Akwa Ibom journalists, bloggers, advertising agencies explore collaboration

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Journalists, bloggers, social media influencers, and advertising agencies in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria’s South-south, converged on Tuesday, 9 September, in Uyo, to discuss how collaboration among them can bring about mutual benefits.

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The media convergence, organised by Pear Media and Marketing Services to mark its 10th anniversary, had as its theme, “Stronger Voices, Greater Impact”.

“For us, collaboration is (about) amplifying voices, amplifying visibility. And once I can’t have that done alone, we have to leverage the other arms of the media,” Unyime Ebong, the managing director of Pear Media and Marketing, a marketing and advertising firm, said during a panel discussion at the event.

“You cannot be in the digital space and isolate yourself,” she added.

Mrs Ebong, in her welcome remarks, talked about the rise of digital media, the power of social media, and the continued relevance of traditional media. She said that neither old nor new media can exist in isolation.

“Convergence and collaboration are the keys to influence and impact,” she stressed.

Acknowledging strengths, weaknesses of social media

Participants at the event acknowledged the wider reach and the speed of information dissemination by social media such as Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp. They also acknowledged their challenges, especially the issues around trust, which they said could be adequately tackled if bloggers and social media influencers work with respectable newspapers, radio, and television stations in Nigeria.

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“The traditional media have, over the decades, built trust,” Joseph Akpan, the managing director of De-Mbarukas Ltd, an outdoor advertising and integrated consultancy firm, said at the panel discussion.

“Whenever someone talks about something (news event) that has happened, the first question people ask is: ‘Where did you see it?’ If you say, you saw it on Facebook, they’ll say, ‘Oh, I thought you saw it in a newspaper!’”

Mr Akpan, represented by Ini Ikpe, a staff member of De-Mbarukas, said bloggers and social media influencers could clear doubt about their offerings by collaborating with journalists.

Cletus Ukpong, Premium Times’ assistant managing editor in charge of Nigeria’s South-south and South-east, explained how such collaboration could work.

“Bloggers and social media influencers could earn credibility if they have their work validated by the traditional media, while the bloggers and social media influencers could help in sharing the reports from the traditional media down the line, to a different level of audience,” Mr Ukpong said, while also praising Pear Media for organising the convergence.

Some speakers at the event pointed to the partnership between Mrs Ebong’s Pear Media and De-Mbarukas as an example of a mutually profitable collaboration.

“Let me tell you how we got to know Pear Media. We do billboards. One day, Unyime (Ebong) put a call to us, saying that she has a client she is managing their social media accounts, and she feels she can increase their publicity by using our billboards to publicise them more across the state.

That’s how we got to know Pear Media. Since then, we have been working together for the past 10 years,” Mr Akpan said while talking about the De-Mbarukas’ partnership with Pear Media.

Mrs Ebong, the managing director of Pear Media, said her organisation is always looking out for partnerships that could help give clients value for their money.

“For us, it’s about creating the synergy for results, and not working in isolation. So, we bring in the old media strategically. And we bring in the new media. Then we create our own strategies to achieve results,” she said.

A social media influencer, Akainyene Elijah, popularly known as Oga Yenne, was among the participants at the convergence. He said the discussions at the meeting resonated with a decision he said he took recently to “readjust and be more cautious” about what he puts out on Facebook, where he has a great following.

“I need to learn from people who are more experienced in the media. I don’t want to write or post stuff that will put me or my family in trouble,” Mr Elijah said, expressing his readiness to collaborate with journalists.

He said he would love to get registered with the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), so that he could learn, collaborate with journalists, and be protected under a recognised structure.

Old, unworkable models

Idongesit Ashameri, the Daily Independent correspondent in Akwa Ibom and the guest lecturer at the event, urged advertising agencies to do away with outdated models that are focused on “just buying attention” and embrace strategic media partnerships.

“We all remember the golden age of advertising. A 30-second TV spot, a full-page magazine ad. You controlled the message, you controlled the medium. That world is gone,” Mrs Ashameri said.

“Today, consumers are armed with ad-blockers and scepticism. They don’t trust advertisements; they trust authenticity. They trust storytelling. And most importantly, they trust the voices they’ve chosen to let into their lives: their favourite journalist, a niche influencer, a respected trade publication.

“This isn’t a threat. This is the single greatest opportunity for communicators like us. Our role is no longer just to create messages. It is to orchestrate ecosystems where brands and media co-create value,” she said.

Nsibiet John, the chairperson of the NUJ, Akwa Ibom State Council, who was a panellist at the event, commended Pear Media for consistency in brand management and product advertising, adding that “it’s a notable achievement”.

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Mr John advised brand managers to always work with professionals in the media industry if they want to get desired results.

“The road is large enough,” he said. “There won’t be successful collaboration if you count the media out.”

A former chairperson of the NUJ, Akwa Ibom State Council, Joe Effiong, a presenter with Inspiration FM 105. 9 Uyo, Pamela Akpomedaye, a journalist with TheMail newspaper, Ekemini Simon, and the Chancellor of the Conference of Online Publishers in Akwa Ibom State, Utitofon Ukpong, were among the participants at the event.