Experts set agenda on strategic positioning for businesses at MARKETING EDGE Fireside Conversation
By Kasim Bakare
“Strategic Positioning in a Competitive Marketing Environment: Challenges & Opportunities for Media Products in the age of the New Normal” was the theme of discuss as the MARKETING EDGE Fireside Conversation got underway at the National Employers Consultative Association(NECA) building situated on Hakeem Balogun Street , Ikeja, on the 5th of February, 2021.
The conference aptly tagged “Fireside Conversation” was the second in the series to be organized by MARKETING EDGE, a foremost agenda-setting marketing and brand focused magazine. It was the leading publication’s way of building capacity for its workforce especially at a critical time of the new normal that has imposed imperatives on corporate organizations globally. It was an initiative of the company’s management with the objective of further strategizing and radically positioning the publication for its continued market leadership and dominance across the Nigerian brand and marketing journalism sphere.
The conference was facilitated by notable figures from media and the integrated marketing communication industry including Managing Director/CEO, O2 Academy, Ozoemena Mbanefo, Specialised Nutrition Director,FrieslandCampina WAMCO, Dolapo Otegbayi, Group Managing Director/, Republicom group, Tunji Adeyinka, , Managing Director/CEO, Brands Optimal, Otis Ojeikhoa, Executive Director, Media Career development Network(MDCN). Lekan Otufodunrin,Managing Director, m778ng,Lekan Lawal.
Addressing the conference forum of participants which included majorly members of staff and management of the frontline publication, Ozone Mbanefo tutored the audience on corporate culture, emphasizing that the bedrock to maintaining a decent corporate culture lies in observing seven principles which he coined from WRRRAPP(W-Work,R-Relationship,R-Relevance,R-Research,A-Authenticity,P-Personal Development,P-Packaging.
According to him, to be relevant in any given endeavor, players in the business must always think in the direction of what value they can deliver to the development of the organization rather than on what to consume out of the business. He pointed out that they must be passion driven and work like they don’t need money.
He also reiterated the need to be faithful and honest to clients while servicing a robust relationships with clients and co-workers. He noted that what makes a successful person is “who you know and what you know”. He also suggested the need for staff to continually seek personal development in order to enhance organizational development
For Dolapo Otegbayi , the contemporary business environment is competitive and therefore needs more than strategic positioning for any business to survive. The consummate marketer noted that strategic saliency, which is akin to mental availability of brands in the mind of consumers, is key in today’s contemporary business climate. She pointed out that times have changed especially as the new normal continue to evolve with successive generations.
Dolapo noted that there is a need for any business to understand the consumer journey in order to drive an effective reach. She reiterated the need for adequate research and data to drive the whole process. “Data is available but it is the understanding and the mining of the data that is the biggest issue”, she stressed
In his robust contribution, Lekan Lawal noted that what sells in today’s business world is the ability to manage and promote knowledge. He noted that knowledge management is the organic description of what MARKETING EDGE does. He then charged the foremost publication to raise the bar by “cultivating a new generation of followers in order to be relevant in the next fifteen years”. To butter buttress this point, he noted that perception prism of who you are, who you think you are, what people think you are, and who you want to be, is a necessary appraisal tool for organizational growth
In a thought provoking session he titled “Self and Team”, Otis Ojeikhoa went down memory lane to regale the audience with his grass-to-grace story to underscore the need for passion and creativity as a panacea for business and personal success. He reiterated the need for espirit de corps among the team members of the organization to achieve success. He then urged the management to give the staff more responsibilities and latitude in order to boost their confidence and ensure that every member of the team is considered vital to achieving organizational success. To further buttress this, he noted that a big idea that changed the fortune of Kodak, a company he once worked for as a country sales manager, came from a driver.
In his contribution, veteran journalist, Lekan Otufodunrin stressed the need for evidence-based marketing and reporting in today’s knowledge based economy. He noted that there is a need for synergy between marketers and journalists in a media organization. He stated that the era of journalists refusing to ‘leave their comfort zone’ has gone, for as he said,a good reporter needs to be a marketer. He urged the marketers to up their game noting that the era of marketing on sentiments is gone.
He commended the innovation and restructuring at the foremost publication noting that there is a need to have a more robust and aggressive digital policy to drive the marketing objective of the organization. He urged all members of the organization to be exemplary ambassadors of its digital revolution.
For Tunji Adeyinka, the concept of strategic positioning is germane to organizational survival. In his words:”You either position correctly or your business dies”. He noted that it is the space in the mind of the customer that the brand wants to occupy hence the need to have a good positioning to differentiate the brand from other brands. To properly position the brand, he pointed out that there must be “segmentation and targeting” to understand the market. He stressed the need to have a clear, simple and believable positioning strategy.
After the conference, some of the participants appreciated the management for organizing such an impactful programme. Speaking on behalf of members of staff, Deputy General Marketing(Marketing),Ogechi Odigbo, thanked the publisher/CEO, Mr. John Ajayi for availing the staff with such opportunity of capacity building at a critical time like this. She described the Fireside Conversation as timely and beneficial.
In his closing remarks, the Pulisher/CEO,MARKETING EDGE publications,Ltd,John Ajayi, expressed his appreciation to the facilitators and panelists for their selfless service and for willing to share their wealth of knowledge and experience with his staff. He advised the participants to ensure they put what they have learnt into good use.
Indeed, the conference was a good opportunity for MARKETING EDGE to get feedback from its clients, advertisers, competitors and readers on how the leading publication has delivered on its promise of promoting the brand idea in the last eighteen years. It can only get better as participants were energized, re-tooled to face the challenges of the new normal.
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