• Friday, March 29, 2024
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ViacomCBS Networks Africa: Goodbyes, Lessons And The Future

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A few weeks ago I wrapped up my final campaign for ViacomCBS Networks Africa. It was a moment of “mixed-feelings”.

Viacom is the account where I cut my teeth in PR Consultancy, so naturally, it’s very dear to me, in the same way that one never forgets a first kiss, a first million or the numerous other firsts one hits on the journey through life.

But beyond being my official first, VCN Africa has and will always have my heart for a number of other reasons; reasons which even though I’ve always acknowledged, were all the more glaring to me as I sat in front of my laptop shortly after we sent out what would be our final comms for the company which houses entertainment brands like MTV Base, BET, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central among several others.

The beginning

ViacomCBS Networks Africa’s relationship with BHM Group began a little over a decade ago – in 2009 precisely. I was still an undergraduate in Abia State University trying to figure out what exactly I wanted to do with my life and never even dreaming that I would end up in Public Relations. Legend has it that they were the first corporate client to take a chance on the agency, way before it became the industry powerhouse it is now.

When I was assigned the ViacomCBS account in 2019, I didn’t know what to expect. I had only done client service for a couple of months, and even then it wasn’t a PR client. So this was a little daunting, and even more so because ViacomCBS was a legacy account for BHM. An over 10 years partnership is a feat in an industry where the average lifespan for client-agency relationships is just about three years. You don’t want to fuck something like this up when it’s finally your turn to drive the boat. So yeah, it was daunting.

But I was excited all the same. I had known MTV for as long as I could remember and had followed the historic launch of MTV Base in Africa in 2005 when it premiered with ‘African Queen’ and cemented 2Face’s status as a legend forever and ever. The impact that ViacomCBS via its flagship brand has had on the music industry in Africa is one for the books. From giving home-grown artistes the opportunity to perform on global stages alongside some of the biggest names in the world to revolutionizing music videos on the continent and staging what’s arguably the most prestigious music awards show in Africa. Getting a chance to be associated with an agency that has been very instrumental to its journey on the continent and even more importantly, taking a front seat in communicating its impact to the world is definitely something to be excited about.

Lessons

Going through the hundreds of emails we exchanged over the course of our time together, I couldn’t help admitting that as client-agency relationships go, ours with ViacomCBS was as good as it gets. And as client-agency relationships go, ours wasn’t without the occasional disagreements or misunderstandings, but there wasn’t a time when it felt like a “we vs them” situation.

Partnership was a recurring theme in our relationship with VCN Africa. I once read somewhere that one of the secrets to a successful agency-client relationship is working together as partners as opposed to viewing the agency as merely a service provider. The guys at ViacomCBS understood this and did their utmost best to demonstrate that they did, even when they didn’t necessarily have to. A recent example is the Africa Day Benefit Concert – Imagine how delighted Timi (my colleague) and I were seeing our names in the end credits along with the internal comms team’s as Idris Elba wrapped up the show which was watched by almost a million people across the world. We had worked very hard on the campaign alright but we’ve become so used to being on the “backend” that the idea of having our names on the screen never crossed our minds.

Another important lesson I learnt while working on this account is that one doesn’t have to be stiff or be any less humane because it’s “work”. Professional doesn’t mean cold. (Side-note: This is perhaps why I have a problem with a lot of what we refer to as email speak.“Greetings” (*side-eyes my colleagues*), “trust this finds you well” – no one actually says these things in real life!) With ViacomCBS, there was a humaneness that shone through in the big things just as much as it did in the little things; in the collective high-fives in our WhatsApp group when anyone scores a major win on a campaign, in the Senior Marketing Manager, Don Okpako encouraging me to take breaks, in Peter Pearse-Elosia making sure I got to my accommodation safely on our trip to Abuja for MTV Base’s fifteenth anniversary, in Adetola Adekoya seeing to it that we’re fed on our Thursday visits to the Base HQ in Parkview, in Ayomide Disu randomly offering me biscuits on our first meeting. It was just always there, this humaneness. And it is perhaps my biggest takeaway from working with them.

2020 and more lessons
2020 was an unusual year, no thanks to COVID. For the first time in four years, Nickfest which has grown to become VCN Africa’s biggest physical event in Nigeria wasn’t going to be held. The MAMAs was still AWOL. Most of the events that presented PR with the opportunity to shine in the past were either not happening or going virtual. Budgets were being slashed, understandably. And as a result, there were campaigns we had to work on with next to zero budget.

A very significant change and reshuffling also happened in ViacomCBS Networks Africa. Alex Okosi who was responsible for launching the company in Africa and had helmed its affairs for 15 years took a bow at the beginning of the year and joined YouTube. Alex was BHM’s guy. But even more so, he was the media and the people’s guy. Everyone loved Alex. Journalists loved to write about him. He was simply that guy, and whoever was coming after him had some pretty huge shoes to fill.

But surprisingly, we had a pretty good run with the account in 2020, irrespective of the ‘unprecedentedness’ of the year. From hitting about a million views on YouTube and securing coverage in both local and international media for the Africa Day Benefit Concert, to delivering hundreds of key mentions for the BET Awards and Burna Boy’s subsequent win, and all the projects in between, what would have ordinarily been a bleh year turned out to be a very good year.

And while a great part of the success of the past year – our last with ViacomCBS – could be attributed to the dexterity of the teams on both sides, we owe a greater part of it to our media partners who came through for us more times than I can possibly count; Chuks Nwanne of The Guardian went above and beyond every time I called to pitch a story, and was always kind enough to fill me on tidbits about ViacomCBS from scenes before I joined the account; Ameyaw Debrah who I emailed for the first time ever from out of the blues to ask for his support on Africa Day Benefit Concert, Vanessa Obioha of ThisDay, Rotimi Ige of Tribune, Anthony Nlebem, Nonye Ben-Nwankwo and so many others were all just a phone call away and always willing to help even when it was so very last minute. As a PR professional, you’re often told that your greatest strength is your relationships. This past year went a long way in demonstrating the truth in that to me. At a time when we didn’t have a lot of big budgets for campaigns, relationships saved the day.

The end of an era
I’m very thankful to have gotten the chance to serve and experience ViacomCBS in all its awesomeness; for Communications Director, Fathima Beckmann; Donatus Okpako, and the rest of the team who have set the standard for me on what a client-agency relationship should look like. For the ogas (Monde Twala, Craig Patterson, Bada Akintunde-Johnson, Solafunmi Oyeneye) who I didn’t necessarily interface with but who were gracious on the few occasions our paths crossed; the ones before them, Alison Reid, Ifeoma Williams, Colette Otusheso who I didn’t meet but played no small role in cementing the Viacom-BHM relationship.

This goodbye, it’s very much like breaking up with a lover who you have the utmost respect and love for, and even though it hurts because you’ve made the most beautiful memories with them, you just know, without a doubt, that it is the right thing to do – for the both of you.

And I can’t possibly wrap this up without giving a shout-out to the amazing people I worked with on this account – Timilehin Adebiyi (who was my partner from the get-go), Oyinda Olaniyan and Samuel Ipinyomi who joined us much later but still contributed immensely to the work we did for VCN Africa; my boss, Femi Falodun, who was always available to steer us back on track when we sometimes veered off course; Nike Fagbule, Anita Aiyudu-Adesiyan, Lolade Sorunke, Ose Agenmomen, Adeoluwa Atayero, Joan Omionawole, and all the other amazing guys who worked on the account before we came on board. And to all the media partners who have helped us tell the Viacom story over the years – Nseobong Okon-Ekong, Nonye Ben-Nwankwo, Mutiat Alli, Tosin Ajibade, Victor Akande, Ayo Onikoyi, Rotimi Akindele and Lorenzo Menakaya. Cheers, to the end of an era!

The future

Consumer entertainment has changed remarkably, and Viacom is right in the thick of it. As the company continues its foray into the streaming universe with Paramount+, Pluto TV and Showtime, I’m looking forward to what it would mean for the business in Africa. In a continent of over 1.3 billion people where more and more people are getting access to the internet with each passing day, the possibilities are endless. It’s estimated that subscriptions in Africa will rise up to 13 million by 2025. And other global giants are taking note and are swooping in to get their share of the market. Netflix has been unabashedly investing in the African market over the past couple of years. MultiChoice-owned Showmax continues to woo subscribers with its unique combination of on-demand video streaming and live TV programming. YouTube has also been putting their money where their mouth is by empowering African content creators and staking a claim on the market in the process. French media giant, Canal+ recently acquired IROKO’s production company, ROK Studios in a bid to reach a larger network of African consumers. It would do ViacomCBS a whole world of good to not relegate the continent to the last frontier as they fully activate their streaming takeover. They saved our music industry the first time. I think they can play an even bigger role now, with the opportunity music, fashion and film provide.

And I’ll be cheering from the front row!

Njideka Akabogu is a Lead PR & Comms Adviser at ID Africa (BHM Group).