The Logic and Magic of Integrated Marketing Communications in the Promotion of Rotary Public Image

By Lanre Adisa

I feel highly honoured to have been invited to share my thoughts with you on the theme of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) Strategy as Magic for Public Image Promotion in Rotary. For starters, let me state clearly that I do not possess the magical acumen of Houdini, neither do I possess that of Professor Peller.

But I must state that the use of the word Magic is not out of place for those of us in marketing communications.

When developing campaigns, we often talk about logic and magic; logic being the empirical input that feeds the work we embark on for every new brief we receive from our clients; and magic being the outcome when it’s done in a way that beats everyone’s imagination.

This maverick of an outcome is so good, you don’t see it coming. This is the nirvana we all aspire to for every work we embark on in brand building.

The impact of every magical performance is often determined by the richness of the materials at the disposal of the performer as well as the prowess of the latter.

For this, let’s beam the light on Brand Rotary for a while. It’s not often that we as practitioners are given the opportunity to work on iconic brands. In the nonprofit space, it goes without saying that Brand Rotary is one of the most iconic one can find.

Worldwide, Rotary will be 120 years old next year. The year after that, it will be 65 years in Nigeria.

Its iconic status has not been earned just by the years of its existence, but more by the impact of its work globally and locally.

Founded in 1905 by Paul P. Harris as a business networking club, it has since evolved into one of the strongest movements for good around the world driven by its core mission of “Service Above Self”.

Here in Nigeria and globally, that mission has given birth to a lot of laudable programmes in the fields of education, health, water and sanitation. Perhaps the most ambitious and most impactful is the Rotary PolioPlus campaign.

Through its work with its members spread across the globe and a handful of partners, over 3 billion children have been vaccinated and over 20 million cases of paralysis arising from the effect of polio have been averted. And this is just taking on one area of intervention.

As laudable as the eradication of a disease like polio is, if we were to ask ten people outside the Rotary fold to list the organisations responsible for this feat, how many of them will mention Rotary? For me personally, when I think of polio eradication, Rotary doesn’t come to my mind first.

Whatever the answer to this question may be, it doesn’t negate the great work Rotary is doing for humanity. However, it doesn’t deliver the right value in the mind space of the different publics Brand Rotary will hope to appeal to.

Why is this so? The world has changed so drastically from 1905 and it keeps changing as we speak. The contest for the attention of the public has never been as frenetic as we are experiencing today.

So, if we all agree that the destination for every form of communication is magic, in a highly media-fragmented world that we live in, it’s safe to say that IMC is our magic wand.

The concept of IMC came about as a result of the proliferation and fragmentation of communications channels in the 20th century.

For brands to make sense of emerging media channels like the fast-expanding cable TV channels and digital technologies, there was a need for consistent messaging across all the different pertinent channels a brand has decided to use from the multitude of options available to it.

The term Integrated Marketing Communications was coined by marketing scholars and practitioners in the 1990s, driven by the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A’s).

Don Schultz, an American Professor of Communications, who wrote a landmark book on the subject, Integrated Marketing Communications: Putting It Together and Making It Work (1993), is often regarded as the father of IMC. As defined by the 4A’s in the 1990s, “IMC is a comprehensive plan that combines various communication disciplines- advertising, public relations, direct marketing and sales promotion- to create a clear consistent and unified message for maximum impact.” The three things to note in this definition are:

A comprehensive plan

A clear and consistent unified message

Maximum impact

With the super pervasive reach of digital technologies, best represented by a plethora of social media platforms, the need for a comprehensive plan with a clear and consistent unified message delivering maximum impact cannot be overemphasised, no matter how big or small your media budget may be.

HOW CAN WE BRING IMC TO WORK MAGIC FOR ROTARY?

The Power of Consistency: The magic of IMC is in its ability to integrate various communication channels to create a unified and consistent message. Through this consistent messaging, trust and recognition are built over time. In today’s fragmented media landscape this is one way Rotary can rise above the noise. It will require being smart with whatever resources are available for each campaign. It will also require determining which particular communication channels will most effectively deliver the goods. Each media platform, be it social media or traditional media, must be selected and used with well spelt out goals and expectations on how it amplifies the message. The Rotary PolioPlus easily comes to mind in this regard. If this campaign were to be launched newly in this era, how would we go around it?

Storytelling as a Spell: We all grew up with stories. Nothing can be as captivating and engaging as a well told story. In truth, a relatable story can be spell-binding. People want to identify with the people in your story, and by extension, your cause, once they can relate with them.

This is something that comes easy for nonprofits. For instance, while a documentary or generalist content on World War II may give us reasons to think of the horrors of that human tragedy, we tend to be moved more about the accounts of that war when we are exposed to the stories and ordeals of the individuals who lived through that period.

It’s the reason why a film like Schindler’s List or Saving Private Ryan will leave a more longstanding impact on us than hundreds of generalist narratives of the war.

A good example of this is the Make A Wish Foundation in the US. Using emotional stories, it is able to raise funds by telling powerful emotional stories of children living with severe ailments, using cross-platform integration, while helping the children to attain their wishes.

The Magic of Multichannel Synergy: The use of multiple channels like email, social media and PR is one good way of amplifying the message.

We must determine the role of each platform in a way that complements one another while deepening the reach of the message.

We must coordinate our campaign in a way that ensures a ripple effect that helps to boost reach and engagement, especially when we have a limited budget.

Authenticity as the Magic Ingredient: To earn the respect and trust of the public, any brand worth its salt must be seen to be inherently authentic. Being authentic engenders genuine connections and transparency between a brand and its target audience.

Authenticity helps define your brand character, helping your audience to know what you stand for. Doing anything out of character will be easily flagged by your audience and this could come with serious consequences.

The moral here is that to keep the magic going, you must genuinely be yourself. When people are asked what Rotary stands for, our target audience must be able to answer that from what they’ve known Rotary to stand for over time. And nothing captures this better than the Rotary Four-Way Test

Is it the truth?

Is it fair to all concerned?

Will it build good will and better friendships?

Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

One good example of authenticity in action is UNICEF and its focus on the world’s children. Almost everybody knows that UNICEF is all about the children of the world. This authentic association is captured in its campaign “For Every Child”.

Target Audience Enhancement: One key asset that can aid the impact of IMC for Rotary is its extensive network of clubs across different strata globally and locally. This helps connect the message to its intended target and the general public most effectively.

The cumulative effect of these clubs projecting a singular message using global and local channels is invaluable. The trick here is ensuring that the message doesn’t get diluted in any way. The versatility of this vast network also lends itself easily to the nuancing of the message to the different strata of the network based on their sociocultural context.

Impact Measurement- The Magic Proof: It is not enough to have a spellbinding message cascading through our network of multiple clubs. In today’s world, we must be able to measure the impact of our magic.

Who are we reaching? Are we delivering the intended message? Is our messaging eliciting the right kind of action or responses from our audience? For this we need to deploy digital tools that can help us measure the impact of our campaigns from engagement to donations, down to volunteer/new members sign-ups. The lessons from one campaign can help us plan better and smarter for subsequent ones. This way, we can start working towards a magic formula.

Community Building as a Magical Force: One way a nonprofit can stay sustainable is by building a community around its causes. With its brand legacy spanning over a hundred years, this should not be of any challenge to Rotary.

In reality, engaged communities are the backbone of nonprofit. What IMC does is nurture these relationships over time. This is composed of not just the Rotary family, but also those whose values align with that of Rotary. It will also include those who have benefited directly or indirectly from the impact of Rotary’s work.

Observations & Recommendations

Before I wrap up, I believe it’s important to bring up some points for consideration.

Thought Leadership/Ownership of Causes: In as much as being around for a long time is a strength, it can also create a sense of overfamiliarity which in turn may translate to indifference on the part of your audience.

If you take the case of the PolioPlus campaign, while it is commendable that Rotary had a long running global campaign for the eradication of this disease, when the campaign got to its climax, for those outside of the Rotary circle, Rotary was not first to mind when one considered those in the forefront of polio eradication.

The public heard more of the Melinda & Bill Gate Foundation than any other organisation. Bill Gate became more of the face of that eradication in this part of the world than anyone else. I’m not basing this on any empirical data; it’s more of my observation of the public space. It begs the question, who is/are the face(s) of Rotary as regards its different causes in Nigeria?

The Need for Tactical Campaigns: Sadly, with the advent of social media and its retinue of influencers, there is a drift towards short-termism in brand building. Social media in particular is filled with thousands of initiatives and campaigns of different sorts. When you consider a campaign like the Earth Hour by the WWF, the single-mindedness of this one-hour activation is truly magic. The awareness generated around the issue of sustainability through the preservation of the environment from switching off the light by individuals and corporate entities at a designated day and hour around the world speaks to effectiveness.

Within the context of globally agreed causes within the Rotary world, what opportunities can we explore locally to create the sort of impact that is unmissable. A quick look through the Rotary social media pages at the moment doesn’t leave one with a sense of impact. Rather, it’s more of an album of activities.

Nuancing and Contextualising Global Messages: Being part of a global network is a great advantage. This affords Rotary the power to drive one singular message across the nooks and crannies of the world. While the thrust of the message may be the same everywhere, it is not likely for the context to be the same. It’s for this reason that deliberate attempts must be made to localize global campaigns. This will make the campaigns more relatable and much more effective in delivering the desired outcomes. This will also lead to talkability.

Aiming For Impact Beyond Rotary: I personally commend Rotary for its foresight in establishing Rotaract clubs as a way of attracting the next generation. However, one still gets the sense that Rotary activities are confined to the world of Rotary as regards their reach.

It is important that Rotary deploys media-neutral ideas that deliberately target non-members, especially the youth, using the most relevant platforms that they can relate with to enable them take interest in Rotary as an entity as well as support their activities. This is when the magic of IMC really does its job.

A good example of this is another brilliant campaign from the WWF titled #Last Selfie. Using the Snap Chat platform, pictures of different animals that are likely to go extinct were posted to users of the platform that disappeared in seconds.

They ended with messages stating this may be the last time they are seen without any support. This same campaign reached over 120 million users on Twitter (now X). The WWF was able to raise their monthly donation target within a week of the campaign.

In conclusion, I would like to commend the founding fathers of Rotary and those of you who have continued to raise the banner of doing good for humanity. Today’s new media platforms may be fragmented.

We have since gone past the age when we all watched the same programme on TV or radio; when newspapers held sway in terms of information and education. Today, the mobile phone could be likened to an extension of our human anatomy. While all of this can appear confusing, therein lies opportunities to find your space and audience as a brand.

What is needed is a well-crafted message with an emotional human angle, delivered through carefully selected channels and deployed to reach your audience wherever they may be. For Rotary, this is the way to keep the magic going.

Thank you for listening. I wish Rotary many more centuries of delivering Service Above Self.

* Lanre Adisa is the President, Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN) and Chairman, Heads of Advertising Sectoral Groups (HASG)

Farooq Kperogi: Tinubu dramatizes hollowness of Nigeria’s “independence”

October 1 is celebrated as Nigeria’s Independence Day. But Nigeria isn’t independent. It is, for all practical purposes, a dependent state, a satellite state, whose political and cultural elites are still tethered to the coattails of colonialism and neocolonialism. Its economy is almost literally run by the World Bank and the IMF, and the older the country gets, the more it seems to tighten the apron strings that tie it to its former colonial overlord.

No one illustrates this contradiction and emotional dissonance more dramatically, not to mention more symbolically, than President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who chose to depart for the United Kingdom, Nigeria’s former colonizer, for a two-week annual leave just a day after celebrating Nigeria’s so-called 64th independence from British colonialism.

To publicize traveling to rest in a country that colonized you, a day after celebrating freedom from that country’s colonialism is the ultimate national self-ridicule. It’s like a woman throwing a party to celebrate her emancipation from an oppressive relationship with a wild brute, only to show up at her ex-partner’s doorstep the next morning to seek validation.

A president choosing to spend personal time in the country that once colonized his own projects an image of lingering dependence on the former colonial power. It’s an implicit endorsement of the cultural and societal norms of the colonizer over those of the home country and raises questions about national pride and the commitment to fostering domestic tourism and economic growth.

Most world leaders opt to spend their annual leave within their own countries or in neutral locations to support local economies. For instance, former U.S. President Barack Obama often vacationed in the state of Hawaii, his birthplace, while French presidents traditionally spend holidays in French territories. These choices reflect a conscious effort to remain connected with their homeland and to promote its attractions.

Like Muhammadu Buhari before him, Tinubu didn’t find any part of Nigeria worthy of his presidential annual leave. London is worthier of presidential annual leave than any part of Nigeria because these leaders actually disdain Nigeria, which provides the political, social, and cultural basis of their power. That’s such an unrelieved national tragedy.

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Nigeria boasts diverse landscapes, rich cultural heritage, and numerous tourist attractions—from the savannahs of the north to the coastal regions of the south, from Yankari Game Reserve in Bauchi to Obudu Ranch Resort in Cross River. By vacationing domestically, the president could spotlight these attractions, boost national tourism and inspire citizens to explore their own country.

It would also send a strong message to potential international tourists (whom this and previous governments seem fixated on attracting) about the safety and appeal of Nigeria as a destination.

But choosing to vacation abroad, particularly in the former colonizing country, redirects personal expenditure away from the domestic economy. While the economic impact of a single individual’s spending might be minimal, the symbolic loss is significant. It suggests a lack of confidence in the nation’s infrastructure, leisure facilities, or security— issues that are within the president’s remit to address and that he claims he is deeply concerned about.

The timing of the trip particularly exacerbates its symbolic dissonance. October 1 is not—or should not be— merely a historical marker; it is—or should be— an annual reaffirmation of Nigeria’s autonomy and identity. Departing for Britain immediately after such a celebration diminishes the day’s significance.

It conveys a message that, despite official rhetoric, the ties to the colonial past remain unsevered on a personal level for the president who should symbolize our national identity and pride.

Leadership everywhere but particularly in transitional, post-colonial countries like Nigeria that are still battling national self-image issues carries the added responsibility of shaping and reinforcing national identity.

The personal choices of presidents often serve as a reflection of their commitment to this role. By engaging in actions that align with national interests and cultural pride, leaders can foster a stronger sense of unity and purpose among the populace.

To be fair to Tinubu, he has signaled from the inchoate stage of his presidency that he wants no truck with national self-pride and that he is a fawning, unapologetic crawler of British colonialism. That was why he pushed the restoration of the discredited, self-humiliating colonial national anthem through the National Assembly with unprecedently breakneck speed.

In my June 1, 2024, column titled “‘New’ National Anthem is National Self-Debasement,” I observed that it’s inexcusable national self-humiliation to discard a home-made national anthem, irrespective of its defects, for one that was made by an imperialist whose influence we’re supposed to be independent of.

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“A country whose symbolic song of independence is inspired, written, and composed by the appendicular remnants of imperialist oppressors of whom the country has supposedly been independent for more than six decades isn’t worthy of its independence. Such a country has lost the moral and philosophical argument for independence and against recolonization,” I wrote.

The national anthem, as an auditory emblem of sovereignty, should carry the weight of our independence and self-fashioning. “Arise, O Compatriots,” whatever its deficiencies, was a product of Nigerian composers who won a national contest in 1978.

The national anthem should be a rallying cry. It should encapsulate the country’s ideals, aspirations, and identity, as espoused by the citizens of the country. Reverting to an anthem with colonial ties is a step backward in Nigeria’s journey toward solidifying its post-colonial identity.

So, it should come as no surprise that a president who so casually and so thoughtlessly discarded a homemade national anthem for one that was composed by a British woman is so enamored of colonial tutelage that he chooses to depart for the country that colonized his country a day after celebrating independence from the colonizer.

I noticed that the usual patriotic fervor that most Nigerians evince on October 1 was noticeably absent this year. Maybe it’s because they can sense the lack of investment in Nigeria’s pride right from the presidency—in addition, of course, to the raging hunger and listlessness in the land.

What’s the point of patriotism and national pride when the president of your country is so ashamed of the country that he is restoring symbols of colonial domination?

I was especially piqued that the official statement announcing his London trip said the president “will use the two weeks as a working vacation and a retreat to reflect on his administration’s economic reforms.” What? Why does he need to go to London to reflect on the death and destruction that his IMF/World Bank economic policies are inflicting on Nigerians?

Nigeria is the theater of destruction. That’s where he should be to reflect on his IMF/World Bank economic policies whose outcome is already foretold—deepening mass poverty, hopelessness, torment, extermination of the middle class, etc.

Maybe Tinubu doesn’t need a vacation anywhere. He only needs to descend from his Olympian presidential height to the streets of Nigeria to see the cries, tears, and blood of everyday folks being crushed by the impossibly ponderous weight of his sadistic economic policies.

Farooq Kperogi: Tinubu dramatizes hollowness of Nigeria’s “independence”

Farooq Kperogi is a renowned columnist and United States-based Professor of Media Studies.

How FRSC emerged best in FG website performance under new Corps Marshal

By Bisi Kazeem

Nigeria is one of the few African countries that have leveraged some road safety principles and recorded remarkable progress in road safety administration and management despite a ‘gloomy’ beginning.

The road safety situation in Nigeria was so deplorable that the World Health Organisation once described the country as ‘worst in the world to travel’ only next to Ethiopia.

That narrative changed through government’s efforts by establishing the Federal Road Safety Commission as the Lead Agency to guarantee safety on every centimetre of Nigeria’s expansive road network of 204,000km. This establishment was done ten years prior to United Nations’ recommendation for all member states to establish agencies directly situated under the central government for ease of unfettered operation.

In its three decades of unbroken services to humanity as a lead agency in traffic and safety management, FRSC has recorded tremendous achievements in the area of Traffic Engineering, Road Safety Administration, Traffic Management and Crash Reduction.

The Corps has now come of age after going through good times and tides. Through the use of state of the art Information Technology facilities, the Corps has been able to enhance its operational capacity aimed at promoting public safety and security. Having been propelled by the imperatives of entrenching ease of doing business as well as aligning with international standards in all fronts, the Corps has successfully designed and operated over 30 web applications for its operational activities so as to create an accessible platform for the general public.

Some of these applications cover the Uniform Licensing Scheme, under which is the One Driver One Record which enables FRSC to track and match records of drivers with their drivers licence, vehicle number plate, traffic offences and others in a single view.

Introduction of the toll free 122 emergency number and a 24 hours call centre established to reduce response time for crash victims; a single step that has reduced emergency response time from 50 minutes to 15 minutes, thereby decreasing the number of fatalities in crash situations. More so, the introduction of Verification Portal for drivers licence and number plates, the introduction of the Road Transport Safety Standardisation Scheme (RTSSS) for uniformity and harmonization of fleet operators in the country, the Driving School Standardisation Scheme (DSSP), the introduction of the speed limiting device whose enforcement began on 1st February, 2017, introduction of vehicle and body-worn cameras to monitor patrol operations, and the vehicle tracking system among others, are policies formulated and implemented to fight road traffic crash in the country to extinction.

The Corps led that foundation for itself, knowing that the road transportation sector in Nigeria accounts for over 90% of passengers and freight movement, and this exerts undue pressure on the FRSC in discharging its cardinal responsibilities.

In view of the growing need to surmount these visible and invisible challenges, the Corps embarked on several reforms which include but not limited to the following: Development of a national road safety strategy road map, improved operational efficiency, enhanced regulatory environment, and accelerated response capability to situations that needed immediate actions.

Added to the aforementioned, the Corps took a step further, defined its path in tandem with UN decade of action as well as the mantra of functional 21st century organization by chatting a path to meet the Accra Declaration of 50% Reduction in Fatality by 2015.

That aside, it went all the way to institute modalities to achieve UN Decade of Action on Road Safety of 50% Fatality Reduction by 2020, and placed Nigerian roads within the league of 20 global safest roads by 2020, as well as UN Decade of Action 2021-2030 which aims at having a society where crashes result in no deaths.

To achieve the stated targets, the Corps developed transformational initiatives focused on People, Processes and Technology (PPT).

That is why today, not only do its staff pride as the most disciplined, but the Corps stands as the best Information Technology-driven organization in Nigeria with its robust data base and over 95 percentage digitalized administrative and operational procedures.

Having given that background, it is noteworthy to look at how the Corps, under the leadership of the present Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, who of course, was amongst members of the group who blazed the trail to set up what is now known as a technology-driven organization, emerged the best amongst over 315 MDAs in website performance and ranking.

It may interest you to know that the 2023-2024 Federal Government Scorecard for ranking Websites of Ministries, Departments and Agencies is an essential benchmark for evaluating the current state of government websites in Nigeria.

The FRSC’s website was selected as the best following a very meticulous, highly diligent and extremely objective review of the Websites of 315 MDAs which were subjected to evaluation for the period under consideration.

The Bureau of Public Service Reforms, a Federal Government agency under the Presidency that organised and issued the award on behalf of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR justified the relevance of the ranking.

According to them, the effectiveness and functionality of government websites have become a critical component of Nigeria’s public service reform agenda as the nation increasingly adopts digital platforms as the primary means of communication, service delivery and information dissemination. As such, FRSC’s website was found to host a huge collection of information about all products and services of the Corps for the consumption of the general public. This feat placed the Corps ahead of its contemporaries in public service.

That said, to unravel the mystery behind how FRSC made it to the top in information technology and eventually emerged best amongst peers, it is important to look at the direction of leadership and policy focus of the administration of Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed.

The trajectory of his career as a road safety professional from the day he joined the services of the agency till date is the very factor that has shaped him as an all-rounder in road safety management and administration with a firm and fair handling of goal-oriented affairs as the Corps Marshal.

Upon assumption of office, Shehu Mohammed alongside his team of management, designed and implemented programmes of action, as well as a proactive template to advance the growth of the Corps in all ramifications, with the aim of trending down road crashes and fatality rate.

Being a believer in technology, the Corps Marshal made the digitisation of FRSC operations a cardinal part of his policy thrust. To that end, he took a bold step that was the first of its kind since the establishment of the Corps, by appointing a Technical Adviser who will mount the wheels that would eventually bring FRSC to speed in the deployment of information technology in the work place.

This placement of round pegs in round holes was the catalyst, the propellant force, as well as the icing on the cake that catapulted the Corps to more enviable heights and achievements in digitisation.

Retrospectively, Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed has been an integral part of the digitalization process and has driven the technology feat of this noble organization for years now, beginning from Corps Marshal Osita Chidoka who started the revolution to the erstwhile Corps Marshal, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi who sustained the expertise, through to the immediate past Corps Marshal, Dauda Ali Biu who kept the momentum.

To say the least, his experience has seen the Corps measuring to billing as he is already on the glorious path of unravelling the mystery that would finally bring about the overall digitisation of FRSC operations.

Additionally, just as stated in my last piece, part of the major initiatives introduced by Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed that brought about the needed result for the Corps is the ongoing digital revolution.

The introduction of Electronic Document Management System (paperless) in the workplace would surely make FRSC the first Federal Government agency to go paperless. This initiative, apart from the speed it will bring to the workplace, will also enhance ease of doing business and bring down the cost of governance.

In the same vein, adequate progress is being recorded on the operational front too. Shehu Mohammed has gone a step further by initiating and launching the first FRSC Mobile Application, a one-stop shop for all FRSC products and services, for quality service delivery.

The FRSC Mobile App was introduced to generate and analyse real-time data on operations, Traffic Crashes data management, and road conditions, and provide customers with feedback on the Corps’ products.

The introduction of the National Crash Information Recording System portal (NACRIS) is another ground-breaking robust data collation initiative that will help in policy formulation, planning, and education.

With this portal, Nigerians could easily report cases of crashes from the point of crash. This initiative will boost data legitimacy and change global perception of FRSC crash data reports for good.

The Corps under his purposeful leadership has proved to be right on track to allay the menace of road traffic crashes on Nigerian roads and usher in a season where there would be no crashes; where even if crashes will occur, it would not result in the death of any Nigerian.

Achievements of such would be recorded based on many pillars and strict implementation of his policy thrust fused in the Corporate Strategic goals of the Corps.

To this end, suffice to state that as a performance-driven organization, with clearly set measurable Key Performance Indicators, FRSC is today, the only law enforcement organization in Nigeria certified by the International Standard Organization.

* Bisi Kazeem, a veteran road safety professional and a public relations expert, writes from Lagos, Nigeria.