Marketing communication experts, in the country, have stressed the need for business owners to come up with unique identity and value proposition through strategic branding, to enable them to survive in the nation’s increasingly-competitive market.
Giving the charge in Lagos recently, during the unveiling of the 50 top corporate brands in Nigeria for 2017, the Chief Executive Officer of Top 50 Brands Nigeria, the organisers of the Award, Mr. Taiwo Oluboyede, noted that with the marketing space getting increasingly competitive and today’s customers more sophisticated, it had become imperative for businesses to aggressively work towards meeting the teeming needs of their customers.
He explained that the idea of the award was informed by the need to propel the Nigeria brand to the next level, by celebrating the various brands that power its economy.
“So, at TOP 50 Brands Nigeria, we evaluate, rate and celebrate top corporate brands that have consistently maintained leadership positions in their categories, living up to their promises. They have been able to master the art of brand building to the point of earning equity.
“Things are changing very quickly in our world today, including consumer’s tastes and preferences, particularly in an open market where there are options. These brands have shown that they understand these changes and are very quickly adapting, with many preempting the changes before they occur,” he stated.
Besides the top 50 brands, a category on 10 Brands to Watch, was also created for brands with huge promises and potential, within a period of time, while expressing delight that the brands that emerged in the category this year were homegrown.
Expressing his delight at the event, a marketing communications expert, Mr Lampe Omoyele, argued that the for any brand to survive in a highly competitive market, there is the need for such brand to get its strategy right.
According to him, previous efforts at re-branding Nigeria failed because the strategy was top-down, and as a result, could not resonate with the average Nigerian which they were meant for the category.