Illiteracy, Poverty Militating Against Online Advertising in Nigeria

Nigeria may not be able to effectively utilise the opportunities presented by online advertising in the nearest future due to the high level of poverty and illiteracy. According to Lukman Okunona, media and production manager, CT&A Limited, online advertising in Nigeria is something that cannot work effectively for now, owing to so many factors militating against its effective operation. “To advertise online, the company has to build a website and also get people to visit the website. How many people have that time? Nigerians respond more to what they see on the street and not what they are told to go look up,” he said.

 Speaking on the same issue, Mr. Tunde Ajayi, Engineering Manager, PINET, said that the high level of fraud on the internet and the inability to operate on a broadband width are other factors that pose big challenges for online advertising in Nigeria. According to him, countries operating on broadband stand a better chance of effectively using online advertising. He said the issue is not just about doing online adverts, but factors like access, affordability and interest should also be ascertained before venturing into online advertising.