E-Business
Smile Harps on Professionalism, Partners 10 Bloggers
Smile Communications Nigeria Limited, the 4G LTE broadband provider renowned for superfast and reliable Internet service, has identified professionalism, passion and content creation as critical in enhancing capacity of bloggers in the West African region.
Mrs. Alero Ladipo, chief marketing officer, Smile Communications Nigeria Limited, made the remark during a presentation titled, ‘How to Promote Your Blog’, at West Africa Blogger Conference (WABC) 2015, held in Lagos at the weekend.
Ladipo said that in as much as bloggers must ensure explicit, informative and clearly defined content delivered with passion and fun, they should not relent in professionalizing in order to attract right businesses to monetize the enterprise.
Essentially, she listed qualities that distinguish bloggers from others to including sticking to their already created niches built on professionalism, unique, responding quickly to trends, invest on the content design, while building loyal audience, relationships and reaching out to experts.
The Company is already preparing grounds to partner with ten (10) bloggers to support them in lifting the platforms to greater heights.
The Smile Communications CMO said, “People think that blogging is habit that anybody can just pick up and start practicing it. However, as we get more people entrenched in consistent growth, it becomes important we make it professional. Essentially, readers visit bloggers for a particular reason. By implication, a blog is not a dumping ground. Stick to the core reason you started the blog and adhere to your principles.
“There is a philosophy that you stick to certain principles even when many people are deviating; it is the same thing with blogs. When you maintain the professional competencies, people will come to partner with you. For instance, on the course of my presentation I randomly asked participants ‘sell me your blog’, which is simply to market the platform, but people fell-flat on their faces. It is important you know what your blog is all about and can sell it. Present it appropriately”.
Ladipo added that for bloggers to attain their expected heights, “they should improve on the marketing and how to communicate. A lot of people do not know how to use the available tools. For instance, everybody talks about social media, but nobody talks about how they can grasp onto the social media.
“People need to understand about target audience, segmentations, and how to retain people’s interest that they continue to visit your blog; keeping people interested and understand that you are one amongst many.
“That’s the strength you need to have; the tools of marketing and communication and it does not require long sessions of learning. It can be an hour session of going through the principles of marketing and communication at a 101 (introductory) level, because you are not trying to go deeper on the subject, but how to use the tools. Truly, content is king, but you needed to be smart about it. That is where marketing and communication aspect comes in”.
Meanwhile, the CMO speaking on why Smile Communications chose to support the conference, said, “We chose to support the Conference due to the link between our service offering and what the bloggers do. During my presentation, I asked how many people had internet connection in order to monitor what is happening now or what has happened in the last hour that could inspire your writing. How are they going to know if not with internet connectivity”.
According to her, internet connectivity is a utility that soon will be in the range of demands like water supply, electricity, etc. I will take it further to say blogging, internet provision and lifestyle are all connected. So, we partnered with the organizers as a way of bridging the gap between life style and communication”.
On the drive to partner with some bloggers, Ladipo said, “the organizers will help in screening ten bloggers that Smile Communications will partner with from our perspective”.
Earlier, Mr. Ayodele Oyebade, managing director, Advert Strikers Limited, and convener of the Conference, thanked Smile Communications magnanimity in supporting the conference where a new chain of professional bloggers will emerge.
Speaking specifically on the motivation behind the conference, he said, “We help bloggers to monetize their contents. We realized that majority of the exiting bloggers in the region need to learn a lot. Some of our clients in Nigeria, Asia, even Israel do complain that they are not getting the kind of mirage they expect.
“Meanwhile, premium bloggers in the category of Linda Ikeji, Bellanaija, etc, they have fixed rates. Clients know them and so talk to them directly. But we want every blogger to rise to the expectations. We want to say, regardless of the niche, you are an authority in your area, we want you to understand what the brands are looking for and you can relate with the audience.
“It goes beyond writing good articles, writing for fun, getting little AdSense and/or doing copy and paste from premium blogs. We are trying to expose the bloggers to the nitty-gritty of the profession. That’s why we partnered some corporate bodies like Smile Communications, Jumia, Google, MTN, etc. They have done very well in supporting this conference.
“In blogging you need to understand the dynamics and the ecosystem of how the platforms operate. For instance, you are writing about automobile. You have to be sure on what the audience want; you need to know the psychology, the general spare that will affect monetization and audience engagement.
“Smile Communications has informed us of their decision to partner with bloggers. I am particularly happy with Smile Communications because they are going to show them how to make money with their blogs with their content. Jumia is doing similar thing with it affiliate platform”.
Oyebade urged the participants to utilize the opportunity created at the conference to reach out to influencers and engage on self-assessment questions, adding that the future of bloggers have become even brighter in the present technology driven age.
Smile Communications Nigeria Limited is justly famous for its transformative objective of using the best and most innovative technologies to provide its customers with high quality, easy to use and affordable communication services. Smile’s vision and mission, remains the quest to be the broadband provider of choice in Nigeria and to enable its customers to fully benefit from the Internet world.
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced the establishment of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Division within its ICT Department.
This marks a significant stride toward enhancing electoral integrity, efficiency, and innovation in Nigeria’s democratic process.
This decision was reached at the Commission’s regular weekly meeting held in Abuja, following a series of consultations and engagements on the global and continental impact of AI on elections.
In a statement issued by Sam Olumekun, national commissioner and chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, INEC underscored that the growing relevance of AI in electoral matters necessitated a proactive institutional framework to manage both the risks and opportunities it presents.
“Our interactions with electoral bodies across Africa highlighted both the risks of AI—such as fake news and content manipulation—and the vast potential it holds for data-driven decision-making, risk mitigation, automated voter services, and geo-spatial intelligence for logistics,” Olumekun noted.
According to him, the newly created division will centralise the Commission’s AI efforts, ensuring a harmonized approach to deploying intelligent systems that enhance decision-making, improve voter engagement, and boost the credibility of the electoral process.
“The creation of this division puts the Commission at the forefront of institutionalizing AI capabilities in electoral management.
It is also part of our ongoing reforms in areas where administrative action is sufficient to drive change,” he said.
He added that the AI Division will help INEC better coordinate its existing technological investments while providing safeguards against the misuse of AI technologies.
“We are positioning ourselves to maximise the positive impact of AI while mitigating its negative implications. This step strengthens the credibility and transparency of elections in Nigeria,” Olumekun concluded.
The initiative, INEC emphasised, reflects its commitment to embracing innovation in safeguarding democracy and improving electoral services nationwide.
Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in partnership with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has unveiled a new Application Programming Interface (API) integration system to allow private firms access company data from the Commission’s database.
Hussaini Ishaq Magaji (SAN), registrar general of CAC, who spoke in Abuja at the unveiling said the system would give selected private organizations access to CAC services through technology-based companies, called “super agents.”
“This is a practical step to show that the Commission is committed to meeting the expectations of our customers,” he said.
Magaji explained that the integration allows the agents to retrieve data from the CAC database for use in specific client requests, outside the standard services provided by the Commission.
“Before now, only a few government agencies had this integration, especially those involved in investigations, anti-money laundering, and terrorism financing. Now, private companies that meet the criteria can also access it,” he said.
He said the system complies with the Nigerian Data Protection Act 2023, and information such as residential addresses, phone numbers, and dates of birth may be restricted.
“This is a call to law firms and companies with the right technology. We’ve started with NIPS because of their credibility. Embassies and banks can now authenticate company records directly through them.”
“There are prescribed fees. We already collect them on our portal, and now customers can also pay through these agents,” he explained.
He named NIPS, MoneyPoint, and OPE as some of the companies involved.
“OPE and MoneyPoint handle only registrations. But NIPS has moved further into validation and verification,” he said.
Ngover Ihyembe-Nwankwo, executive director at NIBSS, who represented Premier Oiwoh, managing director, said the service allows secure and efficient data verification.
“This is the result of years of effort to connect our systems with CAC. It will help users verify data within the limits of data protection laws,” she said.
She said the move is a way to lower costs and promote interoperability across the financial sector.
Ministry of Interior has announced the launch of a new Online Citizenship and Business Management Platform in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
A statement signed by Dr Magdalene Ajani, permanent secretary, Ministry of Interior’s said the initiative forms a key part of its ongoing reforms aimed at promoting transparency, enhancing operational efficiency, and significantly improving service delivery to the public.
The new digital platform is designed to streamline the application and processing of citizenship and business-related services, ensuring faster turnaround times and improved user experience.
The platform allows users to apply for and manage business permits, ensuring that both local and foreign businesses operate legally in Nigeria.
It includes an Expatriate Quota System to manage work permits for foreign employees, helping companies hire skilled workers while complying with Nigeria’s immigration laws.
The Citizenship Administration and Management System provides a streamlined online process for applying, tracking, and managing Nigerian citizenship applications and related services.
Members of the public, corporate entities, and other stakeholders are expected to access the platform through the ministry’s website: https://interior.gov.ng , Direct Portal Access: https://candb.interior.gov.ng , or contact candb-support@interior.gov.ng for support and inquiries.
“The Ministry of Interior remains committed to establishing a more efficient, transparent, and secure framework for citizenship administration, while continuously enhancing service delivery through digital transformation,” the statement read in part.
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