Robert Ebo Hinson – författare

Strategic Marketing of Higher Education in Africa explores higher education marketing themes along the lines of understanding higher education markets, university branding and international marketing strategies, digital marketing, and student choice-making.

The Higher Education landscape around the world is changing. There is global competition for students’ enrolments, universities are competing within their home market as well as in the international market, and as government funding for public universities is reducing there is pressure on universities to seek additional income by increasing their student enrolment. African universities are not an exception in this competitive market. This book is unique in providing a composite overview of strategic marketing and brand communications of higher education institutions in Africa. It recognises that there is a growing need for universities to understand the stakeholders and develop strategies on how best to engage with them effectively. Highlighting the unique characteristics, nature, and challenges of African universities, this book explores the marketisation strategies of African universities, with focus on the strategic digital marketing and brand management.

The book provides significant theoretical and marketing practice implications for academics, higher-education administrators, and practitioners on how best to market higher education in Africa and reach out to prospective students. International practitioners aiming to market to Africans and start a partnership with an African university will also find this relevant in understanding the dynamics of the African market.

Strategic Marketing of Higher Education in Africa explores higher education marketing themes along the lines of understanding higher education markets, university branding and international marketing strategies, digital marketing, and student choice-making.

The Higher Education landscape around the world is changing. There is global competition for students’ enrolments, universities are competing within their home market as well as in the international market, and as government funding for public universities is reducing there is pressure on universities to seek additional income by increasing their student enrolment. African universities are not an exception in this competitive market. This book is unique in providing a composite overview of strategic marketing and brand communications of higher education institutions in Africa. It recognises that there is a growing need for universities to understand the stakeholders and develop strategies on how best to engage with them effectively. Highlighting the unique characteristics, nature, and challenges of African universities, this book explores the marketisation strategies of African universities, with focus on the strategic digital marketing and brand management.

The book provides significant theoretical and marketing practice implications for academics, higher-education administrators, and practitioners on how best to market higher education in Africa and reach out to prospective students. International practitioners aiming to market to Africans and start a partnership with an African university will also find this relevant in understanding the dynamics of the African market.

This book offers theoretical and practical insights into the marketing of higher education in Africa. It explores the key players, challenges and policies affecting higher education across the continent; their marketing strategies and the students’ selection process.

While acknowledging the vast size of the continent, this book aims to provide an understanding of the dynamics of higher education in Africa. This book recognises the private and government involvement in higher education provision and students and staff as stakeholders in the marketisation process. Strategic efforts are directed by universities to attract prospective students. This book further addresses issues such as the responses of higher education sectors to the notion of markets and marketing; consumerism and competition in higher education in Africa; conceptions of the commodification of higher education in Africa; and the dominance of Western epistemologies and their influence in transforming higher education sectors. Students as consumers in increasingly marketised higher education sectors in Africa are also discussed.

Though primarily for marketing students and academic researchers, the book''s feature of blended theoretical and practical knowledge means that it will also be of interest to marketing practitioners and university managers.

This book offers theoretical and practical insights into the marketing of higher education in Africa. It explores the key players, challenges and policies affecting higher education across the continent; their marketing strategies and the students’ selection process.

While acknowledging the vast size of the continent, this book aims to provide an understanding of the dynamics of higher education in Africa. This book recognises the private and government involvement in higher education provision and students and staff as stakeholders in the marketisation process. Strategic efforts are directed by universities to attract prospective students. This book further addresses issues such as the responses of higher education sectors to the notion of markets and marketing; consumerism and competition in higher education in Africa; conceptions of the commodification of higher education in Africa; and the dominance of Western epistemologies and their influence in transforming higher education sectors. Students as consumers in increasingly marketised higher education sectors in Africa are also discussed.

Though primarily for marketing students and academic researchers, the book''s feature of blended theoretical and practical knowledge means that it will also be of interest to marketing practitioners and university managers.

The progress of several businesses was severely challenged through the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, with several businesses collapsing globally. Apart from the pandemic, the business posture and dynamics of yesteryear has significantly changed, as the way business is conducted today, especially in this era of Industry 4.0 and the proliferation of technology-assisted processes, have created a new environment for doing business. Comparatively, yesterday’s businesses seemed to have been in the "dark," keeping itself within limited geographical locations, contacts, and markets. However, business today, with the technological boom, has created a global village with the advent of the World Wide Web and social media which is redefining the way business is conducted especially in product and service development, marketing and publicity, customer attraction and retention, scouting and recruitment, and so on.

This book responds to contemporary calls for new ways of managing businesses with practitioner-oriented discourses on topical issues like business environments and how modern businesses can thrive in the same. It discusses in some detail the general composition of business environments, specific factors that influence the operations and decisions of a business within its environment, the level of control businesses have over the factors that operate within the business environment, and the need for businesses to be proactive and to strategise in order to take advantage of the opportunities the business environment presents as while minimising the negative effects some factors also present.

The book provides practical applications while not losing sight of the theoretical underpinnings. Case studies have been provided to elucidate the theories learnt and provide practical application to real-life situations. Written in easy non-technical language, the book also has practice questions at the end, making it an easy instructional manual for business owners worldwide. It is also a brilliant text for introductory students of business administration and management and covers important business areas like types of business ownership and how to start a business.

The progress of several businesses was severely challenged through the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, with several businesses collapsing globally. Apart from the pandemic, the business posture and dynamics of yesteryear has significantly changed, as the way business is conducted today, especially in this era of Industry 4.0 and the proliferation of technology-assisted processes, have created a new environment for doing business. Comparatively, yesterday’s businesses seemed to have been in the "dark," keeping itself within limited geographical locations, contacts, and markets. However, business today, with the technological boom, has created a global village with the advent of the World Wide Web and social media which is redefining the way business is conducted especially in product and service development, marketing and publicity, customer attraction and retention, scouting and recruitment, and so on.

This book responds to contemporary calls for new ways of managing businesses with practitioner-oriented discourses on topical issues like business environments and how modern businesses can thrive in the same. It discusses in some detail the general composition of business environments, specific factors that influence the operations and decisions of a business within its environment, the level of control businesses have over the factors that operate within the business environment, and the need for businesses to be proactive and to strategise in order to take advantage of the opportunities the business environment presents as while minimising the negative effects some factors also present.

The book provides practical applications while not losing sight of the theoretical underpinnings. Case studies have been provided to elucidate the theories learnt and provide practical application to real-life situations. Written in easy non-technical language, the book also has practice questions at the end, making it an easy instructional manual for business owners worldwide. It is also a brilliant text for introductory students of business administration and management and covers important business areas like types of business ownership and how to start a business.

Customer service management is one of the key pillars of today’s business environment. Businesses operating in sub-Saharan Africa and other frontier markets have begun to embrace the concept of customer service management, with many incorporating the notion into their mission statements – with many forward-thinking companies transitioning from a transactional to a more strategic view of the customer. As customers have evolved and transformed from "passive audiences" to "active players" businesses are moving away from "the old industry model that sees value as created from goods and services to a new model where value is created by experiences".

Today, businesses and customers create value through customised, co-produced offerings. This co-creation of value helps firms highlight the customer’s or consumer’s point of view and improve the front-end process of identifying customers’ needs. Given the increasing recognition of the customer as a co-creator of value, perceptions of customer service quality during COVID-19 and afterwards matter to businesses in Africa looking to thrive in a new post-COVID era since customers increasingly face several choices in the bid to access consumer products and services.

This book consists of seven chapters beginning with an overview detailing the importance of customer service matters to Africa’s development and ending with a discussion of the future directions for enhanced customer service delivery in Africa. Each chapter in this book includes actual customer service and delivery practices from various countries on the African continent, including Egypt, Ghana, and South Africa, and uncovers the challenges, successes, and potential areas for improvement in delivering quality customer service.

Customer service management is one of the key pillars of today’s business environment. Businesses operating in sub-Saharan Africa and other frontier markets have begun to embrace the concept of customer service management, with many incorporating the notion into their mission statements – with many forward-thinking companies transitioning from a transactional to a more strategic view of the customer. As customers have evolved and transformed from "passive audiences" to "active players" businesses are moving away from "the old industry model that sees value as created from goods and services to a new model where value is created by experiences".

Today, businesses and customers create value through customised, co-produced offerings. This co-creation of value helps firms highlight the customer’s or consumer’s point of view and improve the front-end process of identifying customers’ needs. Given the increasing recognition of the customer as a co-creator of value, perceptions of customer service quality during COVID-19 and afterwards matter to businesses in Africa looking to thrive in a new post-COVID era since customers increasingly face several choices in the bid to access consumer products and services.

This book consists of seven chapters beginning with an overview detailing the importance of customer service matters to Africa’s development and ending with a discussion of the future directions for enhanced customer service delivery in Africa. Each chapter in this book includes actual customer service and delivery practices from various countries on the African continent, including Egypt, Ghana, and South Africa, and uncovers the challenges, successes, and potential areas for improvement in delivering quality customer service.

With Africa predicted to emerge as a leading market in the coming years, the debate on sustainability, especially on the mitigation of business impact on the continent’s environment and society, cannot be underestimated. Prior to the worsening impact of climate change, the continent has historically been struggling to consolidate sustainability efforts in driving social and environmental protection caused by both foreign (majorly) and local business activities in the region. To capture current social and environmental injustice plaguing the African continent, Secretary‑General Prof. Petteri Taalas of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) opined that "Africa is responsible for less than 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, but it is the continent which is the least able to cope with the negative impacts of climate change. Heatwaves, heavy rains, floods, tropical cyclones, and prolonged droughts are having devastating impacts on communities and economies, with increasing numbers of people at risk."

Sustainability Reporting Frameworks have empowered sustainability leaders, most especially Chief Sustainability Officers (CSOs), in organizations to develop practical strategies for leading sustainability‑related issues while driving systemic change for collective thinking towards mitigating the impact of climate change on society and the environment. While there is undoubtedly a plethora of standards, codes, and toolkits to help frame the sustainability drive, with leading CSOs around the globe sharing their lived experiences, the narrative for best practices, and what the content of sustainability initiatives and reporting should be have been skewed to the Western or advanced economies’ narrative. This reporting has drowned out other continent‑specific narratives that offer a diverse pool of perspectives and locally rich content on some sustainability actions and achievements, especially from CSOs.

The role of business sustainability leaders and CSOs in Africa in positioning the continent as the "market of tomorrow" with sound and robust sustainability practices needs to be spotlighted. Owing to the gap, this book brings the urgency to light through case studies and stories from leading African businesses, while capturing their sustainability strategies and achievements. This book moves beyond the experience and context of business in advanced economies and responds to the need for an alternative narrative of sustainability leadership in Africa. The focus of this book is on the role of sustainability leadership over the last decade and discusses the contributions and challenges of navigating this multi‑disciplinary function in different sectors. The authors share their insight into this under‑researched and under‑reported perspective highly relevant to business and sustainability, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting in a growing region like Africa.

With Africa predicted to emerge as a leading market in the coming years, the debate on sustainability, especially on the mitigation of business impact on the continent’s environment and society, cannot be underestimated. Prior to the worsening impact of climate change, the continent has historically been struggling to consolidate sustainability efforts in driving social and environmental protection caused by both foreign (majorly) and local business activities in the region. To capture current social and environmental injustice plaguing the African continent, Secretary‑General Prof. Petteri Taalas of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) opined that "Africa is responsible for less than 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, but it is the continent which is the least able to cope with the negative impacts of climate change. Heatwaves, heavy rains, floods, tropical cyclones, and prolonged droughts are having devastating impacts on communities and economies, with increasing numbers of people at risk."

Sustainability Reporting Frameworks have empowered sustainability leaders, most especially Chief Sustainability Officers (CSOs), in organizations to develop practical strategies for leading sustainability‑related issues while driving systemic change for collective thinking towards mitigating the impact of climate change on society and the environment. While there is undoubtedly a plethora of standards, codes, and toolkits to help frame the sustainability drive, with leading CSOs around the globe sharing their lived experiences, the narrative for best practices, and what the content of sustainability initiatives and reporting should be have been skewed to the Western or advanced economies’ narrative. This reporting has drowned out other continent‑specific narratives that offer a diverse pool of perspectives and locally rich content on some sustainability actions and achievements, especially from CSOs.

The role of business sustainability leaders and CSOs in Africa in positioning the continent as the "market of tomorrow" with sound and robust sustainability practices needs to be spotlighted. Owing to the gap, this book brings the urgency to light through case studies and stories from leading African businesses, while capturing their sustainability strategies and achievements. This book moves beyond the experience and context of business in advanced economies and responds to the need for an alternative narrative of sustainability leadership in Africa. The focus of this book is on the role of sustainability leadership over the last decade and discusses the contributions and challenges of navigating this multi‑disciplinary function in different sectors. The authors share their insight into this under‑researched and under‑reported perspective highly relevant to business and sustainability, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting in a growing region like Africa.

The international business environment has undergone major turbulence in 2020 following the onset of lockdowns, travel restrictions and social distancing all prompted by Covid-19. These restrictions have limited the revenue generation capacity of both countries and businesses – large and small. While the winners have been mostly those sectors with a digital footprint such as streaming services and video-conferencing giants, the creative industries have felt a much harder blow.

Against this backdrop, The Creative Industries and International Business Development in Africa takes an unorthodox approach to showcasing the trends and challenges of the contemporary creative economy with a view to positioning the sector for a global audience.

Drawing upon the categorisations of the Creative Industries Federation, the book interrogates, and highlights, the challenges, and opportunities of the creative industries in Africa. This is with a view to aggregating how the sector has coped with a myriad of challenges even before the pandemic. Discussions across the chapters document the changing landscape of the sector, capturing insights from the global value chain to everything digital – from arts to publishing, fashion, film and music production and distribution. Further insights are discussed around recent events such as the take-off of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the exit of Britain from the EU – with the latter event reinvigorating the Commonwealth Agenda and renewed interest in Africa’s creative industries.

The international business environment has undergone major turbulence in 2020 following the onset of lockdowns, travel restrictions and social distancing all prompted by Covid-19. These restrictions have limited the revenue generation capacity of both countries and businesses – large and small. While the winners have been mostly those sectors with a digital footprint such as streaming services and video-conferencing giants, the creative industries have felt a much harder blow.

Against this backdrop, The Creative Industries and International Business Development in Africa takes an unorthodox approach to showcasing the trends and challenges of the contemporary creative economy with a view to positioning the sector for a global audience.

Drawing upon the categorisations of the Creative Industries Federation, the book interrogates, and highlights, the challenges, and opportunities of the creative industries in Africa. This is with a view to aggregating how the sector has coped with a myriad of challenges even before the pandemic. Discussions across the chapters document the changing landscape of the sector, capturing insights from the global value chain to everything digital – from arts to publishing, fashion, film and music production and distribution. Further insights are discussed around recent events such as the take-off of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the exit of Britain from the EU – with the latter event reinvigorating the Commonwealth Agenda and renewed interest in Africa’s creative industries.

This book explores the key players, challenges and policies affecting higher education in Africa. It also explores the marketing strategies and the students’ selection process, providing theoretical and practical insights into education marketing in Africa.  

In particular, it focuses on the competition for students. The growing number of student enrolments, the public sector’s inability to meet the ever-increasing demands and new private universities springing up mean that it is essential for universities to identify their market and effectively communicate their messages. Although there has been substantial theoretical research to help shed light on students’ choices and universities'' marketing strategies, little work has been undertaken on higher education in the African context. Filling that gap in the research, while at the same time acknowledging the regional differences in Africa, this book offers empirical insights into the higher education market across thecontinent.