Wednesday, 13 November 2013

200+ Business Ideas for the Ghanaian Market


This list compiled from several sources, is a brainstorming tool to help the employed, unemployed and active retirees identify an entrepreneurial path. Good luck in finding your perfect fit !!!

 

                       African print fashion line

 

               Bead making

 

               Exporting of herbal leaves

 

 Exporting of Ghanaian made products

 

Mobile Salon services

 

Fruit and food processing

 

 Window washing

 

Growing of fruits and other food crops

 

Sell food on local market

 

Petty trade

 

Shoe repair services- call in customers

 

Providing entertainment services at local events, corporate parties etc

 

Gift wrapping and hamper making on behalf of companies

 

Animal rearing including pig farming

Construction machinery leasing services

 

 Rental agency

 

Film and documentary production

 

Water supply and management

 

Waste management

 

Renewable energy

 

Writing business plans

 

Downloading and selling books

 

Tutoring

 

Translation and Traduction

 

Minibus and Motobike taxi

 

Prepackaged school supplies based on the lists from the ministry of education

 

 Brainstorm Consulting – Teach companies how to brainstorm

 

Create a website for non-profits and a list of their projects/needs and a similar list for foundations. Its a central meeting place for people to look for funding from the right people.

 

Signs in restaurants on menus that list all the ingredients.

 

A company that installs a monitor at a building entry and hosts virtual door attendants.

 

Meal delivery in hospitals

 

Santa Delivery Service – A dressed Santa will come to your home during the holidays and deliver your gifts as Santa

 

Presentation Consulting – Teach companies how to improve their presentations

 

A service that discounts newspapers after 8pm the day of print

 

Contest company for small local businesses

 

Grocery delivery service for college campuses: Fresh direct for dorm rooms.

 

Independent calorie testing company – A company that actually does testing on food for consumers to determine calorie content

 

 Interior Design on a Budget – for people who still want their homes to look good but can’t afford

 

Landscaping business specializing

 

Technology licensing agency.

 

 

Local business-sponsored community bike program

 

Surgery-specific recovery packs in hospital (if Sucrets and a can of cranberry juice is better than water & crackers, that pack exists)

 

Personal lessons for using your cell phone features

 

Venture capital consulting for startups.

 

Photography studio

 

A service that gives well-known business people a public email address, so that if an email get sent there you can read the email and then read the response. The idea being that it will give you insight into the mind of the person and what made them successful, and it will also teach you how to write good emails and learn email etiquette.

 

A technology/service that Preachers/Rabbi’s/Clergy can use that creates a way to gather feedback during the service from the attendees.

 

Online flower shop with one-hour delivery

 

Fractional Ownership of Technological Conference Room in Office Complex

 

Rent-a-wife – a woman who cleans, cooks, does laundry, picks up dry cleaning, mail, etc but without the emotional relationship.

 

Project management website for volunteer shift scheduling – church nurseries, hospital auxiliary members, protest marches, etc.

 

Glow in the dark non-toxic washable paint that you can spray on your kids/pets when they are trick-or-treating so they don’t get hit by a car.

A party planner for kids birthday parties, but with educational and fun activities.

 

 Summer Shadows– program where high schoolers can shadow business people for a short two weeks internship to see what they want to major in once they go to college and what they might want to do once they graduate

 

A paperless hospital.

 

National Restaurant Customer Service Association – traveling customer service training system

 

Artists’Playground. This is a building that has rooms setup for ceramics, painting, silk screenings, theater, writing, open mic, dance, photography, etc. This building will also have social areas for people to mingle over coffee and healthy foods. People pay a monthly membership to have access and it is also rented out for events.

 

Street Bar –bar inside a huge vehicle that drives you around

 

Training company that teaches people to be brave.

 

Employee monitoring service that provides detailed reports on employee’s online and offline activities. – include hardware scrubbing and “forensic” proof removal of data, footprints and histories.

 

Story Consulting – Help companies define and refine their story and teach them how to tell it

 

A service that tells your neighbors to be quiet (nicely). They will draft a letter or note and send it to your neighbor so you can be the objective third party.

 

Theme restaurant – Karaoke in front of a live band

Graph consultants – Company that specializes in making effective graphs from any data you give them.

 

A conflict negotiation service (online or regular) where you submit a problem and we provide an answer

 

School real estate rental company – Company that specializes in renting out underutilized school rooms during holidays

 

Front door cleaning service – get rid of all the stuff that gets left on your door every day before you get home

 

Standing in line for people

 

Brainstorming.com - put in an idea and gives you 10 ideas

 

Chewing gum that is good for braces and dentures.

 

Glass repair company – Company that specializes in repairing scratches or slightly broken glass

 

Franchise business consulting that helps large franchisees improve their businesses.

 

Digital tombstones that serve rich multimedia messages and memories of the deceased.

 

Marketing and Advertising agency that excels at telling stories.

 

Service to teach doctors how to use technology to reach out to patients

 

Company working with magazines to help them develop a social networking presences

 

 A pill that gradually dies body hair.

Technology scout for large corporations that looks for acquisitions.

 

Independent account fraud company – A company does regular checkups of your online

accounts (like social networking sites) to check for fraudulent activity

 

Web-based devil’s advocate service for startups looking for someone to critique their ideas. Perhaps also provides referrals to cheap services for startups, like cheap graphics design, cheap business plan feedback, etc.

 

A half refrigerator/freezer/microwave in the trunk of a car. That way, wherever you go in the car, you can always have food handy. How great for road trips.

 

A company that will apply your logo in glow-in-the dark removable paint around a town so it appears at night.

 

An online counseling program via webcam (for therapists, inmates)

 

Not-for-profit that works with people to help cure their acne.

 

    Service that takes your text messages from your phone to your computer

 

Fast food restaurants with healthy, organic and tasty foods. Similarly, healthy foods in cafeterias and grocery stores in low-socioeconomic areas.

 

A company that will sell a large digital frame for close to free and then provide a service for a fee that sends artwork to the digital frame every week.

 

A way to turn recipes on the web into peapod orders. A way to turn the customized diets that Weight Watchers create into a peapod order.

 

Networked home alarm systems so that neighbors can check on each other’s homes during break-ins.

 

Eyeglasses that you can adjust to the light. Not that they adjust on their own.

 

A cleaning service

 

A non-profit that supports poor on using technology in classes taught by young freelance artists.

 

Technology consulting for venture firms.

 

 Anti-drug education program for inner city schools. In conjunction with a touring program that sends a message to parents across the country.

 

Food consulting company that helps local restaurants with calorie measurement and other health issues – and publishes calorie, fat, vitamin data to third party apps on smart phones.

 

Computer Remote Technician – Fixes your computer by remotely connecting to your PC or Mac

 

Conference organizing company that handles all the logistics of creating and running conferences for other organizations.

 

Book packaging for great college writing and emerging writers.

 

A digital coloring book.

 

Dating Consulting – individualized service on how to find, meet and date quality people

 

For younger students, nap time is often hard to relax and in a bright room. There should be a company that creates comfortable nap time products for kids.

 

Twitter or SMS restaurant reservations

 

Globalization consultancy.

 

Build Your Own Back Pack Shop.

 

A virtual interior decorator that will make suggestions via digital photographs.

 

A company that sells high quality sawdust / sand in bulk to put on the floor of restaurants or bars. The company would then be responsible for removing the old material and replacing it when necessary.

 

Apprenticeship management company for high profile business personalities.

 

Network of restaurants where chefs rotate

 

Agency that trains people for doctor’s offices. Doctor’s offices need etiquette training for their employees desperately.

 

Dashboard painting of car interiors

 

Amusement park based on video games

 

Personal chef for a day. A formalized service where you can call and get a chef with a specific specialty to come and cook a few days worth of food. In cities, this would be very popular and in demand.

 

After party cleaning crew

Fence store –Sells nothing but designer fences with custom designs

 

Phone booth style device that you walk into and it steam presses your clothes

 

Religious Karaoke Bar – Bar where only religious songs allowed to be sung, and no alcohol

 

Actor research consulting service – Consulting service for actors to be setup with people who can mentor them in research for their roles

 

Automatic documentary maker, where families upload clips, photos and music from their special occasions generating a smooth transition clip that captures the essence of the moment.

 

Executive Power nap business – Locations where executives can take a 20 minute energizer nap during the day

 

Professional protesters agency.

 

Lip reading school – School that teaches students how to read lips

 

Teach companies how improv comedy can help them in their business (comfort zone, setup your partner)

 

Herb garden planting – plan, plant and basically get your herb garden going.

 

Legal Advice Hotline – Legal staff and call center charges consumers to call in for advice charge per hour

 

 A website for elementary and middle school kids that helps them build a portfolio of their best artwork, writing, sports accomplishments, etc.

 

Team in Training – supporting a family or village instead of a cause

A consumer hotline

 

A mentoring program (website) that connects entrepreneurs with specific mentors they seek.

 

Private investigation company for restaurant employees – Restaurant companies pay to have PI’s investigate whether employees are washing their hands in the bathroom

 

Unique Bachelor& Bachelorette Parties – we work with you to design a fun, unique bachelor or bachelorette party experience

 

A singer/song-writer could offer to write, record, and perform personalized songs for people’s special occasions (anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, or just because). Many would love to have the ability to write, record, and perform an original song for a special someone, but they just don’t have what it takes musically. Then, there are those of us who do have the ability but don’t know how to market themselves.

 

Mobile app with hospital floor plans, maps, info about area restaurants, etc.

 

A service of highly trained babysitters specialized in all ages that you could call upon last minute any night of the week

 

A service where people are employed to talk specifically to antisocial or shy people at a party (they’ll feel better about themselves and will be more likely to open up next time with their new confidence.)

 

Assist business people (authors, bloggers, executives) organize speeches and presentations –establish relationships with many venues & marketing channels

 

Baby fitness Class Company – Organize fitness classes for babies and their parents

 

Virtual assistant

Restaurant where you cook alongside the chef , choose your ingredients and learn a new technique.

 

Script Assistants-A business that assists screenwriters as they are developing their script by aggregating credible/hard to find reference material that is diverse. Often a young (or firsttime) screenwriter has a great idea and may not know what to reference to develop their idea. This business would evaluate the theme/tone/genre of the script and assist in coming up with a solid and effective reference package pulling from books/TV/movies/screenplays.

 

Web cam at school events so you can see your kid when you can’t make it

 

A personal education coach-they pick blogs, books, resources for you to learn based on your personal interests and career goals. They gather all the materials and for you and make recommendations on the best way for learning the material.

 

Non-profit that takes old technology items (computers, monitors, phones) to make them usable for non-profit use – clean off the software, ensure it has all the pieces, etc.)

 

An organization devoted specifically to growing awareness over an obscure problem that no one really looks at (i.e. kids that grow up in negative environments and what that does to them as adults.)

 

Philanthropic tourism – pay a huge fee with part of it going to help the people you visit

 

Grocery store with only junk food

 

Online judge dispute resolution – Submit your disagreements onliine and for a fee a judge will email you back the verdict on who is right

 

Scandal consultant

 

A drive through fast food place that has healthy sandwiches.

 

Change Consulting – Teach companies how to change – “stories of change” workshops

 

Delivery service of food from local restaurants that don’t offer delivery

 

Neighborhood phone book

 

Travel agency for the rich and famous.

 

A software that will allow you to change the channel and adjust the lights in the room through you computer.

 

Create your own ice cream flavors

 

Bedtime story company – Company that you call who reads you a bedtime story if you can’t fall asleep

 

A slide projector the size of a cell phone with a usb input for flash drives.

 

A flower shop that is actually a restaurant, delivering pizzas that are shaped to look like various floral varieties.

 

Brainstorm support – call in service with someone to talk with you to help get your brain going

 

Virtual Stylist– On call stylist will look at what you’re wearing via webcam and give advice

 

Rent a kitchen. Comes with all that you need plus a great dining room table.

 

 A non-profit that works with town governments on writing laws that create incentives for landlords to make their homes more energy efficient. There are already best practices available for solving the principal-agent problem, they just need to be put in place at the local level.

 

Picture Organizer-A business that helps people aggregate all their family and personal photos and then makes them into customized albums. So many people have just boxes of pictures with no way of looking through them easily. This would at least give people the initial push of getting them in order.

 

Rent a pet to see if it’s a good idea for your family

 

Car rental service offering exclusively exotic cars and even better, one-off concept cars (with waivers).

 

Cloth napkins made of old tshirts

 

A business that provides great service for tech support for government subsidized broadband companies (a service that doesn’t exist yet, but it will).

 

Online therapist that is available 24×7 via chat.

 

 Solar Power AC Company – Company that installs Solar Panels in order to provide/subsidize energy for AC

 

Someone that creates an itinerary for running errands and chores for a household with working parents.

 

Custom monopoly boards.

 

A ceiling/standing fan that doesn’t make noise

Advertising company that pays college students to wear advertisements on their laptops, backpacks, apparel, autos.

 

Expert legal testimony business – Company finds and connects expert witnesses with lawyers

 

A finance and spiritual workshop for the homeless, inmates, and people who don’t have regular access to these services.

 

Local tour guide for foreign tourists

 

Resume writing website that submits jobs for bid by idle HR recruiters and professional resume writers.

 

A God loves You Hotline, dial a number and talk to a priest.

 

A gym that just has exercise classes – nothing else.

 

Group cruise for women’s ministry leaders

 

A website that provides a semi-standardized way for people to build up a reputation without needing a college degree.

 

Hairbush that cleans your hair

 

Agency that specializes in helping professional athletes find obscure, unprecedented, endorsement deals.

 

Conflict resolution service that teaches any individual or corporation how to interact harmoniously in conflict. It will offer classes and workshops.

 

Dance club in an old airplane

MyLifePlanner.com - allows people to set individual goals in public and help each other work toward them

 

6 month, temporary / legit looking tattoos – fade out after 6 mos.

 

 A random gift generator system – Enter in specifics about a person’s personality/interests/demographics and the system spits out a gift

 

Cemetery care –guarantee that the dearly departed always have fresh flowers and holiday appropriate accouterments on their eternal resting place – for a monthly fee.

 

Hygiene stations at public parks or near benches.

 

Tell if someone is lying service – Submit your recorded calls where experts will analyze whether the person is telling a lie or not.

 

A “fearless”company/service where if you’re feeling fearful or worried, you go there to get recharged or get techniques for how to deal with your fears. Any and all fears are acceptable and people will leave feeling empowered.

 

 Rent a living room. Pay per hour for a public living room.

 

A service to write professional obituaries for people preparing their estate documents.

 

Babysitting service with actors – Provide babysitters for clients needing service with actors as the babysitters

 

A nail polish that taste bad and will keep people from biting their nails.

 

Barber business for facial hair – Barber that specializes in facial hair, no haircuts, just facial hair trimming

Car driver moving service – Driver will drive your car to any location (useful when moving)

 

A website with completely transparent costs & profit margins

 

Anonymous Employee Feedback Portal on company Intranet w/votes, etc.

 

Unique cleaning business.

 

Have your housecleaners bring samples of the delicious down home cooked meals that you can bring to them. Usually if someone is too busy to clean their house, they’re too busy to cook too. What if they had a complete meal brought to the home. You could eventually build up the meals to be 5 days a week. The word would spread. You could target busy people. By word of mouth, your cleaning business would grow. Clean everything. Windows, cars, gutters, dogs, furniture, etc.

 

A company parents secretly hire to teach kids a lesson. Parents hire a person to stage an accident or scare them to teach a life lesson such as don’t talk to strangers. Lesson learners.

 

Rent a personal assistant for the day

 

Online brand& reputation monitoring – help companies manage their online reputation

 

Customer service “call center” that provides customer service via twitter and the web rather than by phone. Think outsourced comcastcares.

 

Rent a goat to eat your front yard

 

Bricks made in different shapes – triangles, tessellations, etc. – for homebuilding

 

Shared umbrella rental locations. A person would have to check them in and out. A monthly fee would be charged.

A service that employs kids to be mentors for others. It holds the mentor to a standard of quality and improvement by teaching someone else, and the mentee will benefit.

 

Company that puts on high school and college reunions.

 

A company that makes nice metal sign ‘street maps’ for small towns and neighborhoods that don’t have them

 

A store that specializes in high end and unique baby items

 

Coordinator service for independent maids

 

Wait for a table for you at the bar or restaurant

 

A blind date site

 

     A non-profit that works to rid of consumer holidays such as valentines day.

 

Package pickup service – Specializes in picking up packages at the post office that you weren’t home to receive.

 

Children’s language schools that immerses children in foreign countries with the goal of world citizens able to speak at least four languages fluently.

 

      I don’t get it– website to explain jokes to people

 

Hamper/washer/dryer in one that runs quietly.

 

A day planner that plans my day for me; based on my to-do list, what my friends are doing, and also what’s going on in the local area. Also, populate the bulk of my to-do list automatically based on what my friends in the same classes are adding to theirs. Plan social dates for me based on when my friends and I are free. Introduce me to people I don’t know but should know.

 

Ethical Hotline– Ethics experts answer questions related to ethics for fee per hour

 

Prediction market website for major sports

 

Ability to pay for items with phone

 

Someone who teaches other people how to blog. This person could go to enthusiasts who want to share their ideas and teach them about blogging as a platform to spread those ideas.

A technology/service that takes role at religious services so you can tell who attends each week.

 

A not-for-profit that works with minority students in their schools. They go in and help include information about their culture and/or religion in the school curriculum.

 

Brain analysis company – In detail brain analysis direct to consumers so they can understand if their brain is healthy and suggest improvements

 

Marrying dating and fashion. Have a full day makeover service bringing in all the best beauty and fashion providers end the day with a big party for guys and gals to meet at a party.

 

Personal research service – you tell me what you want, I go find information on the top three things you should choose from.

 

A service that provides internships for college students that are geared toward their interests; comprehensive list of jobs/internships available updated in realtime (like craigslist but specifically for high quality jobs) with an arts section, business, leadership, medicine, etc.

 

Open a recreation shop that is really a type of day care. Parents drop their kids off to do supervised crafts while they shop for an hourly fee + materials

 

City-sponsored citywide Wi-Fi

 

 A medicine online service that diagnoses your ailment and tells you where to buy medicines at the lowest price

 

“See you at the cemetery” pairing service for widowers

 

Tuesday, 15 January 2013

10 Personal Branding tips for Job Hunters

With  more graduates than there are job vacancies in Ghana, it’s not far from the truth to say that the job market in the country is saturated. However, day in and day out, older employees retire from their jobs; others resign from their positions to join new companies; a few leave to become entrepreneurs, and a good many employees get fired off their jobs for lousy performances. So that leaves the successful applicant with enough vacancies to choose from.

Yes, if you are the applicant then the choice lies with you. Successful personal brands do not have to comply with what they or others feel is available. It is said that good brands sell themselves, without much advertisement. The same can be true of a person. If you have a good brand, then you do not have to beg for anything you desire in life and that includes a job of their choice. But it all starts with a master plan.

Supply-Demand Gap in Graduate Output


In as much as I am appreciative of the opportunities opening for Ghanaian women,  I am at the same time very much concerned about many of our university graduates who have been without a job for the past five to six years.  Yes, and I am even more worried about the approximate 100,000 graduates that our over 50 universities (and counting) produce yearly; and have no job guarantees. Also, I need not mention how many students graduate from our 10 polytechnics and over 100 registered professional colleges well spread across the country’s regional and district capitals. Indeed we are experiencing a- labour supply and demand crises of unskilled labour that many students and average Ghanaians are not aware of.  Do you also know that Ghana and most of Africa suffers from a shortage of skilled labour? Yes, that’s why you hear so many stories of child labour issues on our continent. There are more unskilled (educated folk) than they are skilled (labourers) people supplying the job market. This is why we have a supply-demand gap in our graduate output-our focus for now.

That is our country’s reality, unfortunately. There are more jobs needed, than are available. Frankly, I didn't know about these statistics at the time I was entering the university. Had I known, I would have looked for a job before doing my first degree. I could easily have made it through school as an evening student or at worst I would have done a BBA weekend program. I could easily have gotten a job as a skilled labourer, working my way up the ladder with every new certificate or degree I got. What’s more I would have had more work experience and would have been even more marketable than I was when I was looking for my first post- graduation job. Hmm. Anyhow, what’s past’s past. I am thankful I have a job that makes use of my skills and professional abilities.  How about you? Can you say the same thing?   

What did you study in school? Why did you study that particular course? Are you employed? If not, then why? I want to in this paragraph, address these questions, since I am possible speaking to fresh grads; stating that in every society, there will always be scapegoats for people’s failures. I want to emphasize that the “employment and unemployment” statistics of Ghana at present are not provided in this entry to give any one an excuse for not been employed, if they can be. Everyone in good health and sound mind above the age of 18 should be engaged in a profitable venture. If you have a college education, then we expect even more from you. Again, I want to emphasize that a degree doesn’t get a job but a successful applicant does.  

Creating Brand Awareness through Quality Events Signage


The first purpose of marketing is to create brand awareness. Creating brand awareness is the process of getting prospective customers to know about your brand, recognize their need for the brand and then differentiate the same from the lot, thus giving you a competitive edge. 

Events, as a marketing tool, have not only been used over the years by performers but they have increasingly become popular across various industries including: IT firms, schools and universities, trade organizations, research firms, recruitment firms and many others. Events are a faster, effective and efficient way of actively communicating to a specifically targeted audience at a given time.

Your events options, for creating brand awareness, include but are not limited to: trade shows, musical concerts, conferences, meetings, parties, VIP entertainment events, red carpet events, recruitment events, fundraising events, holiday parties, weddings, (funerals in Ghana) , festivals, camp meetings,  sports events, award galas, grand openings, and YES church services- something I have done recently and by the way proved to be very effective.  

Signage Options

After you have decided what events to attend and made all the necessary arrangements including negotiations with events mangers/planners, the next thing you want to think about is what signage to display at your stand, booth or space which would draw people’s attention and maybe cause them to there and then pay you a visit and perhaps close a sales deal.

                          A University’s tradeshow display designed by Signarama Footscray

 Some of the most effective branded display materials that companies have used in recent times include digital displays, branded flags, fence banners, pull up and roll up banners, exhibition stands, red carpet backdrops, wall graphics, outdoor light box signs, best seller banner stands, 3D shaped banner stands, poster frames ,hanging displays, telescopic banner stands, EZ tube graphic displays, pop up stretch displays, counter displays, display lights, branded literature racks & holders, monitor kiosks, canopy tents, spinning banners and many  others.

                                                                  Large Ball Display

                                                                    

3D signage great for special events and exhibitions. Victoria University Avatars designed by Signarama Footscray

                                             Back drop customized for this couple’s wedding.

Quality Signage at Chosen event

The signage that you display at an event can either make you or break you.                                         Whereas a quality signage could immediately elevate your brand image; a mediocre sign would make you seem desperate for attention; this could instantly degrade your brand -which is the very last thing that you want. 

Thursday, 5 January 2012

How To Increase Your Brand Awareness In The African Market


The Brand Africa 

A powerful brand is only as good as the target market’s awareness of its existence and qualities. Branding is not done in a vacuum; it is aimed at a particular segment of the market. Every branding exercise should be culture specific.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair once described Africa as “a scar on the conscience of the world.” This goes to tell the how infamous Africa’s brand is across continents.
 Recent events on the African continent are however beginning to change people’s perception of Africa. Images of war, famine and tyranny are no more exclusively synonymous with Africa. The improving image of Africa is evidenced and fueled by the following events: the successful hosting of the world cup by South Africa in 2010, US. President Barack Obama’s visit to select countries in Africa, the recent Arab spring that sparked off in Tunisia, the fall of Former Libyan president Gadhafi. Nobel laureates such as the late Wangari Mathai of Kenya and Liberia’s Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, just to mention a few have also brought honors to the African continent.
The improving image of Africa coupled with its widely underdeveloped market and human as well as mineral resources continue to attract new brands unto the African market. Described as the final frontier in some circles, Africa is a very promising brand and market for any astute businessman or marketer. Numerous global brands continue to flood the African market. Their attempts at marketing and creating brand awareness have however been fraught with challenges due to a lack of an understanding of the African market.

                                            

Increasing Brand Awareness in Africa



Africans tend to congregate around certain activities which are peculiar to the African culture. These should be in sharp focus for any brand awareness campaign.

1)      Research: Alexander Graham Bell(Inventor of the telephone), said that “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” This emphasizes the importance of preparation and research in particular in any field of endeavor. To be successful at increasing your brand awareness in Africa, you need to know, understand and appreciate your target market. You must know their needs, wants and desires. Knowing their needs, wants and desires will help you design a product they find useful to their lives.
2)      Strong product: Coming from a good research exercise, you are now able to develop a winning product for your brand. For example, research will probably reveal to you the most appropriate colors, for your brand, which will appeal to your target market the most and also create an emotional attachment with it.

3)      Deliver on your promise: The measure of value placed on a brand or product is seen in how much you are seen to deliver on your brand promise. If your promise is to deliver timely service, at the very least, just do that. Only then can you delight your customers who will increase your brand awareness by word of mouth especially in Africa where interpersonal bonds are stronger. In Africa, people tend to at least rely on advice from friends and acquaintances principally because of the lack of data and or access to it with regards to product quality.

4)      Language: Africa is largely unlettered in the western sense of the word. While the US. For instance has a literacy rate of 99%, the figure is 63% in Sub-Saharan Africa. This requires the use of simple language and more vivid imagery. Indigenous languages should be employed to increase your brand awareness. Also, it should be ensured that brand names and or symbols do not connote negativity in the local African dialects.

5)      Consistency: One important ingredient in increasing your brand awareness is consistency in message and product quality. Put out the same message and keep repeating it. The quality of the product behind the brand also goes a long way to increase your brand awareness. It is important to be consistent on the African market because the continent is awash with new brands.

6)      Corporate social responsibility(CSR): According to corporate social responsibility expert Mallen Baker, “CSR is about how companies manage the business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society.” It goes to say that your operations should have a positive impact on the society at large and all stakeholders of your brand. Very often, CSR activities focus on philanthropy leaving out all the other aspects. It is also important to be ethical and that is where most corporate brands fall short. Issues of ethics are at the center of the long standing crisis in the Niger delta of Nigeria. This gave rise to the formation and activities of armed groups such as the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). Activities of such groups affect not only the communal peace, but also the operations of the oil exploration companies involved. Efforts must therefore be taken to fully fulfill one’s Corporate Social Responsibility.

7)      Festivals and Dance: Africans are reputed for and pride themselves in having an immensely rich culture. Cultural activities such as festivals and dance are rallying points for the African people. Brand awareness can therefore be increased by using these media. A case in point is the Malta Guinness Street Dance Africa competition which has no doubt increased the public’s awareness of the Malta Guinness brand. In such instances, you get to engage with your customers on a more personal basis which is good for increasing your brand awareness.

In sum
Brand awareness is very important to the continued survival of any brand anywhere in the world. To be successful at brand awareness in Africa, you need to have a reasonably deep insight into the minds of the people, delight them with a winning product and empathize with their way of life.