Ibom Air Building a Local Brand for the Global Market!

– Aniekan Essienette, Group Marketing Manager

Mrs Aniekan ESSIENETTE, Group Marketing Manager, Ibom Air, gave TRUE VISION Special correspondent, Solomon OKPO reasons for the attention-catching story of the Akwa Ibom State Govt-owned airline. 

Who is Aniekan Essienette?

I am, originally-from Mkpat Enin Local Government Area and married in Ibiono Ibom, with three children within the ages of 14. You can say, effectively, that I am from Ibiono-Ibom, now.

What has the percentage booking-requests been like, since the resumption of Ibom Air?

Since I resumed in Ibom Air, a little over a year ago, our focus was not to compromise but to ensure visibility, which is critical in the industry. Before then, our focus was on how to build the branches and get them to do the talking, instead of us talking. Before then, we had little or no PR or marketing activities.

Now, however, we have stepped up visibility so that anybody who wants to reach us can do so easily. For instance, we increased our presence in the social-media, to make sure that anyone interested knew exactly how to access our services through all the alternate-channels, including social-media which also features our website. Do not forget that you can also reach us on phone. 

So, when I took over, the requirement was to grow the user-base from the regular affinity-based customers like Akwa Ibomites and others who tasted and wanted to repeat their unforgettable-experience with us. Some even took pictures and helped to make unsolicited media-campaigns for us.

There were also people who wondered why they never heard about us, despite our wonderful services. We expanded marketing-communications to engage similar challenges. One of our deliverables was to identify how we can tell our story to a broader audience, as much as possible. And that has translated into our (airport-hanger) user-base growth-factor rising to 80 per cent. The growth reflects time spent handling an aircraft, from arrival through landing to departure. 

In your consistency with your goals since resumption as Marketing Communications Manager, what motivates you?

Thank you, Sir. The vision we have at Ibom Air is to build and develop an enduring local brand, for the global market. And taking that brand to the global level. You will discover that we really do not have Akwa Ibom-based brands, generally. And the vision here is to build a brand that will endure by incorporating all the elements that make a brand endure in the global arena. Part of the motivation is that we cherish every customer who patronizes Ibom Air

In a highly-competitive industry like aviation, w hat services make Ibom Air unique?

I can tell you straight away, that it provides extra-satisfaction to give your customer an unforgettable-experience, which is what we try to do at Ibom Air. 

Review the performance of the airline since you came on?

You can only assess your performance by the contribution you make to the growth of the organization. But to answer your question directly, the only way to determine contribution is to see how much you contributed to growth. It is no more complicated than that, for me. Remember that earlier this year, we won the best airline award, so soon after commencing business.

How many passengers have so far travelled by Ibom Air?

We have had over 700,000 passengers travelling by Ibom Air, since we started operations. And we are looking at the one million-mark, before the end of the year. To be counted among the top five airlines in the country is our ultimate vision.

What other services do you offer?

We will be venturing into cargo-services, very soon. There has been a lot of agitation for that. But no self-respecting business takes-off, just because you have standing ovation which does not necessarily translate into tangible prospects, until after doing sober cost-analysis to determine if the business is profitable. We are waiting for all the elements to be in place before we roll-out our cargo services

From your explanation, what other destinations do you fly?

We have effectively, Uyo, Lagos, Abuja, Enugu, Calabar and Port Harcourt. For now, we have six routes we service but the services are expanding, rapidly.

Are these flights regular or scheduled?

That is why the regular and scheduled flights do so enthusiastically, to confirm that we are in serious business. And not to disappoint the incredibly-confidence we won in the market.

How are you responding to challenges imposed by Covid-19?

As you can imagine, aviation being a critical-driver in the hospitality industry, was, perhaps, worst-hit in the pandemic, including travel-bans, severe-restrictions and all that. Even when the various lockdowns across the globe were lifted, you still had to contend with travel-apathy by intending-passengers. You think of quarantines everywhere and sometimes you just wonder when it will end. Even global travel too was also impacted because of suddenly discovered alternatives. Video-conferencing, for instance, became very popular. Effectively, travel, in general, was affected. And for us at Ibom Air, we lost so much. So much was lost in taxes, salaries and insurance that you must pay, Covid-19 challenges or not. And in addition, passenger revenue was not coming in. What stood us out, however, was that we adhered, strictly, with the Covid-19 protocols. And we told the world that we will never compromise. Because of that, passengers trusted us. And besides, the size of our aircraft was a plus, at the end of the day. Because of the strategic nature of our aircrafts, we found it easier to absorb challenges imposed by the pandemic. And remain afloat. That was how we were able to survive challenges from the pandemic. 

Tell us about your upbringing.

I am from a family of eight children- six brothers and two girls. And I lost my father at 17, just when I wanted to attend university. When I finished my national service, the only industry attractive to me was the media industry. I served with BusinessDay newspaper, in their advert department. I did my master’s in international law from the University of Lagos. Besides these corporate jobs, including Alcatel which became Nokia after acquisition, I also did some consulting, on the sideline. I was sitting on the board of Alcatel before coming to Ibom Air, I had become a director. I agreed to relocate because of my faith in the promoters and love for my state. That was my excitement.

Assess Gov Udom Emmanuel and his determination to make Ibom Air succeed

I never thought I would live to see someone in public-office with similar passion for success like Governor Udom Emmanuel. Unfortunately, most people do not see what he sees. Visionaries are almost like mad people- they see what others do not see. And what I saw in the governor before I accepted the offer convinced me that every ingredient for success had been provided- even with more than sufficient back-up.

 The people behind any project can make the difference. And if you have a vision which only very few can see, you are not likely to make sense to many, except those who bought into your vision. What Governor Udom Emmanuel has done will shock many generations to come; will never be forgotten by posterity.

How beneficial is investment to the state?

The vision Governor Emmanuel has is to challenge our ingenuity by providing possibilities for development bigger than what the cynic can see. 

British Airways, Ethiopian Airlines and others are not just about profit alone. The bigger picture is to drive access and development. That is the chain-effect that most people do not see.

Is the general belief that your tickets are too expensive, correct?

We are aware of this misconception. And our advice is that there is no way you can drive excellence without sacrifice. The best bargains, every where in the world, are made ahead of peak-seasons. If you wait till Christmas, for example, before rushing to buy air-ticket, you should expect the multiplier effect which must necessarily-affect purchases during the period. Personally, I do strategic purchases, two or three months ahead. It will interest you to note that pre-season tickets for Christmas at Ibom Air have all been sold-out.

How compliant are you with corporate social responsibility?

Currently, we are making a comprehensive-re-assessment of our commitments, in that regard. We do not want to rush so that we can apply our unique vision in the area of corporate social responsibility. Of course, it is important to give back to society.