Ten weeks after the #ManInTheBox stunned Nigeria, everyone’s wondering where the box is.
Hold on, for the benefit of people that don’t know #TheManInTheBox
Here is a brief recap.
In May, we all opened our mouths, stunned. Why? We watched a man working in a ‘billboard – styled office’ around the Lekki-Epe Expressway for four days and nights! Later we got to know that the man actually represented MTN, the brand that works round the clock supporting businesses technology solutions to help them grow. It was MTN Nigeria’s unique way of creating awareness for its Enterprise Business that serves large enterprises, SMEs and the public sector with business-specific propositions.
Now, the question is, where is the box? Ok, calm down, nobody took the box. On Monday, July 9th, 2018, the first phase of the ‘Man In The Box’ was concluded and the box was moved from it’s Lekki Expressway location. This was after ten weeks of showcasing over seventy different businesses to the world!
Now, a lot of people want to know how businesses got into the box after the man got out. How did they do it?! Well, we found some of the businesses that got into the box and got them to spill. Yaaaaaas!
Franklin Audu, Owner of Ztea Zobo Tea bags who journeyed all the way from Jos, Plateau State, expressed that since his business was showcased in the box his business had garnered attention and orders from the Eastern art of the country all the way to Germany!
Proverbs Creations Bukola Adenuga, followed the same steps as everyone else. However, when she got the call, she thought it was a prank and wouldn’t listen. “I put a call through to the number that called me and said “I’m so sorry.” I was humble instantly.”
Oluwaseyi Gidalo, CEO, Perfumes & Beyond “During the period we were in the box, there were lots of calls, new customers, new followers on our Instagram page…It was fun, it was fantastic. Till now, we’re still delivering.”
“The feedback was fantastic!”, Jadesola Rawa of Melia, a clothing brand, gushed about her business after the box. From all the excited ‘Man-In-The-Boxers’ you could easily see what they had been given – validity.
Oladeji of A Thousand Reasons Confectioneries put it best – “The fact that a brand as big as MTN is supporting your little brand is some sort of validation. You must be doing something right!”
So we can’t see the box anymore. We can’t see the guy anymore (He was cute by the way). What can we see? The millions of businesses around the country that can come up with out-of-the-box ideas! And MTN Nigeria is helping to get closer to these solutions with the next phase of the #ManInTheBox.
The possibilities are giving us goose bumps, especially as MTN’s online platforms are stating the hashtag #ManInTheBoxTheSequel. This month MTN will give specialised Google training to SMEs in Lagos. We hear there’s still a lot to come. So we smile and wait as the conversation continues.