I couldn’t stop thinking about @sijinius’s blog post telling Nigerian entrepreneurs that its ok to fail. Sijinius touched on some truths that every entrepreneur should keep in mind at the beginning (or during) any project.
He however trivialized a point that I think cannot be overemphasized. It is that Linda Ikeji is a success in an economy where the likes of Konga.com and showroom.ng have failed.
In sijunius’s own words “Yet, you probably also read recently that in this same economy, Linda Ikeji (yeah, the same ‘ordinary gossip blogger’ who refuses to buy her domain name) makes N600 million annually, and is moving -Linda Ikeji Media- to bigger offices. Na wa oh! Na real wa!!”
What the brilliant article failed to take into cognisance is that Linda Ikeji obeyed the first rule of the hustle – supply a demand. This I believe is the true reason behind her success. I don’t think that was emphasized enough.
Linda’s Business Model
A lot of entrepreneurs take investing time into the right business model for granted. There is this general belief that once I am providing value, profit will come. I have been guilty of this very same thought pattern. It eventually led me to providing (under-priced) value to a market too small to scale (break-even). I learnt a lesson from my experience. This lesson is one I think Linda is in a good position to teach us all.
Linda Ikeji does not charge her readers a cent. Yet she consistently provides them with what they want. Disdain it all you want, people love gossip. They want to know what is going on in the life of the other fellow. They want to hear about that celebrities failed relationship. She supplies the need to be voyeurs.
Linda Ikeji makes her money from media buyers. From Google to Diamond Bank or The Elevation Church. She supplies them with a large audience to sell their products and services to. She supplies a demand.
Media buyers need an audience so Linda Ikeji supplies them with an audience by satisfying the basic human need for gossip.
Providing value may be a critical component but it is not the whole hog. You need to be providing value to a sizeable market at scale.
What Nigerian entrepreneurs are doing wrong
We are all out here reading books about blue ocean strategies and creating a demand.
In reality that only works for (large) industry players with (adequate) cash.