MIPAN canvasses consumer centrism, predicts positive outlook in 2025

Despite current downturn in the nation’s economy, President of the Media Independent Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MIPAN), Dozie Okaf, has expressed optimism of a brighter 2025.

Fielding questions from The Guardian at the MIPAN 2025 Business Outlook Session held in Lagos, recently, he said the economic climate would be tough.

To Okafor, “we must focus on consumer needs and pain points, diversification and strategic partnerships, efficient business operations and strict cost management. We anticipate a tough economic climate with high cost of business, declining consumer spending and reduced investment by clients. However, we believe that with the right level of agility and adaptation, we can delivery sufficient value to our clients and even create new revenue streams.”

He recalled there is sufficient historical evidence to show that many companies have delivered disproportionate growth during economic downtimes.

Citing the COVID-19 era, he observed that platforms such as Zoom delivered robust growth for companies that read the signs and were ready to ride the wave.

In his presentation, Strategy Leader for West Africa at Safrik Investment Group, Vincent Nwani, who spoke on, “Navigating the cost of doing business in Nigeria: Value delivery in a tough economic climate,” suggested marketing communications professionals and business owners must listen to their teams, especially, those who are excited about new ideas; deepen digitisation; outsourcing, that is using business representation services, and consultants; embracing research and intelligence.

Saying business leaders must keep searching and exploring intermittent wins amid lingering business environment constraints, he also suggested collaborations, partnerships, creativity and innovation.

Businesses, he advised, might explore assessment of their cost profiles, as well as the elements within their supply and distribution chains, to achieve a streamlined structure and sustain efficient value delivery to customers.

This evaluation, he noted, “opens the possibility of outsourcing or establishing partnerships with third-party entities. Through such strategic considerations, businesses could maintain operational efficiency for continued value delivery.”

Concerning innovation, he explained this involves introducing new products or significantly enhancing existing products to make them appealing to customers for continued patronage.

He cited, ‘sachetisation’ – an innovative measure where smaller-sized packs are produced to make the product affordable to consumers. He said, “this approach ensures the continued appeal and accessibility of the product to a broader customer base, which therefore, increases volumes and effectively lowers fixed cost over time.”

Concerning his expectations after the outlook, Okafor declared, “my expectation is for participants to acquire the skills and knowledge needed to not only thrive during tough economic downtime but scale their business exponentially by properly reading the signals and crafting business strategies that are in tune with current realities.”