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| Wife of the Author, Mrs. Oyeyemi, Reviewer/CEO, Marketing Mix, Akin Adeoya, Executive Director, ADVAN, Ediri Orogun, the Author, “Kill or get Killed”, Kolawole Oyeyemi and a guest at the media presentation in Lagos. |
Kola Oyeyemi, consummate marketing practitioner and General
Manager, Consumer Marketing, MTN, has written and published tonnes of
motivational books based on Biblical injunctions, four successful
titles in all, without giving a beep on putting ink to paper on the
subject of his first love and the profession that has brought him fame,
respect and reckoning, marketing.
However, that ‘norm’ until recently was shattered as he was
‘coerced’ into writing a marketing book at the point of preparing for
the fifth in the series of his popular motivational books and finally,
the master marketing strategist, unveils his first marketing book, a
classic titled ‘Kill or Get Killed, The Marketing Killer Instinct’.
Presenting the book to the media in Lagos, Oyeyemi, who has
garnered over 20 years in marketing, sarcastically revealed to media
that the book began as an accident when a friend asked him at the launch
of his fourth book, “When are you going you going to write your
marketing book?”
This question metamorphosed to, ‘when are you going to write the
marketing book you were told to write?’ This challenge became the fire
that ignited Pastor Oyeyemi who has had four successful publications on
career and business motivation to his credit, to break the norm and
write a marketing book.
Explaining the cheeky but awe inspiring title, Kill or get Killed,
aka, KGK, Oyeyemi points out, “the title looks a bit interesting but it
is the reality in marketing – marketing is a warfare, a share-holding
war front where sentiment does not hold, rather you need a killer
instinct to survive”.
“This is the first marketing book of its kind by an African that
would help students, professionals, investors coming into Africa
especially the first timers and entreprenuers”. In breezy, racy and
exciting style, the book tells about brands, their escapades and atimes
failures in their respective markets. It has a continental view across
Africa.
For the author, marketing is a contribution of logic and magic.
Some of the exciting case studies sited in book illustrate different
dimensions of how marketing wars have been fought, won or sometimes
lost. These include: the popular milk war in Nigeria –WonderFood’s
Cowbell vs. WAMCO Friesland Peak Milk; The Stout war in Nigeria – a
deliberate strategy by Nigeria Breweries to eke out a decent share for
its Legend Stout brand against the domineering market leader, Guinness
Stout; The South African Breweries experience in Kenya - initial
failure in Kenya - were considered as part of the practical examples
that gave the book it peculiar character of marketing knowledge on the
go.
In this warfare, the author summarises that brands have to “be
bold or they are blown away”. He capped his story with the Prima
Garnet’s famous launch campaign over two decades ago “We take your
briefs to town”. This book provides the details of these exciting
marketing campaigns and more.
The book reviewer, Akin Adeoya, CEO, Marketing and Publisher,
Marketing & Management, describes the book as a major breakthrough
for marketing and its practice in Nigeria. “It is hands-on, professional
and scholarly”, he emphasises.
Paraphrasing George Thorpe in his forward to the book, the reviewer
claims that some of the things that we do in marketing are just being
followed as traditions without knowing the reasons behind them, what the
writer has been able to do is to tell us the why? behind those actions.
Adeoya, a voracious reader who has read the book twice and never
got tired, submits that the Author is able to problematize issues on
what works and what does not work in marketing in very exciting, easy to
read and knowledge infusing manner through exciting case studies of
brands across critical markets in Africa”.
Mrs Eduaye; Nnadozie Azubuike, a Journalist and Adeoya discussing a point
In his forward to the book, George Thorpe, leading marketing
practitioner, thinker and Managing Consultant, Market Space, lauds
Oyeyemi’s capacity to write in fluid, readable manner, revealing that
the work reads like a novel, however, he alerts, “(It) is serious; some
will find this serious novel useful for developing their verbal
abilities, others for improving their focus and concentration. Still
others will value it for its entertainment value; but all, in
particular, students of, and academics in marketing and management,
professional marketers, and business leaders, will agree it is as yet
the best work on marketing in Africa in general, and Nigeria in
particular, offering an outstanding wealth of learning and experience”.
Mrs. Winnie Eduaye, Executive Director, TP House, Texas, US, the
publishers of the book describes the book as a phenomenon. “This one is
just a phenomenon. This is what all should have. It is an international
book that teaches a whole new dimension and twist to marketing as a
profession”.
The quality of the book is further amplified as it took the
publishers a record time of about two weeks to get the America’s Library
of Congress control number which usually takes an average of 6 weeks to
get a response from the authourity. She acknowledges the book as being
“professorially written and yet with a swag”.
The book, which will be released in hard copy to the Nigerian
market in a matter of weeks, is already available on Amazon, Kindle and
Apple store and Google Play store and online copies can be purchased at
the moment.
Kola, a busy Executive, a Pastor and legacy thinker revealed that
60% of this world-class beater of a book, was achieved in the down time
of busy Lagos traffic, a time most commuters waste away chatting,
groaning or simply moping into the air.
Kola Oyeyemi, the author of the book brings to the table well over 2
decades of core brand marketing experience spanning both multinational
service and manufacturing organizations including Cadbury and MTN. He
cut his teeth in advertising, working with the legendary May Nzeribe of
Sunrise DMB&B, the Nigerian leg of a global ad group.
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