Olufemi Oguntamu: It’s No Longer a Joke; My Efforts on the Social Media are Being Noticed

Olufemi Oguntamu, aka Penzaar, is a digital media strategist. He is a major name in  media industry. In this interview with Tosin Clegg, he talks about social media influence

Large followers on social media

I would say it’s a steady result. Over the years, I have been a social person- right from my days in the university, I engaged in several social activities on and off campus. I was and I am still popular among my peers. Thus, I didn’t encounter any bottleneck in building my social media followers. Even before I began social media campaigns for brands, projects and organisations, I have had a commendable range of active followers on my social media handles.   

My social media platform 

When I started, it was just for me to engage in something else aside from books and activities on campus. But as things grew and reality surfaced, I came to the realisation that it is a worthy field to concentrate on. Hence, I submitted myself for continuous training so as to always enjoy the benefits of latest trends and developments in the field of social media marketing and perception management. I was recently awarded the social media strategist of the year at The Lagos 30 under 40 awards 2016. This shows that my work is being noticed and it’s no longer a joke. 

Social media and the idleness mentality

Everyone is entitled to his opinion. But I disagree with the notion that idle people waste time on social media. It largely depends on our respective levels of orientation and exposure. The main aim of social media is to enhance socialisation in line with global advancement in technology. Over time, social media has created jobs for several people; it has cemented relationships, organisations use it to enlarge their products base and the list is endless. The bottom line remains that everyone is online for different reasons.

Coping with cyber bullies

It is all about personality management. Each time I encounter cyber bullies, I ignore them. But when it requires me dropping a response, I make it polite and modest enough, because my image is also in the picture. Two wrongs, they say, cannot make a right. 

 

My online popularity doesn’t affect my offline growth

I mentioned earlier that I was well-known on campus. Even after I graduated, I built relationships with people and brands. With these, I would state that my online and offline growths move alongside each other. 

  

I have met a good number of online fans

Each of them leaves a comment about my personality. While some would say I look cuter, friendlier than what they see online, some would say I look better online. In fact, there are some who see me, but lack the courage to approach me. I would later read from them in my DM, that ‘I saw you at the event yesterday, but I couldn’t come to say hi because I was shy’.  Last year, I attended MTV MAMAS Awards in South Africa, and a young man approached me to say he knew me and that he has been following me for a while; he said he is my fan online. I was shocked. 

There are some things I cannot post

The scope of my job is to create a sustainable image for brands, products and organisations; my image is also at stake. If I realise that some things do not go in line with my job ethics and moral conviction, I won’t post it. 

I post every day so as to be relevant 

Though it is not compulsory to post every day, but it is highly necessary. I post when there is need to, I post when I am commissioned to do so. Even when there is no commissioned job to post, I post some good stuff to create engagements and buzz on my page. 

Social media Abuse 

Different persons are on social media for different reasons. What we need to do is to keep giving one another thoughtful orientation on the better usage of social media. This was what inspired me to kick off a movement tagged ‘Handle It Africa’, where social media enthusiasts are thought how best to use social media to help their brand awareness and development. The first edition was held in Lagos in March, with panelists across different sectors like Japheth Omojuwa, Yemi Adamolekun of EIE, Olusola Amusan of Microsoft Nigeria and many others. 

A society without social media

I think it’s mostly about our era of existence. Our forefathers survived without social media. Social media is here to make the world bubble more than before. Social media is here to give life in this era a pleasant meaning. It is most interesting and of huge benefit. I can’t imagine life without social media. 

How I came about being the ‘Up andDownFellow’

A colleague of mine gave me that name because I was always busy with one event or, meeting. In a minute I can be in Ajah, another minute I can be in Ikorodu; the next day I can be in Ghana – I accepted the name because it also reflects the adventurous and exploring part of me; I love to travel too.