In this interview with Publisher/Chief Executive
Officer, of Marketing Edge magazine, John
Ajayi offers critical assessment and review of the integrated marketing
communications sector in the last few months in the face of the current
economic recession, the imperatives for a stakeholders national marketing
summit to offer fresh insight on how marketing services providers can mitigate
the current hardship while exploring newer opportunities in the emerging market
What is
your assessment of the integrated marketing communications industry vis-à-vis
the current economy situation in the country?
As we
are graduating into the end of the second quarter of the year, the industry is
just picking up in terms of marketing activities. Some advertisers are about to
start their financial year. The budget has just been approved. I am aware that
some outdoor companies are getting renewals. We will begin to see new campaigns
in the coming days and months. I am pretty sure that there would be a beehive
of activities soon. We are entering a period of heavy marketing activities. We
shall be witnessing festive seasons that would herald sales and serious brand
and marketing efforts. So, in a nutshell, we expect an improvement in the
marketing spend. Definitely, it is going to create a lot of works for marketing
services providers. We have had a lot of pitches in the first quarter of the
year and some decisions had already been taken. We have witnessed accounts
movements and realignment of accounts at both local and global levels and on
the agencies and client sides. We have seen heavy advertisers’ account
movements from companies which I would not like to mention. Of course, we are
going to see more. These companies did all of these with a view to achieving a
new strategic direction for their brands.
Brand owners certainly want to create a more impactful routes to the
market. That is the new reality. So, it is a new season that we are likely
going to see new budgets being put into effect. Obviously, it is going to be a
beehive of activities for the brand owners and new business winners in the
service arm altogether.
What
lies ahead for marketing communication industry?
Of
course, when you look at the Lekki-Epe free trade zone alone, it is amazing to
discover that a lot of greater economic opportunities are waiting to explode
and unravel on the nation. The quantum and multiple opportunities that would
naturally surge and emerge from the billon dollar investments in that axis
alone is unprecedented in the annals of business investment in the West Africa
and Sub-Sahara Africa region over the years. We may not really know what lies
ahead for now as the scenario is still unfolding. But this is the time for
marketing services professionals to go into serious intellectual retreat and
self entrepreneurial renewal to be able to appreciate the enormity of
opportunities and work ahead and cease the bull by the horns. They need to be
immersed in the new philosophy of business resurgence that is going to unravel.
They have a lot of work to do. Marketing services providers should begin to
challenge themselves on how to maximize the unfolding opportunities in
different sectors. A lot of people are now going into farming and other areas
which had hitherto been left untapped in the country long before now. The
question for stakeholders is: are there opportunities for marketing services providers
in the restructured and recovering economy? In that area alone, we are talking
about Dangote multi-billion dollar initiative that will blossom into
unquantifiable and unprecedented opportunities. It is morning yet on national
economic front. Again the question is: what is going to be the ripple effect of
this on existing and other businesses and how are we preparing to tap into
these legion opportunities? That is question that should begin to agitate their
minds.
What informed the idea behind the forthcoming
MARKETING EDGE national marketing summit?
I think
the national marketing summit being organized by MARKETING EDGE is geared towards initiating and
activating conversation on contemporary industry issues. It is a summit where
you see the meeting of minds cutting across integrated marketing communications
industry. We want to use the opportunity to initiate discussion that can
further promote and develop the industry. This year’s theme is even more apt
because of the socio-economic trajectory of Nigeria as a nation. We felt that
the last one and half years for the Nigerian nation has been very critical and
challenging. While government has come in with the idea of restructuring the
economy because there is a disruption in the international price of crude oil
especially for an economy that has been hitherto monolithic i.e oil dependent,
I think the readiness and sincerity of the present administration to find
solutions through diversification cannot but be appreciated. Of course, there
was a shock in almost all sectors when the oil price plummeted at the global
market. This shock however affected all other sectors of the economy causing a
lot of reverberations. The reverberation created a lot of disruption in the
economic system at micro and macro levels. That is why most industry operators
were caught napping. The manufacturers found it difficult to source for foreign
exchange in order to import raw materials. Because of this scarcity, a lot of
factories were shut down, some foreign companies closed down. This however
necessitated the need for Nigeria to look inward. When these shops were closing
down and could not meet production capacity, and factories were operating under
capacity, the national economy became illiquid. The resultant effect of this is
the change in the fortunes of marketing services providers as the general
economic situation took serious tolls on marketing communications industry.
Most agencies witnessed a lull. Even some agencies that were on retainership
were sacked as brand owners started cutting down on budgets as a panicky
measure. So, the industry has come to a crossroad to the point that it does not
know where it is headed. That is why we have to assemble very knowledgeable
industry intellectuals to come and give new and fresh perspectives on how to
mitigate the prevailing challenges.
There
is no disputing the fact that Nigeria remains a foreign investors’ destination
of choice. If you take a look at enquiries being made about Nigerian
investments opportunities, it is quite amazing. This is because there are quite
a lot of potentials in the market. How do you educate the marketing service
providers, marketing practitioners to begin to fit into the new development,
the unfolding emerging markets if you don’t provide such platform. There is a
new paradigm shift on the Nigerian economic plane. The shift, which has come to
focus through restructuring, diversification and recovery, calls for urgent
attention and concern. That is what informed this idea and that is why we have
chosen the topic; Brand Marketing
and Marketing Management in A Recovering and Restructured Nigeria Economy;
Challenges and Implications for marketing
services providers. Of course, to do justice to this all important
discourse is a guru of very reputable pedigree, Mr Ekwunife Okoli, former
marketing director of Guinness Nigeria, and also former Managing Director
Guinness Cameroon and currently, Founder /CEO, Advertange Consult who will be
the Guest Speaker while the keynote speaker is the Minister of communication,
Barrister Adebayo Shittu. With Adebayo’s presence at the event, he will be
providing some gaps, missing links on how the service providers can begin to
take advantage of the Federal Government efforts in trying to create more
enabling environment with the development of ICT and digital technology.
The
minister is particularly excited because the theme for this year’s, summit
which he said will be addressing what is critical to the present
administration. We have some discussants that will do justice to the topics and
these include the former marketing director of Nestle, Mrs. Iquo Ikoh, The
marketing director of Coca Cola, Mrs.Patricia Jemibewon, Managing director of
Media Fuse, Denstu Aegis, Emeka Okeke, Group Head, Marketing and corporate communications,
First Bank, Mrs.Folake Ani-Mumuney and Managing director, DDB Lagos, Ikechi
Odigbo. These people will be providing insights to the lead speaker’s
discussion. The occasion will be chaired by no less a marketing guru himself,
Mr.George Thorpe.
How
best can brand owners leverage on this unique opportunity which you are
providing to improve their businesses?
Like I
said earlier, brand owners, marketing, advertising and marketing communication
industry operators are in a critical cross road. It is a critical historical
conjuncture for marketing and advertising players because the sudden fall in
the crude oil price brought about unforeseen crash in the nation’s treasury and
the resultant recession we are witnessing. But we have to commend the present
administration for rising to the occasion by insisting that the economy needs
to be diversified. With such great step, it has helped to promote interest in
other sectors of the economy. As we speak, people are now thinking of tapping
opportunities in the area of agro-business. Few months earlier, we saw
partnership agreement between Lagos and Kebbi state coming to fruition. This
appears to be the new thinking. Now, who says brand owners and agencies cannot
approach both parties to make a brand from the result of such relationship
which is Lake Rice.
Can’t
brand owners begin to look at how they can promote indigenous brands? Why is it
difficult for agency practitioners to think of how to build those brands into
iconic status? These are the opportunities. It is a wake up time for all of us.
Of course, the multinational brands will continue to invest to grow .But I
think it is high time we grow indigenous brands to become global brands. So,
the summit will provide the platform to get pot-pourri
of views on the challenges and implications of the new realities in the
industry.
All is set to award personalities in the
integrated marketing communication industry for outstanding performance at the
2017 MARKETING EDGE Brands & Advertising Excellence Awards as renowned
advertising practitioners, Bunmi Oke, Chief Operating Officer and Executive
Director, 141Wordwide and Tunji Olugbodi, Executive Vice Chairman of Verdant
Zeal Group, have clinched this year’s Marketing Personality of the Decade
awards while former Managing Director of Guinness Cameroon, Ekwunife Okoli will
be conferred with Lifetime Marketing Achievement Award.
Other categories and winners are Telecoms
Brand Leadership Award- MTN, Outstanding Customer-Centric Telecoms Brand of the
Year – Airtel, Innovative Telecom Brand of the Year- Etisalat, Outstanding
Dairy Brand of the Year- Peak Milk, Outstanding Brand Re-Launch of the Year -
Union Bank, Outstanding Cola Brand of the Decade- Coca- Cola and Media
Advertising Personality of the Year- Emeka Okeke.
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