A leading Nigerian offline sales strategist, Fajimokun Kolawole, is advocating for a new artificial intelligence-driven sales model that will help small and medium-sized enterprises and fintech startups across Africa to make more profit.
He recently shared that the new approach will combine AI tools with a human-centred field sales strategy.
Speaking via a press statement, Kolawole said that the tools will help to harness offline distribution networks to trigger customer acquisition, engagement, and lasting loyalty.
According to Kolawole, who previously worked as Vice President, Offline Sales at Moniepoint, his idea would focus on building layered sales teams that will comprise agents, business managers, state coordinators, and regional leads who will operate within communities to properly engage customers face-to-face.
Emphasising that startups must learn to reconnect with the street, he stated that the market never starts with tech, but with the people.
“The market does not begin with technology; it begins with people. To succeed, startups must reconnect with the streets,” he wrote.
Kolawole noted that the street has played a vital role in the development of firms such as OPay, Moniepoint, and PalmPay, reiterating that the model is applicable not only to fintechs but also to regular SMEs and startups across different sectors.
He concluded by saying that relationships are currency in Nigeria, and the street-based model works quicker, cheaper, and more intimately.
“We built a network of over 14,700 business managers generating and converting thousands of leads daily, contributing to trillions of naira in monthly transaction value.
We only pay when results are delivered, when someone is onboarded or uses the service. It’s a lean, scalable, and effective model that keeps costs down while boosting reach.
This insight is often more valuable than any analytics dashboard.
Any business can adopt this framework. The key lies in a transparent commission structure, localised training, and active community engagement.
Relationships are currency in Nigeria. Agents who are part of the community speak the language, understand the culture, and can build trust that money alone cannot buy.
The street-based model is the opposite of what you find in banking halls. But it works faster, cheaper, and more intimately. We can build billion-dollar businesses not by copying Silicon Valley, but by understanding our streets. That’s where the real market lives,” he added.
