billionaire list has grown astronomically since the last time, as no
one has ever comprehensively compiled an Africa rich list.
Unfortunately, the youngest billionaires, age-wise, don't fall within
the age-limit and scope of this column.
Even if we wanted to plead exception, however, eight years is such a
big number to round off downwards, and the possibility of our ship
being able to sit through the turbulences brought about by claims of
nepotism, is on the downside of minimum.
Therefore, we will persist with writing about the future, as it is our
ambition to inspire young entrepreneurs to aspire to create ventures
that can lead them to billion dollar ventures.
Farai Gundan guest writes for a famous wealth reporting media company,
and prides herself on being a writer who chronicles African women,
entrepreneurs and Africa's rising stars. She displays a genuine
passion for everything she writes about. That passion for Africa by
the Zimbabwean-born, media personality and Internet entrepreneur is
also directed at the operations of Farai Media LLC, an Africa-focused
online mobile and advertising platform, which she founded. She is also
a co-Founder of AfricaTripDeals, a global distribution system for
travel to Africa.
One technology start-up led on to the next, before the first was a
full-fledged enterprise. A great example is her delight and
willingness to juggle so many endeavours, underpinned by a strong
desire to be successful.
She takes an honest approach to her career history; discussing in
detail through each twist and switch. It had been a series of
frustrations as she tried to monetize her African entertainment blog,
which was not just a peculiar problem to her, but a number of other
African-focused publishers also face this stumbling block. And this is
what gave birth to Farai Media LLC.
"With the growth of African publishers, we wanted to offer an online
and mobile advertising platform that specifically targeted African
audiences, both in the Diaspora and on the Continent. With Farai Media
LLC, we also wanted to be specialists of the African consumer audience
so that we could connect top brands with influential publishers to
reach and engage African consumers," she is quoted as having said
"There are numerous dynamics that factor in with the differences
between online advertising here in the US-or the West-versus on the
continent. Online and mobile advertising in Africa is still in its
infancy. There are several inputs along the value chain that are
needed to grow this ecosystem, such as internet ubiquity and low
internet costs for consumers," she further stated.
Describing the potential of mobile advertising on the continent, she
says: "Africa is second to Asia in mobile subscriptions. The advantage
of this is that, if you use mobile/online advertising , your consumers
can potentially carry your marketing message with them on a device- as
opposed to on television, radio or on a laptop where they literally
have to go home or to the office to log on to see your marketing
message. I see how effective it is here in the US and that it could
have a bigger impact on the continent."
Farai has a clear ambition for a career as a new media entrepreneur,
and for a person who caught onto the wildfire of social media late,
she is enjoying a hectic working-life roller-coaster. Any internet
business has a prerogative to exploit the wonders of social media in
advancing its brand, and interestingly Farai didn't realize the
wonders Twitter could do to her brand from quite early on.
"Gosh, it seems like forever but I never really got MySpace, but
Facebook was a natural transition into social media. I loved
connecting with family and with friends, and suddenly the whole world
opened up in a fresh, new and exciting way. I came onto Twitter later
on and it was through the prodding of my good friend, Nigerian
American technology start-up founder, Amaete of Pontaba. And with
Twitter, I was connecting, real-time, with folks all round the world,"
says Farai.
But while Farai has taken her blog FaraiToday- a platform that
showcases the best of Africa by tracking and celebrating the success
stories of Africans worldwide- to one level, as a sustainable,
high-performing blog, social media is taking it to another level.
"Social media is so critical to FaraiToday because that is how we are
able to share our stories with our readers. Gone are the days when
people went to newsstands, bookstores, and even websites now, but as a
publisher of content, you have to go where folks naturally
'congregate", and share with them your stories. So, because most folks
are gathered around on Facebook and on Twitter, and are comfortable in
those spaces, we use those platforms to broadcast our work. It is also
always for real-time connections and real-time responses to the
stories that are shaping the everyday lives of our readers," Farai
admitted.
As she discussed the joys that social media has brought onto her
business, Farai lays out her views on the significance of social media
in expanding the reach of her website. "I use social media for
engaging with our readers, connecting with them in meaningful ways and
for sharing with them the exciting stories coming out of Africa. I am
most thrilled when folks share links of FaraiToday stories or retweet
them to their networks. It is so intoxicating to know that our
stories, somehow, somewhere are impacting lives."
"The reach, breath and depth of that reach through social media have
been amazing to the FaraiToday brand. I have connected with bloggers
from Australia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, the UK, Canada, and across the
USA via social media. FaraiToday readers span the globe and for that,
I am deeply grateful."
She was once quoted as having said, "Certainly social media has
amplified our voices and broadened the reach of our voices. The "Stop
Kony 2012" campaign is an example of Africans stepping into
conversation and taking ownership of that particular narrative. I was
proud to see Africans take on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, and various
blogs and platforms to voice their concern over "We are here to shape
the narrative and contribute to a global conversation."
Advertising money is at the heart of any web-based business. Every
business that is internet-based has some sort of cost or commercial
implication,"It's a complex challenge to overcome." While the start-up
costs are minimal, the competition to be relevant and to be
cost-effective is daunting; Farai Media LLC has managed to survive and
is creating a brand name for itself.
Farai is always looking forward to the challenge of competing in a
crowded information dissemination market, with lots of websites and
blogs competing for a share of the advertising wallet. But Farai Media
LLC has sustained a strong performance. She may be sticking her hands
in a lot, but I wouldn't bet against her taking it all in her stride.
