Perhaps one of her biggest roles yet is being a brand gatekeeper for one of the world’s largest skin care products, NIVEA, by Beiersdorf. As Global Brand Communications Lead she creates communication materials across several platforms for global execution. Temitayo Ige, a digital marketing consultant and brand expert, is also responsible for ensuring that every aspect of the NIVEA brand is translated in a consistent manner.
“Considering how I started out wanting to be a pharmacist, I am in awe of how God has guided me and pushed me into ‘my lane’,” she marvels.
She moves
Her journey did not begin as a brand expert, however. She dabbled in photography while studying in the United Kingdom for her master’s degree.
“My mom gifted me a camera and I decided to take it for a walk. A walk turned into several walks, then portrait sessions, then meet ups with other photographers then events and that was it,” she recalls. Although today, it has turned into more of a hobby than a profession.
Just like photography, she rocked a bit in the dance space. As humorous as it might sound, she was stopped from attending parties at a very young age because she would always win a prize for dancing. Ige even joined a dance group that performed at various events when she got into the university. While she gets her groove on every now and then, dance is no longer a major part of her life.
But this seeming pattern of stumbling upon interests that morph into professions and then fizzling out doesn’t apply to all of her passions. Many years ago, Ige chanced upon digital marketing due to a visa application gone wrong and an internship she held. She fell in love with this component of marketing and has not left it since. She has been a trainer for Facebook and the Digital Marketing Institute in Ireland and is a board member of the Association of Digital Marketing professionals. Ige is also co-founder of the largest digital marketing professionals community in Nigeria, Digital Marketing Meet-up, which has afforded her the opportunity to mentor others.
A few thoughts
As women’s month comes to a close, she weighs in on the themes for this year’s celebrations: Embrace equity and DigitALL : innovation and technology for gender equality.
“I love both themes because while one is a call to everyone to be a part of the conversation, the other goes on to discuss what exactly can be done in the specific area of innovation and tech to achieve gender equality,” she expresses.
Ige adds: “We also need to make sure people understand the difference between equity and equality. While equality says we should be treated equally, equity says that the playing field should be leveled by taking into consideration the nuances that make it difficult for women.
“I really hope that people take these conversations more seriously beyond the hype and marking a day by asking themselves, ‘What can I do in my small space to drive gender equality and equity’?” she concludes.