Is MTN making a political statement? This was the question the FM posed when it came across a banner advertisement of the telecommunications giant on www.thezimbabwean.co.uk — a popular online newspaper targeted at Zimbabweans living abroad. <\/p>\n
But this was not the case. Explaining the advertisement, Anthony Mackaiser, acting senior manager: PR & internal communications, says the banner is part of MTN’s current online campaign “that encompasses several websites serving key African markets relevant to MTN. This particular website, primarily a news site, was scheduled as part of Google’s content network, which enables us to geo-target according to our target audiences.” <\/p>\n
The website is owned by a group of Zimbabweans living in the UK and is one of two news sites MTN advertises on. <\/p>\n
TheZimbabwean is edited and published by Wilf Mbanga, founder and CE of Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe, owners of The Daily News which was shut down in 2003. <\/p>\n
Part of MTN’s target market regularly visits news-related sites, says Mackaiser, and because South Africans have an interest in what’s happening outside their borders, “we therefore included these placements in our strategy along with many other news-related sites and targeted SA users only”. <\/p>\n
It costs £25\/month to advertise on the site for three months, depending on the banner type. <\/p>\n