to create environment to enable the outdoor to thrive,” he said.

    On CRSSA’s participation at the LASAA conference, Iyalla said: “We have heard from the regulators and operators on what needs to be done and what have been done rightly or wrongly, and how we need to improve on it. We have seen quite a lot of innovation here, and when we go back to our state, we are going to implement them to move the outdoor regulations and practice forward.”

    Noah said though the industry has potential, the challenge of empirical data has continued to make advertisers think low about the business unlike other platforms of advertisement, such as television.

    He, however, admitted that despite challenges, the sector has witnessed huge transformation in the last decade following regulatory intervention.

    Noah said the sector accounts for over N50 billion turnovers while the state with a population of 22 million accounts for 60 per cent of Nigeria’s total advertising market.

    This, he said, was insignificant when what accrues to other sectors is considered since the cost of doing business is almost shrinking.

    Noah said outdoor media buying agencies generate about N8.6 billion, fabricators, rake in N1.5 billion; installers, N382 billion; and large format printers, N8.27 billion. Also, outdoor specialist agencies generate N21.9 billion, outdoor protection services, N370 million; adverts, N1.25 billion and others, N8 billion.

  • A push for growth in outdoor advertising

    A push for growth in outdoor advertising

    With huge challenges confronting the growth of outdoor advertising business in Africa, the Lagos State outdoor advertising sector is pushing for growth through strategic partnership with countries in Africa to foster growth, write Adedeji Ademigbuji and Adeyinka Aderibigbe.

    The outdoor advertising business in Africa may overcome some of its challenges if the solutions proferred at the African Outdoor Advertising Conference and Exhibition are adhered to.

    The conference gave media buyers, creative agencies, outdoor advertising practitioners, the government, as well as foreign investors in Out-Of-the-Home (OOH) advertising business, the opportunity to reveal some of the challenges that confront the business and hamper growth of the industry.

    During the gathering in Lagos, which is home to about 60 per cent of Nigeria’s advertising business, the Managing Director, Lagos State Signage and Advertising Agency (LASAA), George Noah, said though the industry has a healthy potential for growth, the challenges hampering the industry, such as lack of empirical data, amongst others, have continued to make advertisers price the business low unlike other platforms of advertisement, such as TV.

    Noah, who said he is often worried about the untoward effect of this on the advert businesses, noted that in packaging the event, the agency aimed at deepening the sector’s capacity to respond to the global trends, meet the demands from clients in order to leverage on the network of information, tools and systems that such a forum could put at operators’ disposal.

    Although Noah admitted some of the prolonged challenges, the sector has witnessed huge transformation in the last decade as a result of the regulatory intervention from LAASA which he believe has enshrined sanity in the outdoor advertisements sector in Lagos in particular. He said one of the wars the agency had to fight was with those who deface the face of Lagos with posters.

    With no data on eyeball traffic hitting the advertisements, he said LAASA is checking indiscriminate pasting of so that advertisers will no longer cut down advert spend for outdoor business. As a result of that, he noted that the agency has carved out zones where posters could be pasted all year round.

    With determination to reposition for global competitiveness, Noah said the Lagos outdoor advertisement sector has recorded significant success in terms of revenue. According to him, despite the challenges, the sector accounts for over N50 billion turnovers while Lagos State with a population of 22 million accounts for 60 per cent of Nigeria’s total advertising market though he said this insignificant when what accrues to other sectoral growth within the sector is considered as cost of doing business is almost shrinking the OOH business.

    Noah said outdoor media buying agencies generate about N8.6 billion, fabricators, rake in N1.5 billion; installers, N382 billion; large format printers, N8.27 billion. Also, outdoor specialist agencies generate N21.9 billion, outdoor protection services, N370 million; adverts N1.25 billion, while other areas account for N8 billion. He pointed at the huge employment opportunities of the sector, which employs over 100,000 people in Lagos alone.

    With about 100,000 signs and 800 outdoor structures in Lagos, Noah also said the industry’s growth potential have been hindered by some of these challenges which also includes loss of market share to television, radio and social media marketing.

    Also, the Chairman, Outdoor Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (OAAN) Mr. Charles Chijide challenged the government to open the space for all stakeholders to operate. He said the changes in road architecture, lifestyles, business practices, policy directions and inadequacy of power are chief among the debilitating challenges facing operators.

    Chijide,who is also the President of the African body of Out-of-Home operators said the cost of fuelling two giant generators that often powers any display site is colossal, a situation which is not helped by the lack of access to capital or loans from the banking sector.

    He listed other challenges facing stakeholders to include multiple taxation, the menace of area boys and street urchins’, lack of data and lack of certificates of occupancy (Cs of O) on most of the sites being used for businesses.

    Speaking on the challenges and prospects of out of the home Advertisement in Africa, Chijide said though these challenges seems local to Nigeria, they exist in relative measures and are common to all members of the association in the continent.

    He said the platform which started in Nigeria in 1956, has evolved over the decades to digital, and his corporate members has moved from two when it began to 158. He said all stakeholders especially the government must give the necessary support to the sector realising that out of the home practitioners are changing life, changing the economy and changing the face of business in the country.

    He noted that one of the ways government could support the sector is to ensure the stability of power supply, and the issuance of temporary certificates of occupancy for members sites to enable them use this to procure facility from the bank.

    The Director of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Akeem Adeniji, who represented the Commissioner Mrs Olusola Oworu, tasked outdoor practitioners to key into the Lagos State Development Plan (LSDP) which has four parts: Economic development; infrastructural development, social and security development and sustainable environment.

    He challenged all operators having issues with the state government to make use of the right channel in making the government aware of the gray areas they wanted addressed. He recalled that the Babatunde Fashola administration last year began the Lagos Corporate Assembly, an assembly of all business operators in the state, where issues hindering their profitability in business could be addressed.

    However, Governor Mr Babatunde Fashola challenged the operators to think out of the box in repositioning the sector and make out of the home advertisement sector a vibrant platform.

    Fashola, who was represented by the Commissioner for the Environment Mr. Olatunji Bello, said issues such as the lack of empirical data to support media buying into the platform and even power could be mutually resolved if operators decided to look inward and reapply themselves to resolving the peculiar challenges to their businesses.

    “When there is no data to support advertisement buying,” he said, “the buyer is at sea and loss of market share to other viable options becomes the alternative.

    Also, the Managing Director, Insight Communications Mr. Jimi Awosika, likened a poor outdoor advertisement to an actor with a minor role (waka pass) in the thespian world said in a world of “democratised noise,” only an advert with a telling presence, creatively conceived and delivered would be remembered in the crowd.

    He canvassed more synergy between the advertisers, the advertising agency and the outdoor practitioners in such a way that the messages meant to be communicated had desired impact in the market.

    A resource person, Mr. Jerry Coasters of Out of Home Africa, while speaking on the challenges of OOH, re-affirmed that despite the challenges impeding the businesses, Nigeria remains an investment destination for investors.

    The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Leteef Ibirogba, challenged operators to rededicate themselves to professionalism, adding that the government’s desire to regulate the industry is borne out of the desire to ensure that marketing communication messages are better packaged and uniquely presented. “Government will always play the regulatory role because it is the way to go in sustaining business anywhere. If this business must continue and be profitable, it must be professionally packaged. If we all come together, we will get better for it,” Ibirogba said.

    The Director-General, Oyo State Signage and Advertisement Agency (OYSSAA), Mr. Yinka Adebodun, praised the Lagos State for blazing the trail in outdoor signage and advertisement industry.

    Over 200 exhibitors from Europe, Asia, America and Africa converged at the Eko Hotel expo hall to display their products as the Africa Signage and Outdoor Conference and Exhibition.

  • Govt, outdoor advertising practitioners, meet

    Following a visit by Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola to its new office complex, the Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA), has hosted members of the outdoor advertising industry.

    The meeting, which was held under the leadership of the agency’s Managing Director, Mr. George Kayode Noah, was aimed at addressing some of the issues affecting the business in the state.

    Key on their agenda was the rate review for all outdoor advertisement structures. The billboards within military formations, discounts on vacant billboards, tightening the regulation on mobile advertisement as well as potential outdoor advertising opportunities within the new concession corridor, were also discussed.

    Noah said LASAA would explore all avenues to ensure that billboards within military formations are properly regulated, adding: “We have reduced our rates to the lowest at the moment. I believe writing letters to you is the only responsible way to ask you to pay all outstanding dues to the agency.”

    He also cleared the air on use of billboards, saying: “LASAA billboards are used as a vehicle for social communication to support and propagate the various programmes and projects of the state government.”

    On their part, stakeholders at the meeting sought continuous understanding from the agency regarding outstanding payments by defaulting members.

    The Managing Director of 21st Limited, Mr Femi Ogala, who sought more protection from LASAA, praised it and urged it to constantly organise such sessions to resolve some of the issues affecting the industry.

  • Outdoor adverts, indoor jobs

    Outdoor adverts, indoor jobs

    Be it billboard, transit advert, poster or arena placement, they are all aimed at one thing: conveying messages to the public.There is an upside to them; they have the potential for job creation, AKINOLA AJIBADE writes.

     

    JOB seekers need not lose hope; though times may be hard, they are rest assured of jobs in outdoor advertising, if they are pushful enough.

    An area, with lots of prospects is billboard designing and planting. Regarded as the fulcrum of outdoor advertising, billboard designing and planting come with innovations which help to create jobs for structural engineers and their auxiliaries.

    Structural engineers are tasked with the responsibilities of mapping out the sites where billboards will be sited. They employ certain category of workers to carry out the job. Over the years, they have played crucial roles in the outdoor advertising business and are respected for this.

    From the manual and cumbersome method to electronic and imposing billboard advertising, structural engineers have been creating jobs for people in the formal and informal sector. The former includes fine artists, graphic artists, printers of large format posters, and computer programmers, while the latter are bricklayers, welders, and painters, among others.

    More jobs are becoming available, as companies including banks go into creative advertising to promote their brands.

    With the recent restructuring and reforms in outdoor advertising also known as the out-of-home advertising medium, we can say that better days await job seekers as states now embrace the new generation billboards.

    The states, which have established agencies to regulate activities in outdoor advertising, are as follows: Lagos State Signage Advertising Agency (LASSA), Osun State Signage Advertising Agency (OSAAA) and Oyo State Signage AdvertisingAgency (OYSAA).

    Others are Rivers, Ekiti, Edo, Ondo, Enugu, Delta and Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

    While these states are generating revenue by approving and collecting commission on every billboard erected in their domain, they have helped in providing job opportunities for people.

    Experts said the stakes are high for job seekers, given that companies are committing fortunes to it. They said billions of naira are being spent on outdoor advertising which has a multiplier effects in the economy.

     

    The big players

    Media Reach, in a report, said MTN spent over $4 million on product advertising in 2011, followed by Globacom, Etisalat and Airtel, which altogether spent $12.518 million out of $22.750 million budgeted for advertising. The telecos were believed to have spent huge amount of money on outdoor advertising because their products would enjoy better exposure. This could be attributed to the flow of human traffic that would view the adverts since they are strategically positioned.

    Besides, manufacturers of Fast Moving Consumers Goods (FMCG), such as Nigerian Breweries Plc, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Nestle Nigeria Plc, Unilever Nigeria Plc among others budgeted millions of naira for outdoor advertising last year. Industry sources said the development has increaed the capacity of the outdoor advertitising companies, by enabling them to employ more hands for their operations. The sources said each outdoor agency has on the avearge employed between 100 to 200 workers( direct and indirect) in the past three months.

    Speaking on the issue, the Managing Director, Rules Engineering Concept, Engineer Charles Duru said immense opportunities awaits for people who are ready to develop their potentials in the outdoor segment of the industry. The firm specialises in providing outdoor and allied for companies.

    Duru said the outdoor business is not only broad, but provide different avenues for people to showcase their skills when opportunity arises. He said various professionals are recruited to play one or role or the other in the area of conceptualising advertising ideas, planning and designing it to ensure maximum exposure for the clients and the consumers.

    According to him, roles are inter-dependent in the course of providing outdoor advertising services, which implies that many people would be engaged as the volume of jobs increases.

    He said: “It is only structural engineers that were employed to work in the process of providing outdoor services. There are many professionals that helped in production activities. One of these is architects, which help in the designing of billboards as well. Thereafter, architects pass their own designs to structural engineers who make ensure that the billboards stand structurally on the land. This implies that more jobs are going to be made available as outdoor activities increased.”

    Similarly, the former General Manager, Tequila Nigeria Limited, Mr Gbolahan Mosaku-Johnson said newspapers, radio and television advertising have over shadowed outdoor advertising for years, arguing that there is a renewed interest in outdoor advertising by telecom among other blue-chip companies that can spend a fortune in producing good copies. Tequila is an integrated marketing communication outfit providing services such as brands developments, promotion among several others.

    Mosaku-Johnson said many people would be employed either on contract or full-time basis to help in producing outdoor advertising services because some companies are ready to pay a lot of money for such services.

    “This is high time graphic artists, among other skilled personnel must prepare themselves for big opportunities in the outdoor advertising industry. It is projected that outdoor advertising will get more attractions in the next five to 10 years because states government are showing keen interest in the field by setting up agencies for such needs. Now that we have thousands of billboards in strategic places across the country, there would be more opportunities for the job seekers.” he said.

    He projected that at least 5,000 jobs would be created directly or indirectly in a year in each of the 36 states of the federation when the outdoor advertising begins fully.

    “Now mobile outdoor advertising which ensures that bigger buses and taxis are used to promote products/services of companies is on the increase in the country.These advertisements are produced periodically, depending on what the clients pay for. This shows that graphic artists and large format printers would be made to provide more services in the industry. Also, drivers, among other auxiliary staff would be employed for the job. Besides, the workers needed to produce billboards. With this, a lot of job opportunities would be open for the skilled and the unskilled workers in the country,” he added.

    In a related development, Publisher Brands and Fame, Mr Akinwumi Dickson said there are job prospects in the outdoor advertising sphere as companies are showing more interests in it. Dickson said quite a number of outddoor ad companies have increased their operational capital to meet the growing chanllenges in the industry. He said companies now have enough money to execute big projects, as well as employing highly qualified personnel to drive the growth of their companies.

    He said the more the advertisers are spending money on electronic and mobile outdoor advertising, the better for people that would provide services in the industry.

    He advised people to develop their creative skills to meet the growing needs of the industry, adding that the industry is positioning itself to be one of the best in Africa.

    He said: “The industry’s turnover is estimated to be billions of naira. This is a plus for the practitioners, consumers and the workers that would be employ in different segments of the industry. I think the outdoor advertising has better prospects, and this imply that there would be more jobs to do as the year rolls by.”

    He added: “As more as companies direct their outdoor agencies to use more unipoles, rooftops of 48 or 96 sheets, gantries, bridge panels, iconic structures for billboards, there exists job opportunities for structural engineers, electricians, artisans, and even security guards. The prospects of securing jobs are going to be higher, when the economy improves.”