As “Inside Africa’ meets Nigeria’s social media stars
This
week on Inside Africa, CNN International heads to Lagos to meet some of
the high profile and highly paid personalities that have emerged with
the rise of social media. This tech savvy generation have embraced
social media, which has provided opportunities for women in business
like never before.
The programme meets Linda Ikeji, one of Nigeria’s biggest social media stars, to learn more about her journey to success.
After starting her gossip blog more than ten years ago, Ikeji says her success came from her determination and enthusiasm:
“One
of the things that drives a business to succeed is passion. It’s not
about money. I’ve made money – I could move on and do some other things
or leave it to my people but I’m extremely passionate about what I do
and it gives me so much joy.”
Ikeji’s achievements
have provided her with sufficient funds to start her own businesses,
including owning a TV station, which are growing rapidly. She tells CNN
how she wants to continue succeeding and hopes to inspire others:
“I
feel like I’m still climbing the ladder of success. There’s still so
much I want to do… I’m hoping that my story, my life can inspire other
young girls to fight for their dreams, work hard, believe in themselves,
believe that there’s absolutely nothing that they cannot become…I’m
hoping that my life can encourage other young girls to go out there and
do the impossible, the things that people think can never happen.”
Social
media has opened up a wealth of opportunities for young entrepreneurs.
Travel enthusiast Chiamaka Obuekwe and her boyfriend founded a company
which specializes in providing tours in parts of Nigeria that many
people may have never seen before. Their business wouldn’t have been
possible without social media, as Obuekwe tells the programme:
“80
per cent of our clients heard about us on social media…Ten years ago we
would have had to go door to door sharing our fliers. We would have had
to think about tactics… Now all we have to do is to put a post out on
Instagram and in ten minutes people are dm’ing us… Without social media,
I don’t think Social Prefect Tours would be here.”
Vlogger
Sisi Yemmie has a dedicated following for her recipes and lifestyle
content with thousands of people viewing her food demonstrations every
day. She attributes her success to her honesty and openness:
“When
it comes to privacy I don’t have too many private moments… I base it on
what I would tell my friends. If I can tell my friend this then I can
definitely tell my audience this.”
Sisi has won
several awards and accolades, but despite her candour being part of her
appeal she does have to consider the messages that she’s delivering:
“It
took a while for me to understand that the more popular I became I
would become a role model… but I realise that responsibility comes with
this platform… I am always very careful what I say. Typically, in the
past I would maybe rant on Twitter, say stuff off the top of my head but
now I have to think about not just my audience. I also have to have to
think about brands and collaborations and when I think about things like
that I am very careful about what I say and what I put out there.”
Being a role model is something that’s also important to Linda Ikeji who wants to make sure she creates a legacy:
“I
want my life to be impactful…. I have to do something that will impact
the society, impact my community, impact the world. I want people to
know that I was here.”
