Digital Branding

In one word Branding is perception. Digital branding is all about establishing your brand's story and presence in the digital space. Your brand is what you put out for people to think about you. Digital branding  is the key to establishing a meaningful connection with your target audience. 

It’s about using your uniqueness that differentiates you and your offerings from every other person in the world

In today's world, your digital brand determines if you will be heard, seen or listened to because you are no longer just in competition with people living in Nigeria, you are in competition with the whole world

Digital branding is a term that’s used rather loosely to describe all the different ways in which a business draws in its customers online.  It includes a number of different aspects of marketing including SEO, online advertising, content marketing, social media, and influencer marketing.

Your digital brand is divided into 3 parts

1. Your Digital Identity

2. Your Visibility

3. Your Credibility

1. Your Digital Identity

Your digital identity is the total compilation of information about you that exists in digital form — this can be everything from your date of birth to something you like on Facebook or Instagram.A brand can’t just tell us what it represents and then expect us to believe it. A brand needs to live its values and then communicate them via digital branding.

See also 9 tips for growing a successful business

2. Your Visibility

Consider this all the touchpoints at which your target audience is exposed to your brand in the digital space.This includes your website, online search results, social media networks, and review sites.Naturally, priority and resources are placed on “controlled” touchpoints such as your website but the most influential touchpoints are ones that are “uncontrolled” which are your ratings and review sites. You can control your visibility through digital ads and search engine optimization

3. Your Credibility

You can spend years building your credibility but it can take seconds to be ruined. It is important to actively build the feedback loop with your target audience to protect your creditability

If you are a fan of shoes, would you rather pick nike ✔️ or road side sneakers?

Would you rather go for Coca-Cola or triumph-cola

Would you rather buy nestle water or gracey water?

*How to build your digital brand*

In order to build your brand you must answer these questions

• Who are you?
• What makes you unique from other brands?
• What problem are you solving?
• What is your brand's message?
• What are your values?
• Who is your ideal customer or audience?
• Target your audience

Your online presence is still in the premiere mode by which most potential customers will learn about and interact with your brand. 

Digital branding let’s you zero-in on your audience by targeting specific customer groups through the online platforms they use most frequently: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and tik-tok and others.

Connect with customers

Successful digital branding makes customers feel like you’re speaking directly to them, especially because you’re engaging on the same platforms they use to interact with friends and family members.

You need to be personal and meaningful: that’s how you convert one-time customers into lifelong brand followers.

At its core, digital branding facilitates communication between you and your customers. 

Ultimately, a brand that isn’t searchable online practically doesn’t exist in the 

contemporary consumer’s mind.

Components of Branding

1. Logo

A logo is the single image a customer should associate first-and-foremost with your brand. When you Think about Apple and you instantly conjure an illuminated fruit. When you think about nike you immediately see a correct sign.

Your Logo should match the personality and values of your business, industry and target audience. While you don’t want to get too flashy, your logo design should be memorable enough to leave an impression, but not so complicated that audience members won’t remember it.

2. Social media

Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat: almost everyone, including your 85-year-old grandma, has some sort of social media presence. If your customers are there, your brand should be too.

Tailor every post to the platform on which it appears. 

Snapchat intends to be fun, lively and targeted toward a younger crowd.

Instagram posts are image-driven and designed to drive likes and comments.

Twitter works in real-time and responds to current events and news. 

Facebook is a little bit of everything with an emphasis on behind-the-scenes content about how your brand works.

3. Website

If your logo is the sign for your business, your website is your digital storefront location. 

When a customer wants to know your brick-and-mortar locations, your hours of operation, your product listings or your contact information, they won’t be digging through the phone book. 

They’ll Google your website, where they’ll expect to find information quickly and easily.

If you don't have a website yet have a business page online to serve as an interim website

 Brand Messaging

Brand messaging is what you say and how you say it. 

The message should reflect what your company does and believes, and speak succinctly to your customers’ immediate needs and desires.

A successful brand message should answer these questions:

What do you do?

What do you stand for?

Why do you matter?

For example consider this message

As a result of what I do as a Digital Strategist and a Software Engineer; Entrepreneurial minded people are able to create, keep and multiply their income, influence and impact utilizing the digital resources available to them.

It could also be

I help Entrepreneurial minded people to create, keep and multiply their income, influence and impact using the digital resources available to them.

The template is 

I help X do Y using Z

Where 

X is your ideal customer

Y is the problem you are solving 

Z is the means by which you will solve the problem.


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The Nigerian president has expressed deep concern over a high number of unexplained deaths in the northern state of Kano, amid fears they could be caused by Covid-19.

President Muhammadu Buhari said a lockdown would be imposed in Kano for an additional two weeks, and that he was sending a government team to investigate.

Nigeria's Health Minister Dr Osagie Ehanire says the situation is being "monitored closely".

But following preliminary investigations the state authorities have dismissed a connection with coronavirus.

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Don't tests show the cause of death?

How many people have died?

Hundreds of people are rumoured to have died in the community but no official death records are kept.

Grave diggers initially raised concerns that they were burying a higher than usual number of bodies.

Ali, a grave digger at the Abattoir Graveyard, told the BBC: "We have never seen this, since the major cholera outbreak that our parents tell us about. That was about 60 years ago."

This week, the state governor issued a statement saying the "mysterious deaths" were unrelated to coronavirus.

But after ordering a "thorough investigation into the immediate and remote causes of the deaths", announced that their preliminary findings "indicated that the deaths are not connected to the Covid-19 pandemic".T

The state GOVERNMENTsaid "reports from the state ministry of health has shown that most of the deaths were youcaused by complications arising from hypertension, diabetes, meningitis and acute malaria".

"Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje is earnestly waiting for the final report from the state ministry of health so as to take the necessary action."

The commercial and industrial centre of the north, Kano has become the epicentre of coronavirus in northern Nigeria. Its highly dense population is still in lockdown in an effort to contain the spread of the virus.

State officials started testing for Covid-19 two weeks ago and one lab has had to close due to contamination. Samples are being sent to the capital, Abuja, which authorities say is causing a delay in announcing how many positive cases have been detected in the state.

Dr Sani Aliyu, who is the national co-ordinator for the presidential task force on Covid-19, says a team of five medical experts were deployed to Kano to facilitate in reopening the testing centre this week after it was fumigated.

Officials also plan to open a second lab, at Bayero University, for testing for Covid-19 from next week.

It is unclear how many people have died, as the deaths causing concern are happening in the community. Deaths in many parts of Nigeria are not registered, and so for those who died outside of hospital, no records are kept.

This makes it difficult to understand how many people have died in recent weeks.

Sabitu Shaibu, the deputy head of the state task force on Covid-19, is hoping to release preliminary findings of the investigation by next week but believes that most of the rumoured 640 deaths are from natural causes and says the figure is below the average death rate for Kano.

Hospital records which provide the only death register available are thought to provide lower numbers than the real picture across the state.

Those on the investigating taskforce say they will conduct "verbal autopsies" with family members to help establish why people are dying.

If not coronavirus, what else could be going on?

Private hospitals which provide for a significant part of health provision in the region have been closed due to coronavirus fears. This could mean a lack of support for those with existing conditions who may have died as a result.

Dr Nagoma Sadiq who works at the Aminu Kano Hospital, thinks this could be behind the additional deaths, but he is also not ruling out coronavirus.

"It's shocking to most of us that the count of the dead is alarming. But it's likely due to the reduction in the number of health institutions available in the state.

"Because there are a lot of hypertensive patients, diabetic patients, asthmatic patients, cancer patients, and they don't have much access to the hospitals. The lockdown is affecting everybody.

"Our poor majority don't even have a vehicle to take them to the hospitals."

Grave digger Ali agrees, adding "some say the current situation is due to the epidemic, others say it's difficulties of life. People have so many problems in their lives and a lack of peace of mind."

However Covid-19 is known to be more dangerous for those with underlying health conditions, so it could be that the deaths are related to coronavirus. The only way to know for sure is to test for coronavirus.

Dr Sadiq also said that there was still a concern about an ongoing Lassa fever infection amongst communities. The state has had five confirmed cases and one death, according to the most recent report from the Nigerian Centre For Disease Control.

Kano currently has 77 positive cases of coronavirus with three deaths.

Authorities are urging the public not to panic.

What else did the president announce?

President Buhari announced a gradual easing of lockdown restrictions in Abuja, Lagos and neighbouring Ogun state from next Monday.

But he also said that the government would impose a curfew across the country between 20:00 and 06:00, require everyone to wear face masks in public, and stop "non-essential inter-state passenger travel".

Bans on social and religious gatherings will also remain in place.

I’ve never been sexually harassed –Ronke Gold, actress

Fondly called Ronke Gold by her fans and colleagues, Lucia Aderonke Adedeji has carved a place for herself in the Yoruba sector of the movie industry.

Aside featuring in over 30 movies since her debut in 2013, the actress has also produced two films of her own. In this chat, she talks about her journey into the industry among other issues.

When and how did you come into the movie industry?

I have always loved acting from childhood, but I came into the movie industry fully in 2013 when I met actress Wunmi Ajiboye at a programme.

How did your parents react to your decision to become an actress? 

Initially, they had their reservations, but they later gave their consent after several interventions especially from my aunt, who truly believed in me.

How many movies have featured you till date?

I can’t really recall because they are many, but I can remember some of them like Jibola Naija, Oro, Iranse Meta, Eda, Adajo Sope, Abara Meji, and Fisayo Alagbaraetc.

Tell us about your growing up. 

I was born in Osun State, but I relocated to Lagos at an early age. I had my primary school education in Lagos but later went back to Osun State for my secondary education. I had my tertiary education at Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta, Ogun State. I was raised in a God-fearing home, with emphasis on hard work and honesty.

What was the greatest challenge you encountered at the initial stage of your career?

That would be balancing my education alongside my acting career. Also, the fact that I had to get my parents’ consent was like a little push back for me then. But, here I am today to the glory of God.

Who is your role model in the movie industry?

It’s Wunmi Ajiboye definitely. She was my boss and she greatly influenced me. Though, I have also learnt from so many top actors, Wunmi Ajiboye has so much influence on me than any other person in the industry.

Have you ever been sexually harassed? 

No, I have never had the misfortune of being sexually harassed. But I do hear about it from other colleagues.

What can stop you from acting? 

I pray that there won’t ever be anything that will stop me from my passion. I so much love acting. I can’t stop acting for anything except God instructs me to do so.

Can marriage stop you from acting? 

I have been married with a son for a while now, and I have been coping well, to the glory of God.

Aside moving making, what else do you do for a living? 

I have a fabrics store and I recently started learning fashion designing too.

What was your most challenging role so far? 

I don’t think I have had a challenging role. Maybe, when I was pregnant and I had a movie scene where I had to scream, that really hurts.

What is your fashion routine? 

I am not really into that but sometimes I do light makeup when I am going out. When I am indoors, I tend to remain natural.

How best do you think sex-for-role can be minimised in the industry?

The most important thing is to be convinced of what you want. Nobody can force anyone, just walk out if you are being harassed.

Tell us about the movies you have produced? 

I have produced two movies, Fisayo Alagbaraand Se Ebi Mi Ni.Fisayo Alagbarais already out while the other is yet to be released. Cases of rape in the society inspired Fisayo Alagbara. Cost of production is very high. It costs a lot to produce a good movie, especially with the buzz and publicity.

Do you think controversy sells your jobs well?

For some, it does, but I don’t follow that school of thought. I prefer my work to speak for me.

How best do you think actors can help the government to cub the spread of COVID-19? 

I think actors can help by using their social media platforms to create constant awareness, just like Toyin Abraham is doing on her Instagram page at the moment. Awareness is key, a lot of people are still naïve, and that’s a way we can help the government.