Innovation in Mobile Technology is Changing How the Game is Played
To become an expert in a dynamic culture-driven world, it is important to understand global trends in technology. Advertising in Tanzania looks different from advertising in the United States because of the technology gap. Upon my arrival to Tanzania, I was struck by how companies advertised their products.
Before discussing the state of advertising in Tanzania, it’s important to understand how technology is used here. Power and electricity are not stable, so computers are fitted with a box to back-up information temporarily when the power shuts off unexpectedly. Power outages happen almost daily for extended periods of time, and it is expensive to have a generator. DSL and Dial-up are usually what is available, but only to a small percentage of people in urban settings, with very few places offering Wi-Fi. Technology, in general, from computers to cars, are poorly maintained, and only fixed when it breaks down. There are no convenient Apple Stores or commercial auto shops. Usually you have to know a guy who knows a guy who is the brother of a guy who specializes in whatever service you need done. Not to mention that technology like computers and cars cost more than the average Tanzanian can afford.
Because technology is unreliable in Tanzania, old fashioned advertising techniques common over half a century ago in the Unites States such as soliciting door to door, radio announcements, and print ads, are how companies get the word out about their products. While I was on a twenty-four hour bus ride from Iringa to Moshi, several people boarded the bus throughout the journey to market their products. They would talk at the top of their lungs to be heard over the roaring bus about lotions and creams for you, your children, your grandmother, and your lion (perhaps not a lion, I could have misinterpreted that one). Surprisingly, there were people on the bus who bought the products being sold.
Going through any town or village in Tanzania, it is impossible to miss the Coca-Cola ads. The company distributes chairs, tables, banners, awnings, stands, and refrigerators with their logo to start-up dukas (shops), and in return, their soda is marketed to the whole village. Even the school where I volunteer uses Coca-Cola banners for sporting events. Mobile phone companies advertise in a similar way. If you pass a bright purple-pink building, you know that it’s sponsored by Zain. If it’s blue, it’s sponsored by Vodacom.
Politicians prefer to market themselves over loud-speakers attached to vans. During election season, these vans drive through towns and villages, competing with one another for the ears of the public.
Although old fashioned advertising techniques are the norm, advertising in Africa is shifting drastically because of mobile technology. With the advent of smart phones and the ability to access the web from mobile phones, companies are starting to capitalize on this technology.
Mobile advertising firm InMobi, together with comScore, commissioned a landmark study entitled “A Global Consumer View of Mobile Advertising,” focusing on Africa. InMobi claims to reach 50 million Africans through nearly three-billion ad impressions monthly. They found that 69% of Africans are very or somewhat comfortable with mobile advertising, which is the highest in world with the US and Europe at only 61%. And it continues to grow. “African consumers have clearly embraced mobile as the primary screen in their lives. Publishers in Africa have a tremendous opportunity to improve the consumer experience by providing local content and grow their business simultaneously,” said Stephen Newton, Vice President and Managing Director, Africa at InMobi (also former head of Google South Africa).
On November 18, 2010, the first ever CIO 100 Awards were held, an event that celebrates innovation in communication and interactive processes by the Chief Information Officers (CIO) in East Africa. Safaricom’s M-Pesa won first place for it’s easy and convenient payment platform for Safricom’s 3 million users. M-Kesho by Equity Bank took M-Pesa a step further by integrating it with its mobile banking services, allowing M-Pesa users to access and use their bank accounts through their mobile phones. Kenyatta University was also recognized for mobile technology innovation by its implementation of smarts cards for students and staff as well as creating a way for students to use their mobile phones to access information about fee balances and exam results.
Joshua Wanyama, who was a judge for the CIO 100 Awards, established his own Kenya-based digital marketing agency, Pamoja Media, after studying architecture in Minnesota. After seeing how the web worked in the United States, he and his business partner, Benin Brow, decided to return to Nairobi, and create an agency to help stimulate the African economy by increasing the value of trading online. However, they realized that the Internet worked differently in Africa than it did in the United States. They changed their business plan to focus on educating corporations, organizations and the government on how to use the web more efficiently, by offering online strategy, creative development, PR, social media, marketing, media buying and placement.
It’s exciting to know that Africa is on the brink of new innovations in marketing and advertising. The question is, will American and European advertising companies capitalize on the advent of mobile marketing and social media in Africa?
Link to PDF version of article with pictures: Africa to Advertising
Wow! That was so beautifully written. It was educational, innovative and pleasing to the eye while reading this article. Sure gives me a new slant on life in Africa–far different than what I previously believed. Thank you.