Marketing around the world is becoming dynamic. Clients are daily exploring avenues to reach their target audience. Internet as a channel of marketing is complementing the role of traditional media by clients who are determined to reach their consumers at all cost. According to analysts, the synergies between the online and traditional media advertising in the marketing mix can make a significant impact in the effectiveness of an overall advertising campaign. Such impact could only be achieved if the advertisers really understand the strategy and techniques of online marketing.
In an attempt therefore to deepen Nigerian advertisers’ understanding of online’s ability to build their brands, Google and a digital marketing firm, Wild Fusion last week organised a forum entitled “Growing your brand using Google” for brand managers, marketing professionals and advertising agencies. Abasiama Idaresit, managing director, Wild Fusion, who said Google was the largest search engine in the world, emphasised that Nigerian companies could tap into the opportunity the platform provides. The event also featured presentations by Google representatives who provided insights into its online consumer engagement and branding opportunities.
According to him, the idea of the forum is to excite the market and get people to be aware of the opportunities that exist in Google as far as advertising is concerned. The operations manager of Wild Fusion Ken Okolo in a chat with BusinessDay buttressed the point, saying that “any marketer reckons with the strong force of traditional media but we want to show advertisers another opportunity.” Okolo explained that it was not just joining the bandwagon because at the end people would really be disappointed, but there is added value for brands and business through marketing in the internet.
“I must mention the area of measurement; clients will be able to measure what is happening to their advertisement. Clients will be able to measure how many people saw their adverts in terms of traffic. Companies will be able to identify the areas where those who saw the advert reside.” Assessing the level of internet advertisement in Nigeria, he noted it was catching on “as where we are now is different from where we were a year ago. More companies are appreciating the value and advantages, not in terms of trend but ROI. A lot more people still need to understand the advantage as internet it is still evolving so as to maximise all the opportunity.”
With the challenge of creating catchy copies and images in the internet advertising, he agreed that, “it is a key thing with advertising, as advertisers need to separate themselves from the crowd. We assist clients create works that are outstanding. People need to engage with adverts.” Also speaking at the forum, the Google commercial relations manager for Africa, Victor Munyua, stated that “the organisation helps marketers to provide insights, ideas, implement and the impact on internet advertising.” On insights, he said “it entails where in the internet to advertise. Ideas contain who to target and what to offer while impact means tracking the ROI.” Sometimes, clients have some objectives that could include building brand awareness, gain followership, or increase sales. The objectives should be identified from the beginning so that it could be easily measured.