Marketers urges members to embrace innovation, capacity

The thirty seven members of the Experiential Marketers Association of Nigeria (EXMAN), have been tasked to see innovation, capacity development and solidarity among one another as the key factors to grow the industry in the coming years.

Speaking recently at the inaugural EXMAN awards, as his tenure expired as the association’s president, Dr. Rotimi Olaniyan said, innovation, capacity development and solidarity among members of the Association will aid the speedy growth that is anticipated by the industry players and practitioners.

According to him, “Innovation is key and we must build on it to distinguish ourselves from illegal practitioners,” adding that “knowledge is important and that comes through training and retraining of personnel as it will be witnessed tonight.”

The immediate past president then advised members to maintain a united front to end the clients’ unnecessary bickering among agencies.
Olaniyan said, “There is need for us to understand that as agency practitioners, we should show solidarity to one another.” Before now, he stated, “clients used to knock the heads of agencies and fundamentally have reduced the game to commodity pricing.”

He said,“We must not allow that to continue, because the Mackenzie of this world will not lift a finger until a fee has been agreed. They don’t operate on the basis of commodity pricing, they operate on the basis of the fact that they are good and they should pay for it.”

At the event, the new exco members were sworn-in and they are Kehinde Salami of Ideas House, as President; Tolu Medebem, of Event Plus, as Vice President; Angela Makinwa of Melvic Gold, as General Secretary; Owolabi Mustapha of Maxx Connection as Financial Secretary; and Gil Kimani of EXP as Public Relations Officer.

However, out of a five executive members of the previous exco only Salami returned, while Olaniyan, Oladunjoye Wole, Kayode Idowu and Oshinibosi Abiodun did not.

The new President, Salami, in his maiden address, said it was a new order that called for new strategic ideas and execution proficiency in running efficient experiential agencies. He hopes to put in structures that would among others: enhance professionalism, earn for the practitioners respect of the clients and work toward harmonizing interest rates which have put the practitioners’ businesses in jeopardy.

Similarly, the Mr. Parkes who has been in the industry for upwards of 2 decades, advised younger generations to increase their professional depth and create value of their clients.

The entries were judged by five distinguished practitioners, including; Idorenyen Enang (former Commercial Director at Cadbury Nigeria Plc, Managing Director at L’Oreal Central West Africa & Samsung Electronics West Africa and also past-president, Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), who is the lead judge), Mrs. Bimbo Alabi, (ADVAN’s 2nd Vice President), Steve Babaeko (CEO, X3M Ideas); Sam Osunsoko (Managing Director Leo Burnett Lagos); and Mr. Ikechukwu Obiaya (Dean School of Media and Communications, Pan African University).