Political Marketing... Nigerian Style - Version 1.1

The 2007 general elections is less than 6 hours away, and politicians have been using the last 36 hours to finalise their political campaigns. The battle for votes have not been without the usual accusations and counter-accusations by the various parties, with the Action Congress (AC) and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDPc) leading the pack both in terms of media spend and of course, in the area of mud-slinging.

Using Lagos Sate gubernatorial elections as a case-study, we can say that the AC, the PDP and the nascent Democratic Peoples’ Alliance (DPA) have been leading the pack in terms of share of voice. It is refreshing to note that the Democratic Peoples’ Alliance candidate for the Lagos State governor’s office in the person of Mr. Jimi Agbaje, has been able to make considerable impact via the media in his campaign. This is despite his not being affiliated to any of the major parties and not having access to their attendant political and monetary armouries.

The governorship campaigns in Lagos have been fought using the above-the-line media (radio, television, outdoor and press), new media (the Internet) and Public Relations (media appearances, political debates, endorsements, publicity etc.) and the usual mix of rallies, town hall meetings and what my colleagues in events-marketing in Nigeria call “town storming” techniques. In terms of execution, I think I can state without doubt that Jimi Agbaje of the DPA ran the most integrated, engaging and dirt-free campaign. From his teaser ads on television and outdoor, to his introductory and eventual major campaign ads, Jimi’s campaign dwelt on the facts, without making unfair allusions as to the suitability of his fellow contestants to the exalted seat of governor of Lagos State. While Deputy Governor of Lagos, Femi Pedro (Labour Party) was assaulting our sensibilities by wondering how Agbaje could “promote” himself from running what he called a “mere pharmacy” to the governing the whole of Lagos State (Agbaje is a pharmacist), and Obanikoro (PDP) was busy calling Fashola (Action Congress) and his Lagos State Governor benefactor a drunkard and drug addict respectively, Agbaje simply kept to his original script, and only came out to set the records straight whenever outright lies were being peddled about his person.

However, towards the end of the campaign period, the campaign of the Fresh Democratic Party’s Candidate, Uche Ibukun Ohimai, began to gather steam. It gathered so much steam that at a point, many of the people I quizzed seemed to know more and were more interested about her (yes, she’s female) than they were about the party’ Presidential candidate, Rev. Chris Okotie. Apart from impressing many during the debates organised for candidates by various bodies, Uche also appealed to a large section of Lagosians who desired a radical change in the direction and personnel leading the state. To many of them, Uche’s entrance into and subsequent performance struck a familiar cord within them.

Jimi Agbaje's however recorded many firsts in area of using new media in political campaigning:
He was the first and only Nigerian politician to integrate Bluetooth proximity marketing into his campaign by using MobZap Bluetooth Beamers (www.mobzap.com) to rig out several buses that roam Lagos streets everyday, beaming out clips of Jimi's manifesto and catchy ring tones. see here for details

He was also the first to commission a Web 2.0 social networking political site in Africa, www.jimiagbaje.com, for his political campaign. Inspired by the recent Web 2.0 campaign web sites launched by United States Presidential candidates like Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama, the site allows his supporters to create profiles, network, and create their own campaigns on-line.

Again Agbaje is the first politician to put his advertisments and speeches on Youtube, the globally accessible website that enables users upload, view, and share video clips. Videos can be rated, and the average rating and the number of times a video has been watched are both published.

However, impressive as Agbaje and a few other candidates' campaigns have been, the only litmus test that will measure their success will be if they win the governorship elections. However, there can be only one winner, and time will soon tell which of the over ten candidates will be that winner.