1 min. with a Superhero: Bernadette Homor from MDA
by Yolandi Janse van Rensburg on 21/09/10 at 7:00 am
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Today we’re yakking away with Bernadette Homor, who heads up a company called MediaDigitalAgency (MDA), with offices in Malta, Cape Town and London. Bernadette, give us a short overview of MediaDigitalAgency and what it is that you do?
Through monetising your website and driving traffic as well as giving your brand an online presence, MDA offers companies the ideal accomplished solution. We’re also introducing affiliate marketing in order for clients to increase their traffic and only pay for performance. Referral programs are still in its infancy in South Africa and we believe that we can shape the future of Affiliate marketing in South Africa and show clients how they can benefit.
Sounds exciting… although most Ideate readers need to know what ‘affiliate marketing’ actually is. Can you give us a lay-person definition?
Affiliate marketing is a referral program whereby one website markets the products or another website in return for a commission. Once you set up an affiliate program by offering marketing tools to other webmasters, you will have an entire network of affiliates marketing your products on the net. Affiliate marketing is performance-based; any advertising that is displayed is free advertising and brand awareness attracting targeted customers. You only pay when customer performs an action the exact conditions such as volume, sale, registration or deposit is agreed on with the affiliate when the affiliate joins your program.
So, where does MDA benefit its customers?
I like that question, since it gets to the heart of why we’re in business. I think what we can offer our customers is unparalleled knowledge and hands on advice on what solutions would work best. When starting an online business or even if our customers are well established we analyse their marketing activities and point out areas of the business that have been overlooked or neglected as a result of poor strategy or the use of inferior tools and productivity. Furthermore, it’s important is to come up with suggestions that are realistic to the client’s expectations and be easily incorporated into the day to day’s operations. We work with a very dynamic and powerful network of industry experts in Europe with a collective experience of over 15 years to offer the latest and most innovative e-commerce solutions that can be integrated seamlessly – offering immediate value and cost effectiveness.
“Marketers are the new lawyers!” say a lot of industry pundits. Would you say this is a fair reflection of the marketing industry?
You will get sharks in any industry, not just marketing or law. To safeguard yourself you have to be savvy and inquisitive. The web has tons of information to validate what your marketing agency is suggestion you should do. Always do research and make sure that what you presented with is what you feel your business needs. Online marketing is logical, therefore use your commonsense. Maximize the tools of the internet to further your knowledge and combine that with expert advice . Use the tools of Social Media and forums to do your research, and ensure that your service-providers don’t take you for a ride.
Great advice. Lastly, Bernadette, how did you get into this industry?
I always had a keen interest in business, despite the fact that I have qualified in the school of humanities. I chose my career path because I like a fast paced environment that is ever changing as technology evolves incredibly fast. My industry is never boring and you always learn something new each day.
Thanks for your time. We wish you the best for MDA, and we look forward to seeing your growth in South Africa.
Yolandi Janse van Rensburg writes about social media, marketing, life and, of course, cars. We say “of course” because Yolandi is nuts about anything on 4 wheels and runs Autofemme, a blog about cars. Our Ideate sub-editor is also the Heavy Chef girl at World Wide Creative. You can follow her on Twitter @Yolandi_JvR View more articles by Yolandi Janse van Rensburg.
Tags: 1 Minute with a Superhero, entrepreneur, interview, superhero interview
