Focusing on the positives of 2020 and COVID-19 is the best way to ride the storm — Lanre Adisa
By Zion Rufus
The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a global crisis like no other, deeply impacting businesses, especially micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the developing world.
Despite the widespread crisis, however, the views of one of Nigeria’s creative leaders, Lanre Adisa, MD/CEO Noah’s Ark Communications, offer a glimmer of good news to industry practitioners.
Speaking at the just concluded Lagos Advertising & Ideas Festival (LAIF), the quintessential adman noted that focusing on the positives of 2020 and COVID-19 is the best way to ride the post-pandemic storm.
According to him, “the things we did with the help of COVID-19 we probably wouldn’t have done it in five years.”
The COVID-19 crisis brought about years of change in the way companies carried out their business operations as notable transformations and technological innovations initially projected for 2025 were fast tracked to 2020. In the same vein, the pandemic also ensured an accelerated rate of digitization and virtualization of businesses, societies, as well as individual lives.
Citing LAIF as an innovative example to further buttress the positives ushered in by the pandemic, Adisa shared: “We now have our own virtual portal and through that portal we were able to conduct the entire LAIF Awards last year; from getting entries done, to watching it fully via the portal; we never could have thought that was possible. And we did that with young Nigerians who championed the entire process and it’s still getting stronger as it also gave us a chance to reach out to all parts of Africa as well as the rest of the world.”
Aptly themed “We Made It”, the 16th edition of the LAIF Awards 2021 addressed the effects of Covid 19, how the industry survived, even as it also celebrated the creative outputs and ideas of creatives across the spectrum including movies, music, art, as well as those that have broken new grounds with their ideas and creativity.
The creative leader submitted: “I would say we had the fortune, not misfortune of being sworn into office just at the beginning of the pandemic. They challenged us and I think we rose to the occasion. We themed this year’s LAIF Awards “We Made It” to note that we made it through 2020, we made it to this point, and more than anything, we are making it tough. More importantly is the fact that our spirit of resilience really came to the fore by reminding us that no matter how hard it is, we keep going.”
This year, the LAIF Awards 2021 saw the emergence of X3M Marketing Ideas Limited as overall winner with 397 points. Dentsu McGarry Bowen Limited came closely at 2nd place with 265 points; Insight Publicis Limited at 3rd position with 210 points; and Noah’s Ark Communications Limited at 4th place with 176 points.
RECOMMENDED ARTICLES
Comment
No comments found.