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5 Core Business Areas where AI can Drive Revenue
By Kehinde Ogundare, Country Manager, Zoho Nigeria.
According to the United Nations, artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030 – of which $1.2 trillion could be generated by Africa. With the potential to unlock significant growth and development in key industries across the continent, AI is fundamentally changing how businesses operate, driving innovation, improving efficiencies, and transforming lives.
Kehinde Ogundare, Country Manager, Zoho Nigeria
Businesses of all sizes that have already invested in AI are reaping its benefits, from increasing business productivity and agility to improving customer experience and decision-making with McKinsey noting that AI leaders are outperforming their industry peers by a factor of 3.4.
But if businesses are to make the most of the opportunities offered by AI, it’s also important that it be deployed in the areas where it will have the greatest impact. Here are some areas and subsequent examples of how businesses can use AI within those areas to drive revenue.
1. Finance and billing
One of the most obvious places AI can help drive revenue in a business is in finances and billing. Having an accurate, up-to-date overview of finances can help an organisation know when to invest in growth, for example. And if a business wants a steady revenue flow, it must send out bills, invoices, and payment reminders on time.
Here, AI can help in several ways. When it comes to expense bills, for example, an AI tool with built-in image recognition would allow a business to scan its bills with the system, then auto-generate the amount, place, date, time, and category of expense, helping save loads of time and effort. For billing, meanwhile, AI can greatly speed up the onboarding process for new clients by automating large parts of it. AI-powered tools can also extract relevant information from invoices, including customer details and product descriptions, and automatically populate billing systems, creating further efficiency.
2. Lead prioritisation
Another key area is new business leads. More specifically, AI can help assess the calibre of leads that the sales team is bringing in. After all, two or three great leads can be more beneficial than 10 weak ones.
Using a points-based system, AI can help score leads according to their quality. That allows the sales team to better evaluate which leads are worth pursuing. In turn, that should allow them to make more sales at a more meaningful level.
3. Improved customer experience
Customer experience (CX), rather than product or price differences, has been the major differentiator for businesses for some time now. Customers are willing to spend more, are more likely to stay loyal, and recommend a business to friends and family if they have a good experience with it.
Businesses, therefore, need to pull out more stops than ever to ensure that their customer experience really stands out. Here again, AI can be helpful. Take sentiment analysis, for example. AI can help identify the most disgruntled customers, allowing customer success teams to focus on their needs and turn their experience of the business around.
4. Better targeted marketing
The most effective marketing today is highly personalised and targeted. AI can make it significantly easier to achieve the level of targeted personalisation necessary for marketing success today. Once integrated with a company’s data, an AI marketing tool can create and hone personalised marketing content based on each individual customer’s CRM data.
5. Enhanced employee productivity
There is a strong correlation between employee productivity and revenue. Employee productivity is in turn driven by positive employee experiences. The more productive your employees are, the higher your revenues and profit margins will be. AI can help improve both productivity and the overall employee experience by automating repetitive tasks, allowing employees to focus on the kind of meaningful work that drives increased revenues.
Embrace AI, but use the right providers
While AI can add immense value when it comes to driving revenue within organisations, it’s also critical that businesses know what they’re getting into when embracing AI. That means doing comprehensive background research and ensuring that they choose tools that meet their needs and adhere to privacy best practices.
Bright Echefu, chief executive officer, Telecom Satellites Limited (TStv), and three co‑defendants appeared before the Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday on an amended twelve‑count indictment brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The charges allege money laundering, tax evasion, and investment fraud involving approximately ₦1 billion and $1.3 million.
Bright Echefu, chief executive officer, TStv
In addition to Echefu, the defendants are TStv Executive Director, Felix Igboanuga, Telecom Satellites Limited itself, and Briechberg Investment Ltd.
According to the April 5, 2025, amended charge sheet the EFCC accuses the quartet of defrauding Mr. Tanimu Turaki, Managing Director of Kalsiyam Global and former Minister of Special Duties, alongside BYI General Limited, out of a combined investment of ₦1 billion and $1.3 million. The commission has also included a ₦66 million alleged tax default.
The revised indictment lists:
Count 2: ₦33,909,542.47 in unremitted Company Income Tax
Count 3: ₦13,519,382.00 in unremitted VAT
Count 4: ₦19,488,860.00 in unremitted PAYE
Counts 5–12: Various fraud‑related transactions, including ₦380 million from Kalsiyam Farm, ₦400 million from BYI General Ltd and $1.35 million in loans secured under false pretences.
All defendants pleaded not guilty once again. At the hearing before Justice Mohammed Umar, Echefu’s lead counsel, Senior Advocate Eyitayo Fatogun, informed the court of ongoing settlement discussions with the complainants.
“There are moves to settle this matter and there was a meeting on Saturday between myself and the Nominal Complainant as it is about investment,” Fatogun stated.
“The Defendants have paid some money and I was thinking that the matter be adjourned for report of settlement.”
EFCC counsel A.S. Tomwell confirmed receipt of those payments but emphasized the necessity of entering a plea before considering any adjournment. The court thus ordered the formal reading of the charges and adjourned the trial to October 15, 2025.
The government of Ghana has ordered MultiChoice Ghana to reduce DSTV subscription costs by 30%, noting the significant appreciation of local currency and growing dissatisfaction with current rates.
This comes as Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has fined MultiChoice Nigeria ₦766,242,500 for breaching the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA).
According to Mr Babatunde Bamigboye, head Legal, Enforcement & Regulations, NDPC, the investigation, which commenced in the second quarter of 2024, was triggered by suspected breach of privacy rights of Multichoice subscribers and illegal cross-border transfer of personal data of Nigerians.
MultiChoice, which operates across Africa, continues to lose revenue and subscribers.
Ghana’s minister of communication, digital technology, and innovation, Samuel Nartey George, made the call last week during a meeting with a DSTV team led by Dr. Keabetswe Modimoeng, group executive for regulatory and corporate affairs.
According to a ministry statement, George said the government’s responsibility is to respond to Ghanaians’ concerns over high DSTV pricing and outdated content offers.
The Minister pointed out that despite a 30% increase in the cedi’s value over the past five months; DSTV prices have not reflected the positive economic trend.
The statement went on to say the minister is therefore calling for a 30% price reduction to match the cedi’s appreciation and to pass on economic benefits to consumers.
According to the statement, while MultiChoice has implemented promotional packages, people prefer a direct price reduction over temporary discounts.
George said feedback from public engagements revealed that many users are dissatisfied with DSTV’s content, describing it as outdated save for Premier League football. They also believe that the current cost is not justified.
”To address the concerns, he said MultiChoice Ghana has until July 21 to formally respond to the government’s request. The Minister expects a concrete proposal by this date, allowing time for further engagement before the end of July,” the statement said.
In response, Dr. Modimoeng acknowledged the government’s concerns and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to dialogue.
The MultiChoice team reacted positively to the minister’s request and committed to provide input by July 21st. They emphasised the need of balancing public interest and business sustainability.
This is the continent’s latest pricing conundrum for the pan-African pay-TV business, following fee disputes with Nigerian and Malawian authorities.
In Ghana, the demand for price cuts comes as MultiChoice is under pressure, having lost revenue and subscribers in the financial year that ended March 31, 2025. Last month, the company announced its financial year-end results.
In a statement to shareholders last month on the Stock Exchange News Service, the company said the past two financial years have been a period of significant financial disruption for economies, corporates and consumers across Sub-Saharan Africa due to challenging macro-economic factors.
Combined with the impact of structural industry changes in video entertainment, such as the rise of piracy, streaming services and social media, this has materially affected the overall performance of the MultiChoice Group, it noted.
Over this period, MultiChoice said the group lost 2.8 million active linear subscribers and had to absorb a R10.2 billion negative impact on its top line due to local currency depreciation against the US dollar.
For the year, the company reveals that linear subscribers were down 1.2 million, or 8% year-on-year, to 14.5 million active subscribers, with the loss evenly split between South African (600 000) and rest of Africa (600 000).
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has fined MultiChoice Nigeria ₦766,242,500 for breaching the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA).
NDPC is a public institution that processes data in furtherance of its mandate as Nigeria’s data protection authority and relies on recognised lawful bases for data processing, such as consent, legal obligation, and contract.
The fine was contained in a statement signed by Mr Babatunde Bamigboye, head Legal, Enforcement & Regulations, NDPC.
According to him, the investigation, which commenced in the second quarter of 2024, was triggered by suspected breach of privacy rights of Multichoice subscribers and illegal cross-border transfer of personal data of Nigerians.
“The NDPC found, among others, that Multichoice violated the data privacy rights of subscribers and their friends who are not necessarily subscribers.
The Commission also found that Multichoice carries out illegal cross-border transfer of personal data relating to data subjects in Nigeria.
The depth of data processing by Multichoice is patently intrusive, unfair, unnecessary, and disproportionate.
This is a grave affront to fundamental right to privacy as enshrined in Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
In line with its standard remediation procedure, the Commission directed Multichoice to carry out appropriate remedial measures.
However, the Commission found the measures undertaken by Multichoice in this regard unsatisfactory.
For want of cooperation, the Commission has directed Multichoice to pay ₦766,242,500 for violating the Nigerian Data Protection Act.
“Nigeria is entitled to protect her citizens and data sovereignty under both international and extant municipal laws, as these have far-reaching implication for rule of law, national security, and economic growth.” the statement said.
Babatunde also revealed that, Vincent Olatunji, national Commissioner, NDPC, has directed that all outlets through which Multichoice is collecting personal data of Nigerian citizens should be investigated for non-compliance.
He added that any outlet that processes personal data in violation of the NDP Act is liable to penalty under the Act.
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