BAKE Awards gets long term sponsorship from Airtel Kenya

Kenya: It is less than two weeks to the Bloggers Awards Kenya (BAKE) 2015, and big names in the media and blogging industry are scheduled to grace the annual event which will be held on May 2, 2015.

The decorated Awards launched the voting phase of the BAKE Kenyan Blog Awards 2015 and revealed the nominees in each category on April 2, 2015 to commence on April 30th 2015.

During the launch which happened at Intercontinental Hotel Nairobi, Airtel Kenya made its commitment to be the gold sponsor.

We spoke to Marion Wanyoike, the Head of Brand and Media at Airtel Kenya, on why they decided to sponsor the event and this is what she had to say.

Q. Tell us about Airtel’s Sponsorship policy and why events such as KBA-Kenya Bloggers Awards are important for Airtel?

Kenya is a very diverse market, the consumer is desperate to experience life and therefore are involved in many aspects: from fashion, business, family, etc and while we would have loved to be a part of it with a diverse segment,  it is very difficult to sponsor and be a part of as many projects as we would like.

As a company, we believe in sponsoring ideas that drive power of potential: that is, that empower and enable our customers in Kenya with the tools, resources and platform to better themselves and grow in their own individual skills and talents. This means that we are looking at three things when it comes to sponsorships: target, purpose and sustainability.

Target refers to who the key target for the event/concept is. Do they fall within our core target as a business? In this case, it must touch on either the youth (Ages 16-24) or Young Adults (25-35) and ideally target a quantifiable nunmber of people.

The second thing is purpose- what is the overall objective of the event?  Is it to entertain, equip, train, celebrate, take a break, experience a moment, etc? Here we are looking for everyday consumer experiences that allow us as a brand to naturally fit within. So for example, extreme sports, while exciting, would not align within this.

The key premise: What are consumers looking for in their day-to-day lives… and how do we plug our brand into it. We know consumers are listening, making and moving to music, they are reading, engaging and collaborating on digital spaces, they are connecting and experience life with those they care the most about: their friends and family and finally, they are all seeking ways to economically empower themselves.

The third thing is sustainability. As Airtel, we are looking for sustainable ideas, projects, initiatives that can be sponsored for a minimum of 3years+. Reason behind this is to ensure that as a brand we are committed to partnering for the long-haul. This was actually us as a brand taking the bold step to commit to working with a partner through the difficulties of a sponsorship. The first year will be difficult, the second year is growth and in the third year we anticipate is when the real returns will begin to stream in.

Q. Why KBA Awards?

I particularly remember a talk we had recently at Nailab with the different BAKE nominees whereby Daudi Were (one of Kenyan pioneers in blogging- back when we had dial-up connections), made a statement about how powerful blogging was in the 2007/2008 post-election violence whereby, readers from outside the country were counting on the bloggers for updates and information. It is recorded that more than 50% of the traffic in terms of content was actually coming from inside Kenya. Blogging as a key source of information and content is becoming even more critical in the millennial years and is able to provide people with multiple crowd-sourced reference points to gauge in terms of credibility and relevance.

Our vision as a business is a country whereby all Kenyans have affordable access to the internet, ability to access, create and share content that is crucial for this country’s development. In some markets, you can get instant updates and photos on when a musician sneezes for example. In Kenya, getting that same level of content in real time still requires development. But we are getting there and as a brand, we want to stimulate that process by offering affordable and relevant products and services that address the challenges of cost and accessibility.

Q. Why is it important to support initiatives such as KBA? Is it a show of Airtel’s optimism in the future of blogging in Kenya?

Quality local content from a wide range of topics is key to creating an informed society that is driven on data relevant to their every-day situations. This is why sponsoring initiatives that look to rewarding and encouraging content creators is important. That is why Airtel Kenya is sponsoring BAKE- because we believe in the power of content to transform this continent. Relevant. Accessible. Diverse content. But even more importantly, we believe in the power and potential of bloggers to place this country on the world map through their craft and as a Brand we want to show our appreciation and support for that craft.

In fact, we have ‘put our money where our mouth is’ on our dedication towards promoting local content and are about to launch our own blog. The blog will cover interesting talent and topics in tech and music and we are open to receiving and paying for submissions at competitive rates from bloggers. People can email [email protected] for more details as well as deliver sample writing and rates to the Airtel Team for review.

Q. Airtel is known for value led products such as the recently launched UnlimiNet data bundle. Do you feel this is a perfect offering for the online community especially bloggers?

Yes it is… and it is the same premise that led us to hold a BAKE experience with the Bloggers Associate of Kenya whereby we unpacked the unlimiNET product with them, to understand the value of such a product in their lives as well as in the industry as a whole. Bloggers have to move around a lot, visiting sites, taking pictures, thinking through their story angle, doing research, etc. Sometimes the time or even money to purchase data is difficult to find… especially given that the industry in terms of revenue is still catching on. As a brand, we want to develop a product that would allow the bloggers and other consumers who rely on the internet for their livelihood or social life to never have to experience being cut off from their ‘business’ or ‘social sphere’

Q. Airtel has been launching products and initiatives that are keen to keeping people connected on to the internet superhighway, examples are internet.org, Free Twitter, and Free Wikipedia. What is your opinion on how these initiatives and products such as unlimiNET will improve access to quality content and promote bloggers?

Airtel is committed to ensuring that all Kenyans from all walks of life increasingly access the internet. Our commitment to this is the $2 billion recently invested on our networks, and products such as internet.org, Free Twitter and of course unlimiNET.

We have also invested in other sponsorships such as Disruption by Design with Up Magazine that seeks to celebrate those in society who are creating solutions using design, in an effort to encourage ‘useful’ use of our products and services.

Freekipedia allows students to get information and have a better chance of doing well in school and we intend to create and launch other products and services that will continue to empower Kenyans, while partnering with others to celebrate these Kenyans and the power of potential that exists.

Marion Wanyoike is the Head of Brand and Media at Airtel Kenya.

She is the champion of brand character and positioning within the business and strongly believes in the ability and opportunity for brands to play a meaningful role in people’s lives. She has over 5 years’ experience in working with consumers and multinationals within their respective competitive landscape.