It’s been 6 Months!

At the age of 26, I took a bold step and resigned from my job. I decided that I didn’t want to be an architect anymore. For many reasons, I moved on from it and decided I wanted to be a digital marketing strategist instead. Fortunately/unfortunately, I left my old job in January 2019 and I didn’t get a new one till December 2020(no thanks to Covid). You can read about my start here.

It’s been 6 months as a digital marketer and here are a few things I have learned.

• You are as brilliant as you are exposed: I’ve had to read the most random articles, engage in the most random conversations and just exposed myself to different things. Coming up with a good strategy can be as easy as knowing that the choice of influencer from your client is wrong because he is always in senseless tweet fights and his engagement can affect your brand perception. Or as simple as knowing that to get to Ikorodu from V.I, you can go through boats from Bonny camp or Ikoyi instead of dying in Lagos traffic. I guess all I’m trying to say is strategy is the art of coming up with doable directions to get to your destination. Going via road from V.I to Ikorodu is a solution that works but comes with it’s own obstacles. Knowing that there are other routes that might be faster and also as safe is what makes you a good strategist.
• The Internet is your friend: I know this statement has been over flogged but I cannot stress is enough. It is literally a pool of knowledge and the best part of it now is you can find Nigerian Data online from Nigerian sources. In my spare time, I try to learn other ways digital marketing is done in other countries. Look out for campaigns or digital marketing strategies made available and find at least one thing that will be my key take away point.
• Presentations are important: I like to think of my self as a thinker but that’s just half the job. How exactly are you going to explain your strategy to people you wouldn’t have a chance to speak to? That’s the job of your document and in most cases, your document makes it to those tables before you do. The ability to put together a concise strategy document (Power point or Google Slides).
• Setting goals is key: We hear this every time from our aspire to perspire brothers but it is actually legit. I remember my first month, after every idea or strategy presented the questions that came after were what are your goals? What is your KPI? How do we measure our ROI? With Digital, there is a reason for everything and results can be measured. We are often advised to first determine our goals, set realistic KPIs and then see how we can grow from there.
• Nigerians love giveaway: If you are looking for the fastest way to grow your page or increase engagement asap, do a give away. ( Please this is not a professional advice)

last but not the least,

• *whispers* Agencies are the ghetto!: lol it’s not a lie but it is not entirely true either. Agencies are not called training schools for nothing, they provide with great experience, great exposure and open you to many amazing and not so amazing clients. I strongly recommend working in an agency if you are just starting out in your career. They help give an overview on the various career paths available in the industry and that can help set you off in the right direction.

In summary, I’d say Digital Marketing is a kitchen and there are many tools in a kitchen. You need to get familiar with the tools, have an idea of your intended direction, set a goal and use the tools to help achieve your goal. (I hope my kitchen analogy works because I’m aware there are various grades of kitchens lol)