As an executive of a successful multinational firm, you’re aware of how important strategic planning and management is when it comes to growing a company and achieving long-term goals. Without an informed plan in place, you risk making uninformed decisions that could ultimately harm your company. Therefore, it is essential that you invest resources in building a strategy that will help you achieve your short- and long-term business goals as a new entrant in the Nigerian market.
Nigeria boasts a very active, yet fragmented market. Consumer trends are constantly changing, while business partners and customers are often relegated to isolated pockets of the market. Therefore, it is necessary to acknowledge how opaque and challenging Nigeria’s market can be so that you can move forward with building a strategy that will help mitigate these challenges.
The development of this actionable plan will also help you capitalize on potential market opportunities. In an effort to guide you as you work on building a strategy that will help your business thrive in the Nigerian market, highlighted below are a few steps you should take during the planning process.
Obtain Quality Market Information
Locating quality market information in Nigeria can prove to be a difficult undertaking. However, doing so is essential to creating a robust business strategy. This information will reveal important factors, such as local competitors and business partners, which will help guide the development of your action plan.
Define Your Value Proposition
Once you have finished acquiring market information and have compiled your data, work with your team or a local business expert to transform said information into valuable insights. Try to use the data and your resources to pinpoint a local need that your business can satisfy, as this is the key to business success in Nigeria.
Identifying a need your company is able to address is also a great way to identify your company’s unique value proposition. Once you have honed in on the value your company can provide to consumers in the Nigerian market, use that information to develop a marketing plan that incorporates the proper marketing and sales channels into your business strategy.
Furthermore, you should consider looking at what your company is doing in comparable countries where your business is performing well, such as other developing nations in Asia, Africa, or South America, as this research could also help you identify your unique value proposition in relation to the Nigerian Market.
Set Marketing Priorities
After you have pinpointed your organization’s unique value proposition as a new entrant in the Nigerian market, you should work on the creation of a plan to reach your target customers.
Deciding whether your company is going to operate by selling your products or services directly to the consumer (B2C) or selling directly to other businesses (B2B) is one of the major decisions you will have to make at this stage. This decision will ultimately influence your marketing plan, as your audience will either be your end user or another company.
Usually, in Nigeria, a company that sells consumer goods will employ B2C marketing methods, whereas, a company looking to sell chemical products, medical devices, or industrial goods will use B2B marketing techniques.
Build Sales Channels
Another step in building a strategy that will ensure your business’s success in the Nigerian market is to work with credible local partners, such as resellers and distributors, that will drive sales on your company’s behalf. Once you have chosen your channel partners, incentivize them accordingly so that you can reach your sales goals in the region.
Develop Business Goals
As a multinational executive, you’re most likely looking to balance both your company’s short-term and long-term objectives while operating in Nigeria. While building sales channels and choosing credible channel partners are both crucial to achieving your business goals, you should also consider hiring a sales agent or business manager to help you accomplish said goals.
Additionally, selecting a credible consulting firm that can work as a trustworthy business partner during this endeavor is also worth looking into. A trustworthy consulting firm can understand your business needs, and provide your team with the local information, knowledge, and insight you will need to succeed in the Nigerian market.
Building a strategy for succeeding as a new entrant in the Nigerian market does not have to be a daunting task. All you have to do is apply similar principles that have helped your organization succeed in other markets and tailoring them to better fit how business is conducted in Nigeria. Once you have the acquired the necessary information and formed essential partnerships, you’ll be on your way to securing your company a top spot in this market.
[thrive_leads id=’2881′]
