Contrary to the popular belief that most young entrepreneurs owe their success to inherited wealth, grants, or influential mentors, Bella Victor’s story challenges these assumptions.
As the CEO of Socialander, a pan-African digital marketing agency in Lagos, Nigeria, with branches in Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, and the US, Bella Victor has paved his way to success through his own merit and determination.
Born into an average Nigerian family, very few people not least Victor himself would have predicted that he would go on to have a successful entrepreneurial career. Despite excelling in his grades and being at the top of his class from secondary school to his early university days, Bella always saw himself destined for a career in one of the country’s top oil companies.
This thought changed during his first year as an undergraduate student at the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nigeria, when he made new connections and networked with individuals who were seemingly more entrepreneurial During this time, Bella Victor was introduced to various entrepreneurial communities and forums such as ENACTUS, Global Shapers Community by World Economic Forum, and, to name but a few.
According to Bella, as he continued to deliver excellent results, his business relationship with his mentor deepened. His mentor soon recommended that he develop a business around his digital skills which were in great demand. Bella took this piece of advice to heart and registered the now multi-million-dollar company, Socialander Digital Agency, as a business. Following that, referrals from his mentor flooded in, increasing Bella’s reputation in the industry.
Challenges
As expected for any business owner, it was not all rosy for Victor. As the client list grew, so did the challenges. One significant issue, according to Bella, was being young and running a company.
“In the early stages of our growth journey, people often judged us by our age and looks, not mainly by our capabilities or organizational efficiency. Sometimes, at meetings with senior executives of companies, we are welcomed with long faces and, in some cases, a clear statement that they cannot work with us because they believe that we are too young to handle their project.
“One way we tackled this was by relying on the same strategy I started with: doing an extreme amount of pro bono jobs which quickly became the proof of competence most business leaders needed to approve of us and give their nods. These days, we have a body of work that proves our capability, and our youthfulness is now an advantage sought after by businesses who get to work with us,” Bella revealed.
His agency, which began as a sole proprietorship has now expanded to a business with sixty-five full-time employees all of whom have expertise in important fields related to digital marketing, website design, creative designs and branding. With an average age of 24 years, one might even wonder if this young founder aims to build a ‘forever young business.
Within a few years of delivering high-quality results for her clients, Socialander became a well-known name in the digital marketing industry in Nigeria and Africa at large. They worked with many top brands and have a reputation for delivering high-quality results. Some of the high-profile clients they have worked with include VFD Group, Checkers Africa, Jotna Group, Crusader Pensions, Churchgate, and GVE Projects Limited, to name a few.
The agency has also picked up multiple awards and nominations for its excellence such as BusinessDay’s top 100 fastest-growing SMEs in Nigeria, Top SEO Companies awards by Clutch, Stanford Seed Entrepreneur program and the Future Awards nominations.
Motivation To Young People
Today, Socialander is a thriving digital marketing agency with a team of experts who are passionate about delivering the best possible results for their clients. They have built a reputation for excellence in the industry and are considered one of the top digital marketing agencies in Africa.
Victor’s story is an inspiration to aspiring entrepreneurs who may feel that they need funding or connections to start a successful business. It shows that with hard work, dedication, and a willingness to learn, anyone can build a successful business from scratch.