Network affiliations are becoming less and less important – Ufot
By Felicia Nwosu
Udeme Ufot, Chief Executive Officer of SO&U, has expressed concern over the affiliations and partnerships among Nigerian agencies, adding that it is becoming less and less important as clients are more interested in the value offering of an agency rather than its affiliation with foreign partners.
The renowned advertising practitioner made this statement in a close-up interview with MARKETING EDGE while affirming the huge benefits inherent in international partnerships and the rapid evolution of the advertising industry.
He said: “First and foremost, partnering with an international network is about upscaling your capacity it is a window for your staff to be exposed through relationships with members of the network. There is also the other part which is the advantage of getting referrals. You work with an international client, and the business in Nigeria refers to you. Those are some of the advantages. But I think the industry itself is evolving to a level, I am constrained to believe, that those network affiliations are becoming less and less important”.
The SO&U CEO further revealed that across the globe, every client is concerned and only interested in the value addition of an agency to its brands and not its affiliation prowess.
“What clients are interested in is, are they offering me value because many clients today, whether America or Europe, are saying when I arrive in Nigeria, I don’t care Who is affiliated to who, but which agencies are giving the best value in this market and so there is a new trend where there is a loose confederation of agencies working together. It is like a buffet set up, who is going to give me the best in Kenya, South Africa or Nigeria and they go for it”.
‘My friend Udeme is a great man’ a s he is fondly called by admirers, reaffirmed the presence of immense and diverse opportunities among Nigerian brands whose expansion has extended across the continent and challenged agencies to leverage these brands to their advantage.
“I am seeing that going forward that affiliation will work but it is becoming less and less an issue for international marketers. If you look at the Nigerian advertising scene and check many agencies, who the real big spenders are. In Nigeria’s economy, the real big players are more and more of the local brands, Dangote with all its brands is local, Access bank, GT Bank, UBA are all local.
For me now, it is becoming more of a reversed affiliation. Access bank is proudly a target for several African countries, that is an opportunity for a Nigerian agency to now be looking for affiliates in some of these countries and now be running the brand, this is the headquarter of the brand. All these brands are everywhere across the continent. We have the opportunity to take from the inside looking out how we can take advantage of these, they can be the one asking for affiliation not we seeking for affiliates” he added.
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