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Marketing Africa WFA

41% of African marketers believe there isn’t enough talent coming into the industry, says WFA research

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By John McCarthy, Opinion Editor

March 18, 2015 | 3 min read

A survey of 82 prominent African marketers saw 41 per cent claim that there are not enough talented young people coming into the industry with an additional third claiming the best talent is being poached by agencies in other regions, according to the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA).

The research, undertaken with the co-operation of Millward Brown and national advertiser associations in Cameroon (CMA), Kenya (MSK), Morocco (GAM), Nigeria (ADVAN), South Africa (MASA) and Zimbabwe (MAZ), saw two thirds of respondents agree that there was a lack of basic market level data in their region.

45 per cent blamed the continent’s lack of infrastructure for the industry's weak marketing data collection techniques. A full 55 per cent claimed that this lack of grass roots insight into the market held back investment.

The tools being used to measure investment return also varied with 72 per cent using brand tracking, 60 per cent media tracking and 52 per cent applying direct response analysis.

Stephan Loerke, WFA managing director, said: “Africa offers huge and untapped potential for the brands that can not only manage their budgets efficiently but also connect with its populations via powerful insights.

"We should not underestimate both the amazing work that’s already taking place in Africa but also the opportunity for it to grow even faster."

Charles Foster, managing director of Millward Brown Africa and Middle East, added: “Africa’s main challenges lie in its enormous size and diversity; it’s imperative that companies wanting to succeed and grow here recognise that the continent isn’t one economy or homogenous population block.

"Africa is a conglomerate of 54 countries that, more often than not, don’t share policies and attitudes, and have evolved differently through their social and economic pasts."

Foster concluded: "The WFA Study highlights that, for marketers, success requires a thorough understanding of local cultures, beliefs, customs, economics, and practices.”

Despite the need to develop an “African solution” to solve many of the encroached above issues, 61 per cent of respondents agreed that marketing in the region was an attractive career choice.

This comes after Barclays marketer David Wheldon took over the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) replacing Martin Riley as president yesterday (Tuesday 17 March).

Marketing Africa WFA

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