On every episode of Behind the Scenes, we bring you major no-code professionals across various sectors. They walk us through the hurdles they face in their line of work, the process behind it, blockers, tips, and pretty much anything else that happens behind the scenes of their public work.
If you run a business or startup, you’ll love the guest for this episode. Favour Ogazi is currently a business and marketing manager at DNI, a writer, and an overall soft babe (we’re not joking, check her Instagram handle).
This conversation flowed from her career path to what businesses are missing out on and caught a fresh wave on the shores of how to keep a business alive. Grab a seat, dear CEO/Founder, we dedicate this episode to you.
At Blurpe, Top Companies Meet Top Talents, No Matter The Location. Connect With A Top Talent
Who is Favour Ogazi?
Starting strong. Okayyy.
I am a business and marketing manager, an avid reader, and a writer. What I’ve done for the past five years is work with business owners and startups to understand their market and promote their services for profit. When I’m not working, I’m reading books, watching legal dramas, or just writing something. Heavy on writing, by the way, because I do it every day.
That’s who I am.
Speaking about writing, you’re pretty vocal about it across all your social media platforms. Does your love for it shape your approach to business management?
Well, yes. Definitely.
I genuinely believe that everybody should write regardless of their field. The best professionals are people who can express what they’re doing. It’s the same for business—you make it by telling people what your business is about. So whatever it is, I tell people, write. Writing changed my life, and because of it, I am a better expressionist. People can relate to me and what I put out. I take this seriously because honestly? Communication is the cornerstone of every profession. Poems, pieces, short stories—I recommend you just write.
Your name is Uchenna. Is there a story behind why Uchenna didn’t stick in the corporate world, but “Favour” did?
Uchenna is my first name, actually. When I started with my brand, “Uchenna Ogazi” didn’t slap, you get? So Favour Ogazi had to do it. Favour is my middle name.
Nice. The slap effect of the chosen one is resounding.
Please 😂
Let’s take a step back and talk about your job. What exactly does business and marketing management entail? Explain in the most basic way possible.
My role as a business and marketing manager is a balanced mix of strategic thinking, tactical execution, and people management for businsss growth.
At my 9-5, it’s done for the company ‘s growth solely. At my business, we work with more than one business.
You’ve handled brands like Jiji Nigeria, YellowLyfe, EHA Clinics, and others. At the inception of overseeing a brand, what are you looking to achieve?
What I’m looking to achieve for each brand is different. I’ve gotten to interact with small businesses and organizations, especially startups. What I’ve found is that these people are coming to you because of the credentials and knowledge you have. So, what is key for me is learning their needs and telling their experiences differently.
Based on your experience with businesses and startups, what would you say is the knowledge gap?
Business owners do not know their business. A lot of people start businesses for the wrong reasons. Top on the list is they just want to make money, it’s a fancy idea, and it sounds good to them or they saw the idea in their dream.
The question I usually ask is, why are you starting a business you know nothing about? Embarking on an entrepreneurial or startup journey takes research, and no, I don’t mean a quick Google search. It takes resilience and passion for it.
You want to start a business, but you don’t know the costings, operations, or target audience. You don’t even know how to manage people and relationships. When tough times come, and they will come, that knowledge gap? The fact that you don’t know your business? It will show up and show out.
Some people champion the dynamics of “I had no idea I’d get into business. I found myself in it” and have gone on to build empires. Basically, learning on the job. From your earlier response, you don’t sound like a fan.
Yeahhh. So while there is no one-size-fits-all for businesses, I would die on the hill that says educate yourself first. Look at how babies are nurtured.
It takes nine months to birth a child. Babies don’t just come out without a process. Think of your business as a baby—how would you treat a baby? Your baby. You nurture it. The goal is to keep the baby alive and well.
How do you do this?
By working on your products, on your services. You’re testing, retracing, and working on your strategies. You ask for opinions, gather them, look for the common denominator, and implement them. A lot goes into the process of starting.
Things like?
There’s funding, there’s manpower, and honestly, this depends on the business. So while you don’t have to wait till it’s perfect, just don’t rush into fully going to the market.
What key elements make a brand not just recognizable, but sustainable, able to last through seasons and challenges?
Easy. Culture.
Show me a company with terrible people culture, and I’ll show you a company that’s not going to last.
Well, I’m not God and I’m not a seer either, but when you see a company with a better culture, they have long-lasting staff, which makes all the difference. The warmth seeps through everything, you cannot hide it. People talk about the brand and increase its social currency. People want to work there or just be affiliated with the brand. Your customers feel it because happy employees do great work. People make culture, and culture is everything. Quite decidedly, all of this starts with the founder or founders.
All of that technically means founders determine the longevity of the company.
Put that way… errr, yeah. Funny stuff.
Back to culture. How do you hack it?
Make people feel important. I read a book that said one of the things humans like is to feel important. So you relate with them, find out what makes them feel seen, and do exactly that. Centre people and relate with them in a way that validates how they want to feel seen or heard. When you apply this to business management and culture, you’re managing people in a way that makes them function optimally while placing them at a level of importance. No one leaves that feeling of being valued.
The psychology part of this is wild.
Yup. I read the book and immediately thought, “Well, some people must not see this thing.”
What kind of life entices you?
That’s a very unexpected and beautiful question. The kind where I just know my stuff. I think that’s success for me—just being in a place where I can say, “Oh, I actually know this stuff, I know marketing, I know how to build businesses, I’m good at this stuff, or whatever it is I choose to do.”
I think that life entices me.
Let’s draw from you. Three pieces of advice: one for writers, one for business management folks, and one for business owners.
For writers, just write. Don’t worry about style, tone, voice, or the kind of English to use. Write how it comes.
For business and marketing managers, make sure you stay on top of your game with knowledge of what you’re doing. Get caught up with everything that concerns the business and place yourself at the top of your game.
For business owners, you cannot do it alone. In business, you need people. Nobody is self-made. No one is an island of knowledge. Get help, get people.
Thank you for talking to us.
Thank you too. It’s always a delight to share my thoughts. Thank you, Vera, for being an amazing communicator. I love what you guys do at Blurpe, connecting marketers to where they belong.