by Faheem Chaudhry (@FaheemChaudhry) Growing up, the ‘brain drain’ was a phenomenon often talked about and highlighted in conversations around struggling emerging markets, particularly in South Africa. But the tides have indeed turned, and as the next generation of marketers in Africa, we find ourselves in a rather exciting place.
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Ad of the Week with Oresti Patricios – A Wallet for all Reasons
by Oresti Patricios (@orestaki) For the middle-to-upper classes, who have several accounts, true convenience would be having everything in one place: on their smartphones. The latest ad from MTN, announcing the ‘MTN Wallet’ seems to be aimed at this segment.
Africa Style: It is time for Africa (to do it for itself)
by Masingita Mazibuko. There is a challenge facing Africa. It is time for Africa to not lie passively waiting for the world to descend upon it but rather take proactive steps ensure its distinct qualities are appreciated worldwide.
Let’s talk sustainability: ‘Enough. For All. Forever.’
by Colwyn Elder (@colwynelder) Sustainability is one of those big, hairy, honking subjects that everyone is talking about but no-one really wants to talk about, because let’s face it – we’re all guilty! Especially if you work in advertising, in other words: you’re a cog in the wheel of the over-consumption-machine without which we wouldn’t be having this uncomfortable conversation in the first place.
The Dissident Spin Doctor: In this market the greatest risk is standing still
by Emma King (@EmmainSA) So, hands up who saw the recent demise of HMV, the UKs biggest music retailer, coming?
“It was obvious,” we all scoff.
“We could all see that was going to happen,” we scorn.
“They didn’t move fast enough and they didn’t keep up with the times,” we nod wisely. “And they didn’t diversify quick enough to develop a business model around online purchases.”
But what about Atari, another company that also went bust this year? An old company, but one with a strong brand synonymous with gaming, the new ‘music’. How did they get it so wrong as to become obsolete? What does that mean for the rest of us?
Smartphones surge by 40,9% at Vodacom
Vodacom issued a trading statement yesterday morning that shows smartphones active on the network surging by 40,9% in South Africa in the last quarter, even as local revenue growth remains flat, writes Arthur Goldstuck (@art2gee)..
Smartphones active on the Vodacom network in South Africa surged by 40,9% in the quarter ended 30 June 2012, according to a trading vodacom pontestatement issued by the Group yesterday morning.
Highlights of the Vodacom Group Limited trading statement for the quarter ended 30 June 2012 included:
– Group service revenue growth up 8.7% (5.7%*)
[Netprophet 2011] African ecommerce market has a long way to go
A billion Africans and 50 million bank accounts. In South Africa, credit cards are used by only 16.5% of the population (2008). No African country comes close to 1% of total retail spend spent online – the magic figure which constitutes the tipping point for digital retail growth (in SA, ecommerce has a 0.4% share of the retail market, while in countries such as Egypt and Nigeria, the figure stands at 0.01%). No wonder, then, that the ecommerce market in Africa hasn’t bloomed.
Looking at these numbers, many international ecommerce plays have shifted investment in the African market 5-10 years down the line. But where others fear to tread Oliver Rippel, CEO ecommerce Africa & Middle East at MIH, sees opportunity and first-mover advantage.