Reflections 2.10

Then it hurts
So close yet elusive
Striving and sweating
Batting and swatting
Running and fighting
Yet so close
Yet so elusive
Then it hurts!

Yet another feeble attempt at poetry -don’t I just give up? beats me too

Dear Sir,

It was shocking-very shocking-to learn of your demise last night.

Whilst I join others to wish you a safe trip to your next destination, I can not help but wonder how in humane man can be. I remember clearly how they flew you in (though we still have doubt you were on that flight) and smuggled you into Aso Rock even though Aso Rock did not provide the life sustaining medical equipments you needed.

I also remember how they wickedly rouse you from sweet (and possibly healing) coma to make you sign the 2010 Appropriation Bill (that I guess is the name for the annual budget). My friends here thinks i should not have been suprised at the inhuman treatments you suffered from your wife, aides and close allies in your last five months on earth, they argue that you have always been a subject of such treatment, at least they argued, you were forced against your will to contest the 2007 elections (and made to cu short your well needed medical pilgrimages to Germany during the campaign).

Sir, so long since we met – actually since I met you – sad we will no longer hear from you, but please do keep in touch with members of the various cabals ruining our nation and remind them sir of their mortality as humans…please share with them tales from where you are, perhaps they may have a change of heart and allow us common people (I don’t know what that really means) have the Nigeria we desire and deserve!

All the best in your new endeavours.

All the best,

Some concerned Nigerian

I have tried many times to read the future but besides the clear reading that it will be a great one, there is nothing more specific.

I seek to read tommorrow so I can plan adequately for it, but I guess I have to give up my search for specifics and go to work with my general ideas but maintain a flexible mindset capable of twisting, expanding and shrinking to the demands of the times to come and in line with my dreams and aspirations of making the world a better place for all. Read the rest of this entry »

Not laugh for joy or relief.

But to laugh at yet another attempt to call white black, and on a grand scale.

The situation is best described by this story:

He is from avery rich background, loved by all and the envy of many. His neck is adorned with necklaces made of gold and his feet slippons made from exotic and rare animal skin. Affluence merely describes him.

He was plundered and left desolate by conniving and envious travelling (and trading) foriegners, who took away his ability to trust and love again. Cheating, lying and sin became the lot of his world. He is possessed by vanity and has no place for value.

And suddenly, without consideration for his physical and mental well being, his friends (children and relatives) decided to rehabilitate him – and what do they do? They went the way of others and bought him new cloths.

I ask, will new cloths solve his problems?

Will those put food on his table, drive commerce ( the sam,e bait with which he was attracted at first and plundered, but neccessary for continued physical and mental health – at least that is what we believe) and help him well on his way to self sustainance?

Will a new cloth do the magic? Yes they say, but time will tell.

I love marketing communications.

I love the practioners too. I am sure my friend Lekan Oshunkoya will be amazed at my sudden love for this human endeavor.

I love to hear it right and succinctly and to pass it on as same (that may be the reason I am considering a few weeks of internship somewhere filling a corporate communications vacancy-yes, I know there are differences between this branches of communications).

Take a look at adverts on TV (very well produced-clear pictures, good audio, succint message), outdoor billboards and the variants (graphically exciting and clearly pass on messages), radio jingles (you never believe so much has been packed into 60 secs, it still beats my imagination and I give it to these guys, they are great).

But does the promise always match the delivery? In all my experience no!

My love for marketing communication especially as practised here in Nigeria stems from the fact that practioners clearly help keep hope alive.

They tell us what it can become -the service or product they are selling- and not what it is (that is my disgust).

Look at the telecos in Nigeria for example…I carry four mobile phones until recently, not because I love the gadgets that much, but because I could not avoid to be let off the communication grid and at one time or the order some devil goes up and messes a network’s system hampering service delivery for hours ( and sometimes days) and then you the subscriber cannt get what you bargained for and their is no reprisal for the ch***ts. A friend once joked that is network allowed him recharge before prompting he cannot dial out due to network problem.

Airelines? I buy 10:00 o’clock tickets when I need to arrive my destination (mostly 60 minutes away) at 4:00pm. This is to accomodate all the unexplained delay (or has things changed?).

I could go on…

My position: put the cutomer at heart, spend the huge budget on advertising on customer satisfaction systems (may be reward too) and see how the ageold marketing communication tool- word of mouth will do magic!!!

What is it the advert (irrespective of medium) want to tell me, that my satisfaction from using the product/service cannot? Or what can it say that strongly worded referrals from satisfied customers?

Today it is a case of opposites – I am propounding a law? Maybe.

What we hear and see about a product/service is not what we get when we buy it. And worsestill you cannot return it and get your money back.

I do not remeber buying anything perse for its marketing communications in a long time, I have depended on recomendations from satisfied buyers /users except offcourse not any of the moblie telephone services (no body around seem satisfied, we all just continue to accumulate services/networks in the hope that one or two will work at anytime. Don’t you wonder why new telecos have customers even when according to authorities over 40 million Nigerians are connected? I mean Nigerians who need to be connected are!).

I see all those newspaper adverts, TV commercials and billboards as sources of great entertainment , which I do not prefer to quality service delivery do you?!

Somebody please do something!