Creativity, relationship building hallmarks of advertising – SO&U boss

 

L-R: Mr Gbenga Aborowa, News Anchor, Mr Ray Atelly, President, NBCC and Mr Udeme Ufot, CEO, SO and U at the NBCC Sharing Experience Series on Thursday in Lagos

Lagos - Mr Udeme Ufot, the Chief Executive Officer, SO&U, says creativity, passion and the right relationship networks are critical components for a successful advertising delivery.

Ufot said this on Thursday in Lagos at the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) Sharing Experience Series with the theme: “The Power of Story Telling in Marketing.”

He noted that advertising work focuses on building relationships between brands and consumers.

Ufot stressed that players in the sector must be able to cultivate meaningful relationships between themselves and their clients.

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He added that the power of story telling no matter the length particularly in the African terrain was critical to driving a good advertising pitch.

“Creativity is innate, as you see opportunity for creativity in every situation. Growing up, I was such a nuisance as I would turn a seemingly situation into a joke.

“Nothing is more powerful than the human mind particularly in this technologically advanced times that we are in now.

“Artificial Intelligence (AI) would try to deliver but AI cannot feel the way a human would. It can only do a lot to impact pace of delivery but the real power of creativity is the imagination of human mind,” he said.

Ufot charged upcoming businesses to understand and harness the three quotients (intelligence, emotional and social) to thrive in the industry.

“The first step is to immerse yourself with the knowledge of the product, who the consumer is, what they want and would expect from the product you are trying to market and find out how the brand is different from other competing brand.

“To succeed in life, you just be a good relationship builder as almost every client and friend you get is on the platform of networking and so must have the skill to cultivate and maintain relationships.

“You must have a clear vision and direction of what you want to have in life. Very early in life, I knew what I wanted which was to be famous, have fun and make a fortune.

“What I have done through training when it comes to professional practice is to understand discipline and work with a process to be consistent in my delivery.

“What you must do is to set an agenda for yourself and do quality rigour thinking and sweat it out,” he said.

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Ufot urged Nigerians to positively create impressions that would project the right brand for the country in the global space.

He said citizens must not focus on the negatives alone to further deepen the wrong impressions the world has of the country.

Mr Ray Atelly, the President, NBCC, said the NBCC Sharing Experience Series was a platform for accomplished leaders in the Organised Private Sector to share their experiences in areas of entrepreneurship fueled by passion, audacity, and innovation.

Atelly described storytelling as one of the oldest, yet most powerful communication tools we have as humans.

“Well-told stories regarding a brand appear to have the potential to influence consumers’ brand experience, which consists of all the sensations, feelings, and behavioural responses evoked by brand-related stimuli that are part of brand’s design and identity.

“At its core, storytelling marketing is about defining your values; what does your brand stand for? For example, Apple stands for innovation and user experience, not necessarily computers and phones.

“Therefore, if you want to succeed in today’s competitive marketing world, you have to be a great storyteller,” he said.

The event was sponsored by the British American Tobacco, Guinness Nigeria Plc, X3M Ideas and Coca-Cola. 

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