The Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN) has launched ADVAN-X, an online marketplace designed to transform the country’s marketing sector. This is an attempt to promote future development in the marketing and communications sector and increase industry engagement.
During the inaugural ADVAN Partners’ Innovation Day at GRA, Ikeja, Lagos, accessed by BrandSpur national news stories, where businesses, marketing agencies, and brand support organizations interact and showcase their brands, network, and engage with their consumers, the theme “Connect, Innovate, Elevate” was unveiled.
ADVAN-X connects brands, marketing agencies, media platforms, and service providers in an innovative hybrid environment that combines virtual and physical networking opportunities, said Osamede Uwabanwem, President of ADVAN, during the launch.
He went on to say that the platform offers itself as a vital instrument for cooperation and expansion in the cutthroat marketing ecosystem by encouraging ongoing engagement, adding: “ADVAN-X offers a dynamic hub for brands and service providers to form meaningful connections, access cutting-edge marketing solutions, and drive innovation. Featuring advanced tools such as interactive partner profiles, lead generation forms, and a comprehensive analytics dashboard, ADVAN-X empowers brands to enhance their strategies and create impactful partnerships.”
Continuing, he called the platform: “Transformative space breaking down silos and enabling long-term success across the marketing ecosystem.”
ADVAN-X is positioned to revolutionize the way the marketing sector functions in Nigeria by tackling important issues including disjointed relationships and restricted access to decision-makers.
Akinola Afere, Director of Client Services at Kantar (Insight Division), also spoke during the launch of ADVAN-X. He focused on the necessity for companies to maximize their marketing expenditures in the consumer journey while discussing the blueprint for Brand Growth.
According to him: “In Nigeria, tough times are impacting consumer confidence but there is still growth to be found. This is why brands need to optimize marketing investments in the customer journey, range, distribution, pack, pricing, promotions, and other activity that converts consumer predisposition and captures choices from other brands.”
Citing 33.8%, the headline inflation rate as of October, 52% (28% vs. 2019), consumer confidence (optimism) regarding Nigeria, 3.46% (vs. 319%, 02 vs. 298%, 01), and the economy’s growth rate (as of G3, 2024), he continued by saying that it’s frequently difficult to unlock growth during inflationary times. On February 02, 2024, the GDP contribution of financial institutions increased by 88.7%.
However, regarding brand expansion, he stated: “Brands’ growth is being meaningfully different to more people. Growth accelerates for the winning market to operationalize effectively. To be meaningfully different to more people, consumers should know how meaningfully different your brand is. Identify how to drive stronger functional and emotive connections and define strategic connections and opportunities to build difference.”
Afere listed the following five factors that brand managers and CMOs should take into account to significantly impact more people: “Factor difference into your brand positioning and strategy, Use the meaningful difference to convince the board to invest in the brand, measure and optimise your source and degree of difference, have a holistic view of difference and destructiveness and think strategically.”
Brands should predispose more people, he suggested, stating: “Increase your probability of purchase by strengthening the predisposition everyone has towards your brand. Invest in exposure and experiences to build the right perceptions to make your brand mentally available and meaningfully different to people.
“Optimise marketing investments in customer journey, range, distribution, pack, pricing, promotions and other activity that converts consumer predisposition and captures choices from other brands and find the most incremental spaces (motivations, occasions, categories, services) that you can stretch into. Win in these new spaces through meaningfully with different innovations, expanded distribution, and communications,” he added.
