By Raheem Akingbolu
In a renewed approach to raise the bar for practitioners in the out-of-home (OOH) sub sector of the advertising industry, the Outdoor Advertising Agency of Nigeria, (OAAN), in conjunction with Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) are working on Standard Operating Procedures which will soon be adopted by all the stakeholders.
The move came as a way to reposition the OOH landscape as the sub sector is crucial in the advertising industry. According to OAAN, the purpose of the SOP was to develop a workable and a suitable standard for OOH advertising practice with a view to achieving a desired cooperation.
Speaking at a joint briefing in Lagos, Acting Registrar, APCON, Ijedi Iyoha, commended the initiative by OAAN for putting together the draft document which she said would go a long way to redefine the terms of business engagement between practitioners in the Out-of-Home segment and other stakeholders in the advertising industry.
Represented by the Deputy Director, Registration and Professional Development, APCON, Joe- Eugene Onuorah, she said the long evolution of OOH advertising in Nigeria had witnessed tremendous improvement in the structure of the platform as well as in the dynamics and processes of its value delivery, adding that evolving digital technology has further improved the business of OOH advertising.
“Out-of-Home advertising is a very crucial, perhaps indispensable, arm of the advertising industry. It used to be considered a support medium in the execution of marketing communications campaigns. Today, however, we have seen successful marketing communication campaigns in which the Out-of-Home platforms are either the major plank or the sole plank of the campaign,” she said.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the Chairman of the SOP committee, Ade Akinde, enjoined all members to support the initiative as OOAN has a lot to do to reposition the industry.
He advised APCON to put its weight behind OOH business in the country, considering the importance of the segment to the advertising industry and Nigerian economy. Among the objectives of the new operational procedure are provision a forum for dispute resolution among OAAN members, cooperation with other industry sectoral bodies and associations in furtherance of mutual interests as well as promotion of responsible and ethical advertising practice, conscious of the wellbeing and sensibilities of consumers and other members of the society in all matters of commercial communication.
The event was attended by other sectoral groups including Advertisers’ Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN) Media Independent Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MIPAN) and media owners among others.
