No. 5: Abidjan Indulgences
Crafting a stellar communications strategy & Kenyan digital lenders go amok: tracking the momentum of an African tech story
Greetings from Abidjan!
As I wrote in my brief note last week, I traveled to Cote d'Ivoire for a much-needed breather from Lagos.
I fondly call Abidjan my home away from home as I lived here for nearly six years.
Nice to see these fellows again, icons of Cote d’Ivoire.
Since I landed last week, I've rushed to enjoy the hallmarks of high quality living à l'abidjanaise. I gorged on my comfort foods: poulet braisé, attiéké and avocat crevette; I spent the weekend at a chilled beach in Assouindé; I gawked at the new high rises dotting Zone 4, the city’s most expensive neighborhood.
On to this week’s newsletter.
PR & Communications Insights
The Roadmap: A 5-part series on crafting a stellar communications strategy
How many of you can relate to this?
It's a new week and your to-do list is a mile long. You churn out blog post after post, draft press releases, and fire off tweet storms.
But, as you cross off that last item from your task list, you’re left wondering: what’s the point of it all?
Are you doing the right things to support the business & make a difference? Or are you just doing busy work?
It's tempting to skip research and strategy to dive into tactics. PR pros, and in-house teams, can face incredible pressure from clients and bosses to deliver lightening fast results. You simply don’t have time to develop a road map.
But, this is a colossal mistake.
Without a road map, you'll struggle to:
Tie your work with the overarching business goals (hint: this is critical)
Develop the messaging & positioning that distinguishes you from your competitors
Measure your results and course correct if necessary
It's like leading your troops into battle without a plan. You might win small skirmishes, but you'll lose the war.
Over the next 5 issues, I’ll give you a framework for crafting a stellar communications strategy:
I’ll start with showing you how to link your startup’s communications goals to its broader business goals.
You'll become indispensable, a key player in the company's growth & success. Not just someone who's churning out busy work.
Anatomy of a Story
Kenyan Digital Lenders Harass Borrowers to Repay Loans
Earlier this month, the FT wrote about the unsavory practices of lending apps in Kenya. Digital lenders - like Tala, Branch, and Okash - call borrowers’ friends and family in order to shame them into repaying.
More alarming, they tap into borrowers’ personal data. Many collection agents, working on behalf of the digital lenders, threaten to report borrowers who are late on payments to the credit bureau, trashing their credit histories.
This story generated a lot of buzz on social media. The Kenyan Central Bank Governor even tweeted it.
I want to break down this story’s evolution. It’s a fascinating media case study for its insights into how the media ecosystem works.
Because of its brand and influence, the FT put it on everyone’s radar. But, it didn’t break the story.
1. Industry publication first raises the alarm
In May, Rest of World, a new digital native publication on technology in emerging markets, first reported on sketchy practices from digital lenders.
Industry publications are the first to sniff out newsworthy African tech trends that might be too niche for mass market media.
The initial version focuses on Chinese mobile lenders, Opesa and Okash. This is not a coincidence. Suspicion and distrust about China’s role in Africa run deep, which extends to tech.
It was not surprising that the first reports on dodgy lending behavior zero in on Chinese tech companies.
2. The industry association speaks out
In June, a groundswell of criticism on social networks prompts the association of digital lenders to speak out against debt shaming.
The Digital Lenders Association of Kenya (DLAK), which includes Tala and Branch, single out Opesa and Okash with some strong words. They say that their practices "reek of indignity."
3. The BBC chimes in
In July, the BBC Africa’s new podcast, the Comb, adds its voice to the conversation.
The narrative is well known — Kenyans are falling into debt over small loans from digital lenders. Chinese apps are dialing their contacts to chase payment on outstanding debts. So far, so familiar.
With its audio storytelling format, The Comb is the first to put those affected at the forefront of the story. You can really relate to them, how they feel embarrassment and shame.
The podcast also introduces a new detail on the gravity of mounting digital indebtedness. They speak with a financial inclusion expert who says that the majority of small loans in Kenya are used to purchase airtime. That’s a colossal problem.
The loans aren't used for productive means — are these loans a tool or trap?
4. The FT goes after the Valley's darlings
As you can see, the FT didn't break this story either. But, what made it a bombshell report was its exposing of Silicon Valley darlings, Tala and Branch. Despite their moral grandstanding, they use the same unscrupulous collection tactics as the Chinese lending apps.
By investigating Tala and Branch, the FT succeeds in showing that shaming tactics plague the entire industry and are not specific to one player. This isn't the case of a few bad apples; the tree is rotten.
As readers, we're left to question whether these apps, celebrated as giving ordinary Kenyans access to capital, are more a force for harm than good.
That's why this story morphed from a niche industry publication to the front page of the world's leading financial newspaper — it leaves us grappling with complicated questions about venture-backed tech in African markets.
Takeaways
The Kenyan digital lenders story is a fascinating media case study because it provides insights into how the media ecosystem works.
Here are the main takeaways:
Nuggets for great stories frequently lie in social media.
A story can be published in many platforms from native digital to industry to print to broadcast to audio.
To appear in a leading international press, the story needs scale — it needs to focus on a deeply rooted industry issue.
Use this knowledge of how a big story evolves in the international media to pitch your startup to the press, for either a feature or industry commentary.
Wishing you all a productive and creative week!
Say hi on Twitter — I'd love to hear from you.
Until next time,
Victoria
Victoria Crandall | African Startups | Communications & PR Strategist | Lagos 🇳🇬