Career lessons from growth marketing expert: Olabinjo Adeniran
Looking at Olabinjo Adeniran’s profile on LinkedIn, we were fascinated because he had worked in many industries, from travel to crypto and blockchain, savings and investments, and media. We were curious about his experience, so we reached out to Olabinjo, or “Binjo” as he’s popularly called, for an interview. He most graciously accepted our invitation, sharing his exciting career journey and lessons so far with us.
Keep reading to see insights from his decade-long experience in marketing, successfully building awareness for lots of innovative products before they even became a fad.
Olabinjo during a panel at Social Media Week Lagos 2020
Tell us about yourself: How did your journey in marketing begin?
There is an interesting backstory, which, as far as my father is concerned, is a conspiracy that makes him very happy. As a teenager, in my house, we used to analyze ads on TV. And this was because my dad led communications for a very big Nigerian bank so we did that during family time. One day, my dad and I were talking about another ad and he told me; I don't want to hear about this talk (criticism) anymore, tomorrow, wake up early, there’s somewhere I’m going to drop you.
The next day, he drove me to a marketing agency and told the CEO that he had brought “one young boy” for them, “he keeps disturbing me in the house” he said. He didn’t wait for their reply and just left. I was there for the entire summer in 2005 or 2006, and that was my first-ever internship.
How did you land your first full-time role?
I grew up really liking computers, so I always knew I wanted to study something related to computers at university. Before I went to university, though, I took a gap year in 2012. Fortunately, I lived about two streets away from Co-Creation Hub, which had just opened then. One day, I walked in with a friend and never stopped going there. They organized many cool tech events, eventually inspiring my friends (who liked computers too) and me to start a small tech blog. We started writing about events in the tech community in Lagos before popular tech publications like Techpoint and TechCabal began.
Olabinjo at Co-Creation Hub
Still during my gap year, I got my first job as the Customer and Social Media rep at a tech startup. After reading the tech blog, the founder was convinced I was perfect for the job. That was my first job in tech and my first opportunity to work in a space where I was held accountable to any targets and KPIs.
A few months after, I started a degree in Information Technology at university. Through the years, I kept working remotely for organizations founded by either people I met at Co-Creation Hub or people they knew. I did different things for these organizations, mostly centered around establishing their digital and social media presence. At the same time, I kept running the tech blog with my friends.
Eventually, in my fourth and final year at the university, I decided to dive fully into marketing. Information Technology was interesting and I enjoyed learning how to code. However, I found problem-solving in marketing a lot more exciting. I was curious about what life after university as a full-time marketer looked like, so I talked to a few people who had graduated from university a year or two before me and were marketers. I asked about their salaries, work schedules, and if they had enough time to freelance. Their answers helped me make my decision.
At this point, the tech blog had also dissipated because everyone involved had gone ahead to do different things with their lives. One of my friends became a Grammy-nominated musician, and the other became a software developer at Microsoft.
What does a day in your life look like as a Senior Marketing Expert?
My day is pretty straightforward — I like to have my mornings to myself, which is one of the reasons I love remote working. I spend time alone in the mornings praying, journaling, and planning my day. Sometimes, I go to the gym or read a book. Many teammates at my current job are in the Eastern Timezone, so I start working around 1 or 2 pm to collaborate with them.
My days often require me to create, either by writing a new piece of content, providing a draft, talking about how our product solves a problem, or editing a piece that somebody on the product team has written about our company's unique opinion. I also spend some time on our social channels; I like to see what questions people are asking because it gives me an idea of what people want to read — we have quite an active discord channel because our product is for developers. I see their questions and think: "do we already have an article that solves this? Does it need to be a blog post? Should we do a video?"
I also spend a lot of time thinking about the future of the product and industry we operate in. My job title is Product Marketing Manager, but I still think like a Growth Marketer. I'm very curious about the state of the industry and our competitors, so I read lots of industry news and analysis and take notes to form my own opinions.
Finally, I take some time to review the data and analytics. I need to understand what's driving any spikes in customer activity and look for opportunities to replicate successful campaigns to increase our numbers continuously. This also helps me communicate actively with the rest of the business and build trust in the work and team.
You’ve had diverse roles in your career so far, from “Growth Marketer” to “Product Marketer” and “Digital Marketer”. How have these roles been similar or different?
The common thread is that I'm solving a set of problems in all the roles, and depending on the title, it could be an awareness, acquisition, or retention problem. These problems often require knowledge in two key areas: the right marketing activities and a deep understanding of the product.
At the same time, I'm also a person who doesn't care much about job titles. I spend more time reviewing the job description and ensuring the role aligns with what I'd prefer to do in my day-to-day. I've also learned from experience that different kinds of companies use varying titles for the same job types, making it less straightforward. In some companies, my current role could be "Community Manager" because I engage with customers on social media, yet, I'm still responsible for marketing a product.
How have you positioned yourself to Hiring Managers in the past and how have you landed international remote opportunities?
One thing that consistently cuts across all the applications I've sent is that I communicate myself as somebody well-versed in helping companies figure out how to grow their online presence and business using digital channels. I also share my background in information technology; I can collaborate technically with product and engineering teams which gives me an edge compared to other people in the industry.
In my resume, I thoroughly describe my relevant roles but move quickly to the successes, highlighting my accomplishments with metrics. Marrying these things together is important; people usually write about their skills in their resumes but forget to discuss their impact. I also have a writing portfolio to showcase my skills further. Interestingly, from my portfolio, a blog I published in 2021 was one of the key things that impressed my current employer as it aligned with their product thesis and industry opinion.
For international roles, it also helps if someone in your network can make an introduction for you. For my current job, I applied on the website, but I also had a connection send an email introduction which I think helped my application stand out.
Finally, I strive to deliver my work at a certain global standard, constantly raising the bar and challenging myself to do better. Regardless of the country I work in, my goal is to create work that can be competitive worldwide and help me build a successful global career.
Olabinjo during a panel at Social Media Week Lagos 2022
What part of your job do you enjoy the most and what part do you not enjoy?
I enjoy working with a lot of unknowns. I've been very blessed to work for new products and industries, exposing me to many new ideas and challenges. For example, I worked at one of the first travel booking sites and also one of the first crypto exchanges in Nigeria. In both cases, I had to figure out how to market a brand-new product idea which can be really exciting. I enjoy the research, experiments, and first-mover advantages that often come with exploring novel ideas.
On the flip side, working on new ideas can also be challenging. If you're working in a new industry, it could mean people have not yet fully figured out how to make money from it, and you're either leaving too much money on the table, or the business model just isn't sustainable. Now that I've worked in this career for over a decade, I can see things better, but at the early stages of my career, there were some companies I worked for that shouldn't have existed. In marketing, you never truly know until you try.
What’s a life hack you’d like to share?
Write, write, write! Most people overestimate how good their memory is. In my notes app, I track my ideas, meetings, and accomplishments. Many people do great work but cannot represent it well when they need to build a portfolio because they're not documenting as they go. It's important to take note of results, processes, and feedback — these can all be useful for the future.
Also, take more risks. Looking back at my career, I realize that I might have achieved more if I had made different decisions. Two of the companies I could have worked with in the past have now been acquired. My point is to take opportunities when they come and explore all your options before you make a decision.
Finally, keep striving to improve your negotiation skills and be more confident to demand your worth.
What can we expect from Binjo next?
I plan to publish two books this year — my goal is to create things people can find useful for years to come. I’d love to explore some podcasting as well.
Connect with Olabinjo Adeniran on Linkedin, Twitter, and his newsletter. You can also purchase his latest book: The Growth Handbook - Scaling Fintech in Nigeria, where he shares insights across building user trust, community, sales, product, storytelling, and so much more from operators and leaders at some of Nigeria's fintech companies.
We’ll be hosting a Twitter Space with Olabinjo Adeniran on Friday, 3rd of March 2023 to discuss “Working with Africa’s Leading Startups: Lessons on Growth Marketing.”
