4 Reasons Nigerian Brands Should Hate D'Banj's Oliver Twist competition

'A different kind of MJ and Quincy Jones'

Unless you just hopped off a shuttle that arrived from Mars the chances are high you would have heard someTHING about the D'Banj Oliver Twist competition. You could have heard about some of the ludicrous attempts by 1-day video director and dancers. Or the expertly done attempts by some other competitors complete with edited content that showed a professional touch or two.

So I will go to the point and state the 4 Reasons Brand People Should Hate D'Banj's Oliver Twist Competition:

TURNED EVERYONE ELSE INTO A ME-TOO BRAND
Innovation does have its risks but the rewards of calculated innovation does bear majestic returns.
Now any corporate brand that does any video competition in Nigeria will have to endure the side comments of "Yeah, D'Banj showed 'em how to do it"
Was this calculated innovation? To some extent yes. They had already tested the delicate yet tough nature of social media and fandom with #Enigma another activity they organized with Notjustok.com and seriously hyped via Twitter. With the success of that they decided to move things up a notch while that success was still fresh. Many brands go to sleep after 1 success with social media. Wrong move.


SHOWED THAT CO-CREATIVITY IS NOT TO BE FEARED
Some brand custodians on Agency and Client side still shudder at the thought of allowing their customers any degree of interactivity much less allowing them to co-create a wonderful and memorable experience. Well a memorable experience is what D'Banj, the irrepresible Don Jazyy and the Mohit Crew have created: A warm fuzzy feeling for their brand nicely nestled somewhere in the heart area of anyone who has either watched any of over 400 video submissions  on YouTube or even toyed with the idea of doing their own version!
Co-creativity can be done in a fun but orderly way but we are dealing with human beings so human reactions to a brand should be anticipated (with reaction scenarios available) but not dreaded and blocked out. So, are you one of those brands who do not allow your fans say a word on your Facebook page? Better stay out of Twitter.


SOCIAL MEDIA IDEAS DON'T ALWAYS COST A FORTUNE

What did the guys behind the idea do? Shoot a video in one of the living rooms they occupy. Low budget video shot with the crew wearing homey dressing and having fun. Then off they go to their website. Then the social-mediaratzzi pick up the juicy details 1) D'Banj and co are at it again! Yipee! 2) They do not have too many rules for this fun game! 3) I can become a viral hit because of the Mohits crew! Awesome and still win cool stuff like $2500, Koko Mobile phone and even appear in the official Oliver video!

For the fans it is a win win. For the Mohits crew, super viral buzz pre-launch of the album.

Finally, brand folks should hate D'Banj's new viral video launch tactic because it:
KILLED THE MYTH THAT NIGERIANS ARE NOT WATCHING YOUTUBE
True, broadband is still a myth for large swathes of Nigerian with internet penetration but the quality of internet access has improved over the last 2 years significantly. So more people are watching YouTube but more importantly they are watching via their mobiles quite a lot too and not just via desktop browsers. Just so you know, YouTube is currently in the Top 7 sites most visited by Nigerians in Nigeria. See stats here

I love the sharp not-afraid-to-evolve-guys at Mo'hits Records and believe they can produce the first Nigerian to win a Grammy award. What do you think?


Time to wrap up:

• Let us stop shutting down any idea that asks for co-creation with our customers and prospects. 
• Let us not be afraid to innovate (of course do test runs that make sense within your organization setting but test you must.
• Let us not be afraid to come up with simple Ideas that actually have clear objectives attached to them.

Like Oliver Twist, I do hope you will keep coming back to my blog for more fun posts and analysis.

Dayo Adefila is the COO of HotSauce, a leading digital marketing firm in Nigeria.