Marketing Interview South Africa

#Newsmaker: Siya Metane - MD at SlikourOnLife

Siya Metane, better known in the music industry as Slikour, is making waves with his new venture - SlikourOnLife, part of OnLife Networks...
#Newsmaker: Siya Metane - MD at SlikourOnLife

He describes the company as "an approachable platform, a place for brands to have the power, where stories are told, and which creates inventory for clients to buy. We’re creating communities that brands can plug into authentically. We’re selling what no digital agency can sell – we’re selling the truth, the culture, and we’re bringing worlds together."

Bizcommunity Briefly tell us about your role?

Metane: As the MD of SlikourONLife, I focus on the short term and long term vision of the company, and on new business opportunities. SlikourONLife is a platform for sharing information on urban culture and music, featuring videos and interviews to give substance to the music and to musicians who may not have access to traditional platforms, and offering a more cohesive and accessible place for their videos than YouTube. My role involves ensuring that our content is relevant to our audience. Our business is built on the hacker marketing model. This means that as long as we deliver relevant content to the consumer we'll grow our platform. We share our learnings with clients when approaching their digital strategy for the urban youth market.

Bizcommunity What is your main business challenge?

Metane: Transformation is a real challenge in South Africa, not only inside some businesses but also with suppliers. The South African cultural creative entrepreneur is almost an unheard-of phenomena and every day we go up against the lack of transformation. On top of this, our advanced insight into our market challenges a lot of traditional or global norms. The positive is that there are brand marketers who understand that the South African story is unique and making it special is how you win the market. These are the bold groundbreakers who depend on us to deliver concepts, ideas and content that justifies their argument internally and everything we’ve delivered has met the required KPI's. I think the general challenge in South Africa is not making our uniqueness special; instead we want to run from it and look outside.

Bizcommunity What trends do your predict for your industry in 2017?

Metane: I think the world is really breaking away from traditional ways of consumption i.e. TV, radio, etc and the only thing that’s stopping those that are not on their mobile is affordability and devices, but I can say that South Africa is ready for the digital transition. When I was young we could never afford MNET but we aspired to get it because we knew we were missing out. Today, digital is like the new MNET, and people either wish they had the right devices or enough data because there's always something they're missing out on.

Bizcommunity What will your core strategy be this year?

Metane: My core strategy is always to stick to the script and let the main thing always be the main thing, but always take it to a higher level. In real terms, the main thing for me is love for the music, the culture and sharing it so others can appreciate it. If I get that right and I do it better every year then everything else falls in place.

Bizcommunity Most important attributes needed to do your job?

Metane: There are too many egos, too much smoke and mirrors. You need to always remind yourself that you are a servant of the culture and you have the responsibility to guide businesses that want to utilise the culture in their strategies, influencer campaigns or just for association in the most authentic way. The question I ask myself all the time is how do we take this unique culture of ours and collaborate with some of the greatest brands to create a special story that reflects the aspiration of South Africans. The right marketing reflects who we are and most South African masses can't claim to possess anything except the equity of their culture. How do we make that special and through collaborating with brands?

Bizcommunity What's at the top of your bucket list?

Metane: Growing up in a place that made me find most of my role models on television or a tape, I can honestly say that the life I'm living is a big bucket of possibility so why limit myself with a list when I found residency in the bucket? :)

About Beverley Klein

Beverley Klein is the editor of the Marketing Media South Africa section on Bizcommunity.com. With a background in journalism and historical studies, she's dived into the world of industry news, curating content, writing and interviewing thought leaders. She's often spotted in a forest on the weekend and rarely seen without a camera. Follow @BevCPT.
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