Winning the Osun Osogbo Festival Crowd

If brands must learn anything from this, it is the lesson that it won’t be applauded for sponsorship and presence alone, even if those are what enabled the festival to function. To truly succeed, festival-bound brands must keep the needs of festivalgoers top of mind.




The Ejiogbe Twins serenading festivalgoers at Guinness Nigeria stand during the 2014 Osun Osogbo festival


The 12 days of intense socio-cultural and religious activities marking the annual Osun Osogbo festival came to an end on Friday, August 22. But the memories will linger for long for participants of the 500 year-old festival, which is essentially a ritual celebrating Osun, the Yoruba goddess of fertility. It was a potent cocktail of religious rituals, cultural displays, comedy, traditional and contemporary music as well as peerless brand activations. 

Every year, the festival starts and ends in the palace of the paramount ruler of Osogbo town, the Ataoja of Osogboland, Oba Jimoh Oyetunji, Olanipekun Larooye II. Usually, the first day of the festival starts with the ritual cleansing of the town, by a team that comprise of the Osun Priestess, Osun Priest, Ataoja of Osogboland and his traditional chiefs.  

It ends on the 12th day - when the whole of Osogbo partakes in a procession to the Osun groove in the morning by the Votary Maid, Osun Priestess, Priest and devotees, as well as a procession of drummers, singers and dancers. The festival ends when the Votary Maid successfully returns to the replica Osun shrine within the Ataoja of Osogbo’s palace.





Chairman, Osun Tourism Board, Engr Daniyan, presenting prize to the winner of the talent in culture competition

In spite of its ritual content, and the increasing predominance of Islam and Christianity in Osun State and across the country, the Osun Osogbo festival has become one of the biggest festivals on the cultural tourism calendar in Nigeria.  Every August, the ancient town of Osogbo, is crammed with local and international tourists, diplomats and devotees of the Osun deity from across the world. They come in their thousands to visit the sacred Osun Groove, worship and pay homage to the Osun deity, and participate in the celebratory activities commemorating the festival which now enjoys sponsorship and support from corporate organizations.



Artworks and traditional fashion items such as beads for sale are usually on display in their abundance. However, the sacred Osun Groove remain the centre of attraction to tourists and visitors, and the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), custodians of the groove, take advantage of that to generate revenue for itself - a necessary action if the groove must be maintained. 

Tourists pay for access and the use of cameras (still and motion), as it obtains in other parts of the world. Interestingly enough, much value was delivered to tourists by the NCMM, through the articulate tourist educators on ground, who meet the needs of both local and international visitors to the festival, as tour guides on the 75 hectare sacred groove.

More than ever, big brands in the fast moving consumer goods space also added immense value to the overall festival experience through experiential marketing. In part, their engaging consumer-centric activations increased uptake of Osun Osogbo festival by residents, while boosting celebratory activities among tourists and Osun devotees. Due to the leverage provided by their festival friendly brands, alcoholic beverage companies were the undisputed frontrunners in terms of engaging and connecting with all categories of festivalgoers during the annual festival.




0sun Osogbo 2014: Raffle draw winner receiving his gift

This achievement was realised through the 21-day beer fiesta segment of the festival infused with music and comedy. During the festival, it was a common sight to see crowds of people huddling around the beer tents, and jamming to their favorite bands. The segment became so big that leading alcoholic beverage companies that had presence at the festival could not but count their blessings.

Remarkably, Guinness Nigeria took advantage of the festival and the beer fiesta to integrate its array of iconic brands into the Osun Osogbo festival creating meaningful and memorable experience for all categories of festivalgoers. It held tasting parties, gave out souvenirs and held raffles draws luring festivalgoers into its inviting tents; a subtle, but very effective way of becoming a memorable part of the festival experience for attendees.

Commenting on the festival, Afeez Jibowu, Regional Sales Director, Southwest, Guinness Nigeria, said “As a consumer friendly brand that has been part of celebrations of every facet of the Nigerian life for decades, we regard the Osun Osogbo festival as another great opportunity to connect with the passion of local and international tourists, devotees and residents of Osogbo. We are driven by the insight that the Osun Osogbo festival is so much more than a religious affair. It is also a social festival with lots of celebratory activities with strong appeal to tourists and residents of Osogbo town, among other stakeholders.”

Jibowu added that, “Festivals are a place for festivalgoers to make memories, and Osun Osogbo festival is not any different. This makes it imperative for Guinness Nigeria, a consumer friendly to integrate its array of iconic brands into the Osun Osogbo festival experience thereby entrenching the brands further in the mind of festivalgoers that are brand loyalists. Let me also add that the rich heritage of the Osun Osogbo festival is as legendary as our brands which naturally guarantee great times and experiences.

Truly so, Dotun Akere, a native of Osogbo, and one of the regulars at the Beer Fiesta, said that the Osun Osogbo festival now has more appeal for the people of Osogbo irrespective of their religious cleavage because of the support it enjoys from government and corporate sponsors. Akere disclosed that in his early years, celebration of the Osun Osogbo Festival was the exclusive preserve of the Osun deity devotees who were mainly focused on performing rituals.




Osun Osogbo 2014: Guinness Nigeria brand adorers at the beer fiesta segment

According to Akere, all that has changed. The festival has become a glamorous affair incorporating music, comedy, pageants, and a beer fiesta. “The participation of companies like Guinness Nigeria in the celebratory activities marking the Osun Osogbo festival changed the equation for most of us that are not devotees  of the Osun deity. It has made it possible for us to join the ranks of those having a good time during the annual festival. We now look forward to participating in the celebrations marking the annual festival,” Akere disclosed.

Looking back at the just concluded Osun Osogbo festival, it can be said that experiential marketing by big brands can make festivals bigger and glamorous. However, it is only consumer friendly brands such as Guinness Nigeria that demonstrate commitment to consumers by creating meaningful and memorable experiences during festivals that can earn new adorers from the usually huge crowd at festivals of the size of Osun Osogbo.

If brands must learn anything from this, it is the lesson that it won’t be applauded for sponsorship and presence alone, even if those are what enabled the festival to function. To truly succeed, festival-bound brands must keep the needs of festivalgoers top of mind.