General News
Why Paid Media Is Losing Its Edge: The Rise of Earned Media in 2025

By Reuben Kalu
In the evolving digital marketing landscape, 2025 is shaping up to be a transformative year. Traditional paid media, once the backbone of marketing strategies, is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Instead, earned media and owned media are taking center stage, offering unparalleled opportunities for brands to connect authentically with their audiences. In this article, we’ll explore how earned media has disrupted the dominance of paid media and how you can leverage your owned media assets to turbocharge your marketing efforts.

The Rise of Earned Media
Earned media refers to the organic exposure a brand receives through word-of-mouth, media coverage, social shares, reviews, and recommendations. Unlike paid media, which requires financial investment for visibility, earned media is driven by trust and authenticity—two critical factors that modern consumers prioritize when making purchasing decisions.
According to a Nielsen report, 92% of consumers trust earned media more than any form of advertising. This trust stems from the fact that earned media is unsolicited and unbiased, making it far more credible than paid advertisements. As a result, brands that focus on generating earned media are seeing higher engagement rates and improved customer loyalty.
Why Paid Media Is Losing Relevance
Paid media isn’t entirely obsolete, but its efficacy is waning. Here are some reasons why:
1. Ad Fatigue: Consumers are bombarded with ads every day, leading to desensitization and ad fatigue. Many now use ad blockers, making it harder for brands to reach their target audience through paid media.
2. Rising Costs: The cost of digital advertising has skyrocketed, especially on platforms like Google and Facebook. Small businesses often find it difficult to compete with larger corporations with bigger budgets.
3. Declining Trust: Modern consumers are skeptical of paid ads, often viewing them as intrusive or misleading. This lack of trust significantly diminishes the ROI of paid campaigns.
4. Algorithm Changes: Social media algorithms are increasingly favoring organic content over paid promotions. This means brands that rely solely on paid media are at a disadvantage.
The Power of Owned Media
While earned media’s authenticity is its strength, owned media provides the platform to control and amplify your brand’s voice. Owned media includes channels you control, such as your website, blog, email newsletters, and social media profiles. By strategically optimizing these assets, you can create a robust marketing ecosystem that works harmoniously with earned media.
Strategies to Maximize Your Own Media Opportunities in 2025
1. Create High-Value Content
Content remains king in 2025, but not just any content will do. Focus on producing high-value, shareable content that solves real problems for your audience. This could be in the form of:
• Educational Blog Posts: Address common pain points in your industry with actionable solutions.
• Interactive Media: Infographics, videos, and quizzes can significantly increase engagement.
• Case Studies: Showcase your expertise by highlighting success stories that resonate with your audience.
2. Leverage SEO and Content Optimization
Your owned media is only as effective as its discoverability. Search engine optimization (SEO) ensures your content ranks high on search engine results pages (SERPs). Key tactics include:
• Conducting keyword research to understand what your audience is searching for.
• Optimizing on-page elements like meta descriptions, headers, and image alt texts.
• Building backlinks to establish authority and credibility.
3. Develop a Strong Email Marketing Strategy
Email marketing remains one of the highest-ROI channels for owned media. Personalize your emails to cater to the unique needs of your audience segments. Use tools like automation and A/B testing to refine your campaigns and drive higher engagement rates.
4. Engage Authentically on Social Media
Social media platforms are an extension of your owned media. Rather than treating them as one-way communication tools, use them to foster genuine engagement. Respond to comments, participate in discussions, and share user-generated content to build trust and loyalty.
5. Build an Online Community
Communities foster loyalty and provide a platform for earned media to thrive. Create forums, Facebook groups, or Slack channels where your audience can engage with your brand and each other. Encourage discussions, host Q&A sessions, and reward active participants to keep the community vibrant.
6. Integrate Data Analytics
Use data analytics to measure the effectiveness of your owned media strategies. Tools like Google Analytics, HubSpot, and SEMrush can help you track metrics such as website traffic, bounce rates, and conversion rates. Data-driven insights enable you to fine-tune your approach and maximize ROI.
How Earned Media Complements Owned Media
Earned and owned media work best when integrated effectively. Here’s how:
• Amplification: Use your owned media channels to amplify positive earned media, such as reviews, testimonials, and media mentions.
• Engagement: Encourage your audience to share your owned media content, turning it into earned media.
• Credibility: Highlight earned media on your owned channels to build trust and authority.
For instance, if your brand receives a glowing review in a reputable publication, feature it prominently on your website and share it across your social media platforms.
Examples of Successful Earned and Owned Media Strategies
1. Glossier: This beauty brand leveraged user-generated content (earned media) on social platforms and amplified it through its owned media channels, including email newsletters and blog posts.
2. Spotify Wrapped: Spotify’s year-end feature encourages users to share their listening habits on social media (earned media), driving massive organic reach. The feature’s landing page on Spotify’s website (owned media) further strengthens engagement.
3. Apple’s “Shot on iPhone”: Apple’s campaign used customer-generated photos (earned media) and showcased them on its website and billboards (owned media), creating a seamless synergy between the two.
The Risks of Overlooking Earned and Owned Media
Brands that fail to adapt to the shift from paid to earned and owned media risk falling behind their competitors. Over-reliance on paid media can result in:
• High Costs with Low Returns: Diminishing ROI makes paid media an unsustainable long-term strategy.
• Missed Opportunities: Authentic engagement and trust-building opportunities are often lost.
• Decreased Credibility: Consumers may perceive your brand as overly promotional and inauthentic.
Conclusion: Turbocharge Your Marketing in 2025
In 2025, the most successful brands will be those that prioritize earned and owned media over traditional paid strategies. By focusing on authenticity, value, and engagement, you can build trust, foster loyalty, and drive sustainable growth.
Take the first step by optimizing your owned media assets and crafting a strategy to generate earned media. The result? A marketing approach that not only keeps pace with the times but also positions your brand as a trusted leader in your industry.
Call to Action:
Ready to elevate your marketing game? Partner with us to unlock the full potential of earned and owned media. Contact [Your Company Name] today for tailored strategies that deliver real results.
General News
NIMC Disowns Fake NIN Portal

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has warned Nigerians to disregard a viral online flyer claiming that a free portal has been opened for the correction of National Identification Number (NIN) data.

In a statement posted on its official X (formerly Twitter) handle, the commission described the flyer as fake and cautioned the public against using any links associated with it.
“The public is hereby advised not to use the above for modifying their NIN data. All modifications should only be done via the official channel,” NIMC stated, directing users to its authorised self-service portal.
The misleading flyer, which has circulated widely on social media, carries the logos of NIMC and the federal government, falsely claiming that authorities had launched a special correction portal in response to a “high level of complain.”
It lists services such as name, gender, and date of birth corrections, and provides links redirecting users to a suspicious “gvly.xyz” domain—an address the commission says is not affiliated with any government platform.
NIMC noted that the flyer has since been marked “FAKE” in red, indicating it is being recirculated as part of efforts to debunk the misinformation.
The Commission reiterated that all NIN data modifications can only be carried out through its official self-service platform, urging Nigerians to remain vigilant and avoid falling victim to online scams.
General News
Moniepoint Acquires Orda Africa to Transform Africa’s $50Bn Restaurant Sector

Moniepoint Inc. (“Moniepoint” or the “Company”), Africa’s all-in-one financial ecosystem platform for individuals, businesses and their customers, today announced the acquisition of Orda Africa (“Orda”), a leading cloud-based restaurant management platform operating in Nigeria.

Moniepoint
Under the terms of this acquisition, Orda will become part of the Moniebook platform, Moniepoint’s all-in-one Point-of-Sale (POS) and business management platform. Since launching its business management tools product in 2025, Moniebook has rapidly become the go-to platform for thousands of African businesses seeking integrated financial and operational tools, seamlessly unifying payments and bookkeeping in one platform.
With Orda, restaurant owners can now gain access to this proven ecosystem that creates unprecedented opportunities to scale operations, optimize performance, and access credit, as well as the extensive reach of Moniepoint which has powered growth for millions of African businesses.
The acquisition comes as Africa’s food service industry experiences unprecedented growth, with the sector valued at $50 billion and Nigeria’s market alone projected to reach $19.31 billion by 2030, growing at 11.73% annually. With Orda’s restaurant-focused capabilities now part of the Moniepoint ecosystem, the platform is well-positioned to capture this opportunity.
Founded in 2015 by Tosin Eniolorunda and Felix Ike, today Moniepoint has grown into one of Nigeria’s leading distributors of financial services as well as a trusted platform for many of the country’s MSMEs especially in the informal sector.
The company has considerably expanded its offerings to include digital payments, business and personal banking, credit, cross-border payments, and business management tools with a customer base exceeding 20 million active businesses and personal banking customers and processes over US$250 billion in digital payments transaction value annually.
Tosin Eniolorunda, Co-Founder and Group CEO of Moniepoint Inc., said: “The food industry isn’t just about feeding people, it’s a major source of jobs and daily survival for many Africans. It highlights how vital the informal sector is, not just for the economy, but for everyday life across the continent.
Data has shown us that Africa’s restaurant sector is one of the continent’s most dynamic economic engines, yet the majority of food businesses still operate with manual processes and fragmented tools. By bringing Orda into Moniepoint, we are giving restaurant owners what they deserve: one simple platform that handles everything from managing their kitchen to growing their business. Our goal remains to create financial happiness for Africans, giving them the tools to reach their full potential and that’s exactly what we’ve built here.”
Founded in 2020, Orda was built to give Africa’s small and independent restaurants the tools they need to run more efficiently, providing a purpose-built software to businesses that had long operated without it.
Guy Futi, CEO of Orda, reassured existing customers: “Orda has found the perfect home in Moniepoint. We have spent years building deep expertise in restaurant operations, but we have always known that to truly transform the industry, we needed to connect that expertise with comprehensive financial infrastructure.
“That’s exactly what this integration delivers. For our customers, we are assuring a smooth transition with no disruption to the platform and retained access to the support you are used to. What changes is your access to opportunities.
“Over the coming weeks, being part of Moniepoint means you’ll have more tools, more reach, and more ways to grow your business than ever before”
Combining their respective strengths, Moniepoint and Orda deliver a purpose-built solution that empowers food businesses at every scale to manage orders, track inventory, pay suppliers, and access working capital, all in one seamless experience.
This move represents a demonstrated commitment to building a dedicated financial infrastructure designed around the unique complexity of Africa’s food economy.
For the millions of food entrepreneurs across the continent, from the everyday buka owner to the high-end restaurateur, this acquisition means less time managing multiple tools or carrying out arduous manual work and more time doing what they do best – feeding Africa.
General News
Tech Firms Sack over 45,000 so Far in 2026

More than 45,000 jobs have been cut across the global technology sector in the first few months of 2026, according to data from RationalFX, signalling that the industry is still adjusting after a period of aggressive hiring rather than returning to a full growth phase.

“In 2025, automation, artificial intelligence, and sustained cost-discipline measures drove much of the downsizing, with entire departments restructured or eliminated in favour of leaner, AI-assisted workflows. This trend has continued full steam into 2026,” said Alan Cohen, analyst at RationalFX.
According to the report, if the current rate of redundancies is sustained, total layoffs in 2026 could surpass the 245,000 recorded in 2025.
The majority of these layoffs have been concentrated in the United States, with major companies continuing to trim their workforce despite stable core operations.
Amazon has announced approximately 16,000 job cuts this year, while Block has also reduced thousands of roles as it tightens operations and shifts focus towards artificial intelligence.
There are indications that further reductions may follow.
Meta is reportedly considering additional layoffs as it increases investment in AI infrastructure, while PayPal and Klarna are reassessing spending and hiring strategies amid ongoing uncertainty.
Established technology firms are also undergoing restructuring. Dell has reduced its workforce by around 11,000 over the past year as part of a broader reorganisation, while Salesforce has cut approximately 1,000 roles in 2026 while aligning its teams more closely with AI-driven products.
Outside the United States, layoffs have been smaller in scale but more geographically dispersed.
Australia has reported around 2,650 job cuts so far this year, followed by Sweden with roughly 1,923 and Netherlands with about 1,700.
Other markets have also been affected. Israel and India have recorded approximately 1,539 and 1,520 layoffs respectively, with Israel’s startup ecosystem particularly sensitive to tighter funding conditions, while in India, both startups and larger IT firms have reduced headcount as global client spending slows.
In Singapore, around 1,016 layoffs have been reported, reflecting a softer hiring environment across Asia’s major technology hubs, where companies are adopting a more cautious approach amid uneven demand.
Across Europe, job cuts have been comparatively limited but still noticeable.
The United Kingdom has recorded around 1,000 layoffs, while Czech Republic and Germany have seen smaller reductions.
The broader trend suggests that technology companies are shifting towards leaner operations and more defined priorities following years of expansion. Increasing investment in automation and artificial intelligence is also reshaping the types of roles in demand.
For employees, the impact is becoming increasingly visible, with hiring slowing and becoming more selective. While opportunities remain, companies are taking a more measured approach to recruitment compared to the rapid expansion seen in previous years.
Further credit… .storyboard18.com
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