The Rationale Behind the Concept of Influence Demystified

Wowzi to Leverage Its Technology to Collaborate With Brands and Explore the Various Industry Influence Segment

In the advent of social media, the idea of influence has been synonymous with having a large following on your social media. Having followers have been thought to mean more influence and fewer followers less influence.

Well…I think this is a flawed concept. Every human being is influential in their own unique ways, irrespective of their number on social media.

Unfortunately, this persistent belief in the industry has led to the loss of millions of dollars in marketing budgets, with many brands concluding that influencer marketing does not work. The question that you’d probably get would be: could you show us the ROI?

In a bid to break new ground and shaping the thinking in this area, Wowzi will be leveraging its technology to collaborate exclusively with a few brands to explore a number of the following ideas:

1. Salonists as Best Influencers for Cosmetics and Hair Products

Africa’s hair extension market is estimated to be worth $619 billion worldwide. This means it is one of the most thriving markets that are worth exploring. A typical woman/lady visits her salon at least once a month. While there, they are served by diligent salonists, who interact with cosmetics and hair products on a daily basis.

They know the best brands and which product is best suited for a particular activity based on their experience. Because of their expertise in this area, women tend to listen to them when they recommend a new product.

Wowzi will work with a cosmetic player to recruit thousands of salonists to become influencers. We see this grassroots model yielding faster and immediate ROI compared to other channels.

2. Mechanics as Best influencers for Engine oils Solutions

Mechanics are the best friends of car owners. They are the verified heroes who we all tend to forget about until our car is spoilt. With thousands of mechanics in Kenya, our thinking is that they would make pretty decent influencers for engine oil products. Whenever you take your car for service, you get a quote and pay for it.

More often than not, the person who decides which engine oil brand to purchase is the mechanic. Imagine having thousands of mechanics speaking about your engine oil product? That in itself speaks volumes about how visible your brand will go just through word-of-mouth.

Wowzi is in talks with a major global player around leveraging mechanics for their next marketing campaign.

3. Teachers as Best influencers for EdTech Products

With schools closed, theirs an influx of EdTech products that have sprung up. Everyone has jumped to the gold rush opportunity of enabling digital education. Teachers command a lot of respect from students, parents, and the community alike. What if an Edtech platform could align its marketing strategy by leveraging the close to 500 million teachers in Kenya?

4. Taxi Drivers as Best Influencers for Petrol Stations

Petrol stations have been struggling to win the loyalty of their customers and increasing their lifetime value. Today I may fuel in Total, tomorrow in Shell, the next day in Kenol/Kobil.

Now, what innovative ways can petrol stations employ to win the hearts of customers? We don’t have all the answers yet but are willing to take a stab at it. Wowzi will be working with a major petrol station brand to explore the possibility of working with Taxi drivers as influencers.

Given the low margins the taxi drivers make, they are keen on leveraging any opportunity to reduce fuel costs.Through a series of unique incentives, Wowzi has figured out a way to help petrol stations sell more and gain customer loyalty.

5. Kids as Best influencers for Pens

Have you ever stopped to think of kids being influencers? Right, your guess is good as mine. Since social media’s birth and the upsurge of influencer marking, brands are now working with kids as influencers.

The concept of “kidfluencers” or, in other terms, “child Vloggers” is gaining traction worldwide. In fact, kids of some celebrities are having millions of followers before they are even born. And for that reason, Wowzi is keenly scrutinizing this trend with concern.

“I once spoke to a pen manufacturing marketing manager who gave me an insight I will never forget. She mentioned that they had determined that kids were the ultimate decision-maker on the type of pen their parents bought through their research. At the supermarket, shopping for back to school, the child would make demands on the kind of pen they wanted, and the parents had no option but to oblige.”

Mike Otieno — Co-Founder, Wowzi

This insight led the pen manufacturer to focus their marketing efforts in schools to enable them to appeal to the kids-the ultimate decision-maker. There’s a lot to ponder regarding the mechanism of pulling this off, but we are willing to take on the challenge.

6. Farmers as Best Influencers for Fertilizers

Your typical smallholder farmer spends the whole year tending to their crops. Over the years, they have mastered which farm inputs that suits their crops. Now, where do you think they get the information about the best seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, etc., to ensure improved harvest?

They get such information from among themselves because they share knowledge and influence each other buying decisions. Wowzi sees this as a perfect opportunity for farmers to influence the right brands, improving their yield, income, and contribution to food security.

7. Nannies as Best Influencers for Cooking Oil

The majority of urban households in Kenya hire a nanny to help with house chores and, most importantly, take care of the children while they go to work. Typically, the nanny has a daily budget to purchase everyday essentials and ensure the daily routines are well executed.

Besides, they tend to have a lot of time at their disposal as they often grace the audience of Nigerian movies synonymous with Kenyan local television stations.

Now, what if brands could leverage nannies to promote cooking oil and other essentials used at home? Why should they consider nannies?

As the controller of the daily budget, they ultimately make or influence the decision of which brand or product to buy within that particular house.

8. Healthcare Workers as Best Influencers for COVID-19 Prevention Messaging

The Ministry of Health in Kenya has over 50,000 healthcare practitioners spread across the country. Each of them is assigned several households to take care of. One of Wowzi’s ambitious propositions is developing a plan to work with one of our clients who is looking to leverage this network of experts to spread the message of COVID-19 prevention across the country.

Given their deep spread across marginalized areas, we envision a new way of reaching more people with the prevention message.