Nigeria’s advertising crisis is the erosion of value – Abiola

By Felicia Nwosu

Nigeria’s advertising industry may not be suffering primarily from a shortage of talent or a weak economy. According to Adekoyejo Abiola, Chief Executive Officer of Imaginarium Marketing Communications and Vice President of the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria, AAAN, the deeper problem is the steady erosion of the value attached to ideas.

Speaking on the Industry Conversation segment of MARKETING EDGE ONTV, Abiola argued that the industry continues to undervalue the very asset that drives its existence: intellectual and creative thinking. He explained that agencies increasingly sell their most valuable asset, ideas, at the price of their least valuable asset, time.

For him, free pitches, heavily negotiated strategy fees and payment periods stretching to 90 or even 180 days have weakened the economics of advertising and made it increasingly difficult for agencies to sustain the three ingredients that produce outstanding work: talent, craft and time to think. “When we sell our most valuable assets, the idea, at the price of our least valuable asset, the hours, these things will happen.”

Abiola maintained that the consequences extend beyond agency profitability. When agencies struggle to fund talent, creative craft and adequate thinking time, he said, work that should be exceptional can end up being merely adequate.

ALSO WATCH:MARKETING EDGE ONTV HOSTS ANTHONY ONYEMAUWA

He therefore called for a fundamental shift in how clients and agencies value strategic and creative contributions, insisting that an idea capable of moving a business should be compensated according to the value it creates rather than the number of hours spent producing it.

As the conversation closed, Abiola maintained that Nigeria already possesses the creative ability required to compete internationally. The priority now, he said, is to build the structures, economics and professional systems capable of carrying that creativity into global spaces consistently. “Nigerian creativity is world class. I think we just need to now build the structure that helps us walk into the room.”

On the growing emphasis on performance marketing and immediate returns, Abiola acknowledged why marketers increasingly favour measurable results, particularly in a difficult economy.

ALSO WATCH:MARKETING EDGE ONTV HOSTS GEORGE ISITUA-ONUKWU

However, he warned that excessive concentration on short term sales could weaken brands over time. He described short term activation as “a loan against the brand”, arguing that businesses may generate immediate sales without building the memory and meaning required for sustainable brand growth.

He explained that when companies repeatedly pursue sales without strengthening the brand, future customer acquisition can become increasingly expensive.

Rather than choosing between brand building and activation, he advocated a balanced approach in which activation generates immediate business while brand investment builds long term strength.

For him, strong brands can eventually make activation more efficient because brand strength itself becomes a valuable and cost effective marketing asset.