February seems to a month full of Conferences for Technology/Web 2.0/Social Media enthusiasts alike.

Tops in the list of upcoming events is the Social Media Club Nigeria Conference scheduled to hold between February 25 and 26, 2010.

The Conference is organised by the Nigerian Chapter of Social Media Club International which is headed by Mr. Yinka Olaito.

Mr. Yinka Olaito is the President of the Nigerian Chapter of the Social Media Club and NaijaWebGeek recently caught up with him to tell us more about the Conference and his views on Social Media in Nigeria.

Here is the interview:

NaijaWebGeek: Who is Yinka Olaito?
Yinka Olaito: Yinka Olaito helps individuals, organizations to maximize values in their brands/ideas through adequate positioning (that guarantees maximal result) to the target audience that can pay premium. My unique ability is in developing engaging strategy that turns potential, clients to brands’ advocates. I combine passion with proven skills in Branding, Public Relations, Social media, training, writing among others. I am an advocate of a positive change and a better tomorrow no matter what the present circumstances may be.

I graduated with honours (I had three awards for my undergraduate and I was the best student for my set in my postgraduate studies) like other people around. I have done a lot of researches here and there to improve the level of knowledge at brand’s disposal. I am an avid consumer of relevant information that can help humanity to readjust to issues with a level of finesse. I work with Michael age consulting ( a brand, Public/digital relations) firm in Lagos, Nigeria. I am the publisher of  The Branding Gavel (www.yinkaolaito.com) – an award winning blog in marketing, Branding and career counsel. Finally I love God. Who is the pillar of my life.

NaijaWebGeek: What is Social Media Club and how did the Nigeria Chapter came to being?
Yinka Olaito: Social media club international, California is a non profit, professional association that brings together journalists, brand, PR, marketing experts, publishers, students, communicators who share common purpose of upscaling knowledge in social media arena. Parts of the mission for establishing the club are: Expand Media Literacy, Share Lessons Learned Among Practitioners, Encourage Adoption of Industry Standards and Promote Ethical Practices through Discussion and Actions. The club has been involved in various advocacies around the world. These includes “tweet for boobs’’ to raise awareness for breast cancer, save Darfur 2008 – to raise awareness for the war torn countries. We also have SMCEDU, which is to increase knowledge in the area of social media among other worthwhile projects.

NaijaWebGeek: What is your view on Social Media in Nigeria (where are we now and what ways can we improve?)
Yinka Olaito: There seems to be increase in awareness in the use of facebook as a connecting tool for friends but many still do not know the full benefit of the platform. Many are not familiar with twitter at all because that platform is for serious minded people, professionals who will take his time to understand its functionality. Many brands here still do not know that social media platforms are not only for kids. No wonder they have not explored the vast potentials in the media. Get required knowledge and fire on. We need to train more professionals that can help our brands here and that is one of our chapter objectives.

NaijaWebGeek: How did you get involved in SMC and what is your level of involvement?
Yinka Olaito: As a brand strategist, communicator, I am always eager to find the better way to do things. So as a digital citizen, I developed a hunger for knowledge then one thing leads to the other, lines just fall upon lines and I connected with the club international President/Founder: Chris and Kristie Huers (wonderful couple) and we discussed the possibility of a Nigeria chapter. At the end God granted us the capacity. I am the present President of the chapter.

NaijaWebGeek: What is SMC’s current member base and how does one become a member?
Yinka Olaito: At last count, we are about sixty two, we currently use facebook page but we will soon move to our chapter official websites when logistics are perfected. Being part of any local chapter automatically confers on individual rights and privileges of international membership and one can attend any international conference at a reduced price. Till the conference holds, membership will be open but after the conference standards will have to be set to ensure commitment. There is a compulsory monthly meeting attendance.
So individual can become member for now by joining the facebook fan page of the chapter.

NaijaWebGeek: Please explain what the SMC Nigeria Conference is about?
Yinka Olaito: Find details of the event here.

NaijaWebGeek: Who can attend and what are the benefits of attending?
Yinka Olaito: Anyone with passion for knowledge and a strong desire for social media application.

NaijaWebGeek: Any special registration requirements?
Yinka Olaito: Pre/register/ Send participation request to smcinigeria@gmail.com for planning purposes

NaijaWebGeek: When and where is the event holding?
Yinka Olaito: Horscal suites, Nigeria Institute of Medical Research by Presbyterian Church, Yaba Lagos. Time is 9-4pm daily. Date is 25-26 February 2010.

NaijaWebGeek: Your last words…/Conclusion.

Yinka Olaito: I normally do not have last words, we are in the age of conversation. Individual can only put a comma on the conversation. So till we meet again, be a change agent, become global brands because there are several advantages in that.

Web/Technology Startups and Social Media in Nigeria are emerging and one of the people at the forefront is Loy Okezie.

Loy Okezie is the brain behind Startsup Nigeria, a hub for partnerships, advice and resources for Nigeria’s growing Web 2.0 & Internet economy. He also has a personal blog where he writes about companies and their use of new and emerging technologies as well as their brand marketing and advertising campaigns seen on traditional media and digital media.

NaijaWebGeek recently caught up with him and he shares his views on startups and social media on the Naija scene.

Here is the incisive interview:

NaijaWebGeek: Please introduce yourself Sir, letting us into a bit about your background.

Loy Okezie: I’m Loy, graduate of business from the University of Abuja with several years of experience in management consulting, recruitment consulting and in more recent times social media consulting.

I have a passion for people, technology and startups and consistently seek ways to engage with like-minded people, embrace new technologies and empower early-stage startups.

NaijaWebGeek: Your passion for technology and startups must have motivated you to start ‘Start Ups’ Nigeria?

Loy Okezie: Absolutely!

NaijaWebGeek: What is Startups Nigeria really about?

Loy Okezie: We’re the first online technology startup hub in Nigeria and growing to become the largest in Africa. Our vision is to build a knowledge-based economy in Nigeria by 2020 and beyond. We are not just a technology blog about startups, but also a community where you can find resources, partnerships, advice, jobs, etc

NaijaWebGeek: Startups Nigeria was on for some time and suddenly became inaccessible for a period of time, but resurfaced back this January, 2010. What was responsible for that?

Loy Okezie: Yes, we had issues with our host and since it wasn’t resolved, we decided to move on.

NaijaWebGeek: Is startups Nigeria solely administered by you?

Loy Okezie: No. At a time, we had multiple users.

NaijaWebGeek: As a startups analyst, what is your rating of Nigerian web/technology startups?

Loy Okezie: 5/10

NaijaWebGeek: What do you think could be responsible for this half mark?

Loy Okezie: Well, particularly because we’ve seen most of Nigerian startups launched on-the-fly. I think that founders need to develop more innovative ideas that can add more value to users than we’ve seen. Most importantly, startups need to explore the best revenue models for their online ventures.

NaijaWebGeek: What revenue models can founders adopt?

Loy Okezie: Well, that really depends on your product or service. I’ll be glad to help any startup define ways to generate revenues

NaijaWebGeek: I asked this because, I think Nigerians usually finds it hard parting with their money online (I stand to be corrected) or probably because of the low internet penetration

Loy Okezie: That might be true, but if you’re able to offer a great user experience, your audience will be willing to part with their money.

NaijaWebGeek: Talking about Social Media now, do you think it has any benefit for us as Nigerians?

Loy Okezie: I think that Nigerians love anything that’s got the “hype”, and that’s what social media is all about: HYPE. With more and more individuals and companies tapping into social media tools, we’ll soon start seeing web & mobile applications that offer value to our local needs on the go.

NaijaWebGeek: I doubt if Nigerian companies/brands are tapping into this ‘hype’?

Loy Okezie: It’s going to be gradual, but they’ll catch up.

NaijaWebGeek: In other words, we are still at a growing stage when it comes to social media in Nigeria?

Loy Okezie: That’s right.

NaijaWebGeek: Whose responsibility do you think it is then for us to climb this growing ladder fast? As in who/what will be the driving force?

Loy Okezie: Well, anyone (or better still any startup) can be a motivation for anyone or other startups to climb. When you see a product or app that you like, you might want to promote it, even though you have your own project. In order for us to climb faster, we need to collaborate with other entrepreneurs in Nigeria and Africa. We need a community that would foster healthy discussions on the emerging web, mobile and startups industry. We need to build credibility as it is the most important quality investors are looking for.

NaijaWebGeek: Do you then think that startups targeting the Nigerian people/market will be the right thing to do, especially if your motive is for revenue generation?

Loy Okezie: I think that Nigerian web entrepreneurs should start local and go global. By that I mean, solve local problems using existing and emerging technologies while thinking of ways to add value to global consumers. Thus, I wouldn’t advise any entrepreneur to build startups with ONLY Nigerians in mind.

NaijaWebGeek: Your predictions for Nigerian web/technology startups in the next five-ten years?

Loy Okezie: I see Nigerian startups built with ground-breaking technology that can compete with global startups. I see a vibrant technology startup community backed by a VC (Venture Capitalist) culture. I also see technology parks in different parts of Nigeria churning out great innovations and applications that Google, Microsoft, Oracle, etc would be willing to acquire. Finally, I see a robust software technology industry in Nigeria similar to India’s that could generate billions of dollars through outsourcing of locally made softwares. All of these would come with more investments in infrastructure, power and telecommunications.

NaijaWebGeek: 1. Your advice for upcoming startups founder

2. For those already with a product/service who are thinking of backing out because they can’t cope with the challenges

Loy Okezie: 1. Never think AVERAGE

2. Never QUIT

NaijaWebGeek: What more should be expected from Loy Okezie?

Loy Okezie: Building an emerging digital media brand that will change the way we live.

NaijaWebGeek: Can’t wait to see that. Thank you for your time Loy, I really appreciate

Loy Okezie: Sure, thanks!

PS: Plan to attend the Technology Outlook Web Forum, Loy is billed to speak there.