Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE) this week hosted the finalists of the BLAZE BYOB TV show as part of a partnership with Safaricom. The meetup included an interactive session with the attendance of two of the three judges of the show; Trushar Keita and King Kaka, the winner of the first season of the show, Valentine Nekesa and finalists Safe Joe and David Kimani.
The interactive session sought to unpack what it takes to build a strong brand and also gain practical tips on what it takes to leverage the shift on buying behavior in contemporary times. It also included a discussion on the power of digital in this day and age and how today’s internet era consumer has more power than ever to interact with brands via different digital channels.
Some of the key pointers in the discussion were:
Change is inevitable
In a time when projections show that over 50 percent of purchases in Kenya will be influenced by digital in one way or other in the near future, it is clear that the future is clearly digital.
One key aspect of the BYOB show was the fact that its major audience was between the ages of 18-26 years old, falling under the bracket of the millennials who grew up in the internet age. For other shows whose main advertising strategy and major roll out of shows would be via television, the show also capitalized on social media channels including YouTube where the recap of the episodes would be aired.
Trushar Keita, one of the judges at the show, expressed how business and organizations should get on the digital train as this was the direction the world was headed. He said that it would be clumsy for a business or a brand at this day and age would be built without considering the dynamics of digital inclusion around it.
This was a sentiment that was also shared by the winner Valentine, who said that before she auditioned for the show, she had no online presence but as we speak, she has more followers than she could possibly imagine all of who would be vital in pushing her brand forward.
Bringing the business aspect to your craft
‘You need to treat your craft as a brand, that’s the only way it will succeed.’ These were the words of King Kaka, Kenyan rapper and accomplished businessman who was also a judge on the show. He said that the reason why some creatives do not make their businesses to become what they should be is the fact that they are still treating them like past-time hobbies.
If you need to see your craft succeed, work on it. Research on ways of capitalizing it and put your back into making your craft work for you.
Capitalize what you can control
In this day and age of content marketing and digital marketing, capitalizing on the resources you have is key. For example, the use of social media platforms to market content costs over 62% less than traditional methods of marketing – TV, Radio, and Billboards.
According to King Kaka; Use what you have. If you want to start a business and don’t know where to start advertising your products or services, start with Facebook and Instagram. You’re an upcoming musician with no platform to share your music, start with YouTube – you’ll have a more far-reach audience and you’ll earn from YouTube as your reach goes further and further.
Speaking on behalf of the many who are wondering whether the show will come back for season two, Peter Kuria, Brand Assets Manager at Safaricom, did confirm that the show would definitely be back. He said that the impact that the show had on the youth of the country was very impressive and even life-changing for others and this would be a trend that the company would like to see working more and more especially in regards to tackling the crippling issue of unemployment in the country.
However, the main factor is not just to start another season, but be able to continue telling the stories and journeys of the show’s 12 contestants. The biggest success of the show will be in seeing how far the contestants have made it in a year and how much other young people will be encouraged to watch the re-runs of the show on their YouTube channel and hope that they would learn valuable tips that will better them in their businesses or even inspire them to start their own to become their own bosses.
