ODESHI 018 - How To Be A Successful Internet Marketer In Africa with Stephanie Obi

This may come as a surprise to some people, but I’m not a very good marketer. I have a challenging time coming up with creative ways to promote the podcast online, be it Mobile, Social, PPC, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. The whole thing just becomes a little overwhelming.

That's why I decided to interview Stephanie Obi, a fast-rising online marketer based out of Lagos, Nigeria, because she's developed a cure to help businesses improve their online presence. Stephanie is the founder of the popular marketing blog, Stephanieobi.com, and the Steph B-School. While Stephanieobi.com focuses on presenting her uniquely personalized marketing strategies to people, the Steph B-School is an online business school that trains entrepreneurs and business savvy individuals in the skills necessary to create, launch, grow, and monetize their businesses. Stephanie is very passionate and enthusiastic about helping people use the internet and new media technologies to create the life of their dreams. In addition to all this, she provides a training program where she teaches entrepreneurs to leverage the power of the internet to sell fashion accessories. And she also runs a nonprofit training center that empowers young women with the skills necessary to go into business with knowledge and confidence.

Ever the scholar and natural-born entrepreneur, Stephanie has a first-class degree in Computer Science from Covenant University, and an MBA from the prestigious Lagos Business School. She also has a wealth of experience from working with blue chip companies like Ericsson, the Tony Elumelu Foundation, and L'Oreal. Armed with all these experiences and achievements, she is quietly becoming the go-to person for brands that want to succeed in the highly competitive West African market. In addition to her business endeavors, she is also an award winning entrepreneur, obtaining the first prize at the Wimbiz Impact Investment Competition, as well as the first runner-up position at the Standard Chartered Bank sponsored Dragons Den Competition. Every week at www.stephanieobi.com, she inspires thousands of people to use the internet strategically to grow their businesses.

 What you will learn

• The Big Idea
• How she started her entrepreneurial  journey selling Ankara accessories
  • How online marketing influenced her business and inspired her

• How she transitioned into the online training field
• The evolution of  her  personality from that of an accessories business owner to an online marketing trainer
• The struggles of building an audience for online business owners
• The opportunity in online education and why it needs to be as  prevalent as online shopping

• • prevailing skepticism about  using online technology
  • bias towards gathering certificates as opposed to getting applied skills to use

• How she provides  technology friendly online educational courses
• Concerns regarding the issue of piracy
• Thoughts on young people going into entrepreneurship
• Getting funding to start her online school

• • Winning the Women in Management and Business Competition  (Wimbiz)

• How her family viewed her entrepreneurial journey
• Some of the major challenges she faced starting her business

• • Accommodating the power and technology needs in the Nigerian climate

• Entrepreneurs she admires

• • Tara Fela-Durotoye of House of Tara
  • Sim Shagaya of Konga
  • Bukky George of HealthPlus

Books

• Bishop Oyedepo books

 Key Advice

• Advice to recent grads thinking of launching a venture in Nigeria,:

• • It is okay to be confused. It is through your confusion that you will find answers.
    • It’s okay to explore because it is through exploration that you learn what you like or don’t like.
    • Start a business for the right reasons.
    • Work hard and encourage yourself. Prepare your mind for challenges that will eventually come.
    • YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT!

Words of wisdom

• The internet is an amazing tool. You can use it to shine, and so you should, but use it well. So, SHINE ONLINE!

Contact me:

www.stephanieobi.com