Encomium
Dr. Ope Banwo is a popular lawyer, who has invested immensely in the entertainment industry. In this interview with ENCOMIUM Weekly he talks about his interest in the internet business, issues surrounding his entertainment company Stingomania and more.
You have been silent for a while what have you been up to lately?
I have been working as an internet solutions provider. In the last couple of years, I have focused my attention almost exclusively on providing internet based solutions for not just Nigerians, but the world.
Have you dumped law and entertainment for your new interest?
Although I have been involved in several businesses including entertainment, I consider myself a serious netpreneur now.
What do you mean by Netpreneur?
As a solutions provider, most of my products and solutions in the last two years have been based on how internet business can be better and more profitable not just by Nigerian businesses, but by enterprising Nigerians. For me, the internet now represents the melting point where all businesses converge to create a new dynamic marketplace that affects every area of our life.
It’s difficult to believe that the internet can generate more profit when compared to law or entertainment, is this really possible?
Yes, it is. In fact, it is the direction of commerce, human interaction and the future. It has become very obvious that everything is converging on the internet. I mean, everything including law; entertainment; business; government; banking; insurance; telecoms, etc.
Every sector of the economy is affected by the internet explosion. Almost overnight, the internet has swiftly become the new marketplace and the new terrain for dissemination of information; for making sales; and for interacting with customers among others. Small companies are there. Mega companies are there. Politicians are there. Religious leaders are there.
How did you find this out?
I realized that the next set of billionaires and millionaires are going to be created on the internet, and it is strategically crucial for me to understand how it works and how I can provide solutions to solve problems that will naturally arise from the emergence of the internet as the new marketplace for commerce and industry
Tell us more about this new internet marketplace?
When anything new emerges, it means new opportunities; new market dynamics and new reallocation of resources. It means new problems requiring solutions from solution providers like myself; it means a change in the old economy and method of allocation of resources in the marketplace.
It gives everyone a fresh opportunity to create legacy income regardless of your present status or station at birth. I am so excited that Nigeria is finally catching up with this new phenomenon because it means a whole new generation of social, economic and even political leaders will emerge. I am also excited because the internet is a leveler. It is a new playing field where the small man can still compete with the big boys.
Right now in a place like Nigeria where we don’t even have spam laws yet, it is a wild-wild-west where the little guy can still take down the established companies in different niches. For instance, in the old marketplace, it will take millions of naira for a new bookstore owner to compete with the big stores but with the internet all you need is a good ecommerce site and skills on how to create awareness online for your store and you can compete with the giants.
Can you shed light on the internet as a solution to unemployment?
I think it is a shame that our government has not yet realized the vast potential of the internet in solving the unemployment issues in Nigeria. Instead they are busy dumping billions of naira into traditional initiatives that have no measurable results and which only end enriching those who are already rich as they misuse most of the funds voted for alleviating unemployment in our country.
In order to use the internet as a means for solving unemployment in Nigeria, I believe that the first thing that must be provided is a forum or portal where people can learn internet business and acquire skills that will help them to employ themselves online; be employable worldwide as opposed to just the local environment with limited job opportunities or allow businesses to thrive online by making more sales. As long as people are ignorant about how to exploit the possibilities on the internet, they cannot take advantage of it as a solution to unemployment.
What solutions do you have for this problem?
To play my part in this area and also take advantage of the opportunity in the area of education on internet possibilities, I have introduced several solutions that I believe will go a long way in addressing the problems. One of the innovative solutions I have introduced is the American Internet Business School. This is like the internet business version of the Lagos Business School.
The American Internet Business School is an online learning school that specializes in providing training and education for people on how to do business on the internet. It teaches people how to set up their internet business for profit. It provides courses on how to make sales online regardless of the industry you are in. It also provides training on critical areas of internet business such as social media marketing; list building; freelancing; email marketing; customer service, etc.
This school has individual courses as well as certification courses in different niches for those who want to learn internet business, marketing and sales at very affordable prices. We even have some free courses available on our portalwww.americaninternetbusinessschool.com.
What benefits are there from this school?
The school is for virtually anyone interested in learning internet business. It is useful for companies who need their technical, sales, marketing and customer service staff to know how to do what they do offline on the internet.
It is useful for those who want to learn internet business and how to use the internet for marketing; sales and branding among many other things. We have carefully assembled professional trainings on different areas of the internet that may be of interest to different sectors of the economy and different departments.
We have training on social Media Marketing; we have training on turn-key businesses that anyone can learn and use to employ themselves; we have training on sales and marketing for companies. We have training on virtually every area.
What is the Nigerian Dotcom Awards all about?
It’s an online award. We have already shortlisted five finalists in each of the 25 categories we seek to recognize and encourage this year. The final nominees are being notified and the voting process was for 30 day in September while the eventual winners in each category will be announced at end of October and the awards presentation itself will be on November 22, 2014, in Lagos.
Can you give us an idea some of the categories you are seeking to recognize or give awards to?
The awards categories include Life-Time Achievement Awards for some internet business pioneers from Nigeria. Some of the key categories include Netpreneur Of The Year; Best Internet Marketer; Best Internet Service Provider; Best Payment portal; Best Internet Banking Provider; Best Internet Innovation; Best Technology Blog; Best Entertainment Blog; Best News blog; Best celebrity on Twitter/Facebook; among others.
Lets talk about other things, you used to run Stingomania what happened to it?
Reality happened. Seriously, while I enjoyed and had fun trying to promote very green artistes and superstars, it got to a time that I felt my investment of time, money and energy was not producing the returns on investment that would have made it worth my while to continue.
I also realised, too late, that Nigerian artistes are not really ready for the kind of record label or management style that involves investment by the record label in the career of an artiste in exchange for a share of artiste income down the road.
How do you mean?
Record labels history with their artistes have shown investing in an artiste in Nigeria is almost a fools errand, it is almost as if it is in the DNA of musicians and actresses not to honour written contracts. They are happy to take your investment in them as if you are their parent but when it comes to them living up to their part, they see you as a greedy oppressor. I could tell you tales that could ruin careers of some prominent actors and actresses and musicians I managed but what would be the point.
Why don’t you mention some names to substantiate your allegation?
I only build and do not destroy careers so, I will not mention names. Suffice to say I was disappointed just like many of my predecessors in entertainment management have been and will continue to be. So, my case is not special but I did not have the energy or resources to keep going that route, so I redefined myself and my business. The reality I had to deal with was that, with very few exceptions, most artistes in Nigeria do not honour the terms of their contract once fame comes.
They would agree to anything for you to spend your money, but when it comes to paying you your percentage as agreed before you started spending money, most of them see you as a thief trying to feed off their sweat. Before you know. It its in public with them claiming they are being exploited.
They grant interviews to lie and essentially ruin your reputation if you are not careful. Most leave their benefactors once the going gets good and go out on their own after the label had sweated to help them get their talents appreciated by the public.
Some people will argue that artiste management is not a bad business?
From my experience, the only way a record label or an investing artiste management company can get their money back is to be ready to get in the gutter with defaulting artistes and start chasing them around. I am not ready for that.
What did Stingomania cost you?
At some point I had to take a hard look at myself and accept the obvious conclusion that I am not cut out for that kind of tussle and that the model of investing in new artistes is not the way to go in Nigeria. Like everything else, I didn’t hesitate to change direction when things were not working and I have no apologies.
