By Laju Iren

If there is one area of expertise that technology has revolutionized, it is in the area of advertising. With five billion people with access to mobile phones, a mobile device remains the easiest way to connect with people.

This is why Airtel Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Segun Ogunsanya, has called on advertising practitioners to pay close attention to digital advertising if they are to ensure maximum returns from advertising spend. Ogunsanya who said this at the 2016 ADVAN Awards for marketing excellence held at the weekend in Lagos, noted that with the ubiquitous nature of mobile devices, digital advertising is the future of advertising.

He noted that Millennials are looking at many different screens for advertising. They are now concentrating on digital media, and advertising has to move to the digital space.

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya (2nd right); Chief Technical Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Awadesh Kalia (left); Director, Corporate Communications & CSR, Airtel, Emeka Oparah (2nd left) and Managing Director, CMC Connect Burson Marsteller, Mr. Yomi Badejo-Okusanya at the launch of Airtel Touching Lives Season Three held in Lagos on Thursday

We, the clients, can no longer rely on strategies counting on users to just watch our messages on TV or listen on radio anymore. Nor can we be so sure that consumers will watch a prime time show at prime time, or in their homes, or out of work hours, he said.

While speaking on what brands should do differently, the Airtel CEO urged advertising practitioners to ensure that engagement with targeted audience is personal and relevant just as he noted that brands must always adopt a two way communication (conversation) with their target audience so as to get feedback.

He also recommended that organisations must measure and evaluate their advertising campaigns in order to test the effectiveness, saying that this will aid the direction of future advertising campaigns.

The event, which held on Saturday, October 29, 2016 at The Muson Centre, Lagos, was a night to celebrate brands that have done extremely well in the field of advertising.

At the awards, Airtel’s Smart Connect 2.0 campaign was the co-first runner-up in the Campaign of the year category, an award they jointly won with Grand Oak Limited, makers of Lord’s Dry Gin.

The President, Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), David Okeme, who declared the event open, highlighted the importance of advertising to individuals and the economy.

Okeme noted that Advertising unlocks economic activities, thus boosting a country’s GDP.

ADVAN – Advertisers’ Association of Nigeria – is the umbrella association for all advertisers (Corporate organisations that engage in major advertising) in Nigeria.

It was established in 1992 as National Advertisers’ Association of Nigeria and in 1994 was renamed Advertisers’ Association of Nigeria (ADVAN). ADVAN provides an organised forum for advertisers to express their views and influence developmental changes in Nigerian marketing communications scene.