Industry experts at the 2025 Brand Journalists Association of Nigeria (BJAN) conference examined the impact of artificial intelligence on the marketing industry and how professionals can leverage AI opportunities, overcome disruptions, and remain relevant in the technologically advancing landscape.
The event was also aimed at educating participants on the use of AI within the ethical standards of the profession.
The conference, themed: “AI and Future of Marketing Workflow: Disruption or Opportunity”, held at Lagos Oriental Hotel on Friday, 28 November 2025 brought together experts in the marketing and advertising industry, students amongst others.
The special guest of honour, Mr. Udeme Ufot declaring the conference open said artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how brands create, communicate, and connect.
He said it is reshaping creativity, redefining consumer engagement, and challenging the balance between human insights and machine intelligence, adding that AI brings both disruption and opportunity.
According to him, it burdens old systems, but it also offers new possibilities, greater efficiency, deeper insights, faster processes, and more personalised communication than ever before.
“The pressure is no longer whether AI will transform our industry but what really matters now is how ready we are to adapt and harness responsibility.
“As professionals, we must see AI as an enabler, not a threat. We must build new skills, uphold strong ethical standards, as well as ensure that technology advances, and not replaces human creativity.
“For brand journalists, AI offers tools for better analysis, quicker reporting, and richer storytelling, while also demanding greater vigilance against misinformation and bias. Today’s conference gives us a chance to explore these issues openly and practically,” he said.
The conference did not fail to present insights and expert contributions from various professionals in the field of Marketing and Communications. It also balanced perspectives, as it highlighted the regulatory aspect of the topic.
The Director-General of Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), Dr. Lekan Fadolapo represented by Dr. Susan Agbo, emphasized the need for balance by staying within the ethical standards of the profession, despite the use of Artificial Intelligence.
In her words: “we want to encourage you that as you journey to the use of AI tools in marketing communication, please always self-censor yourself. In anything you are churning out, do a self-censorship to ensure that what you are bringing out conform to the norms of advertising practice.”
Furthermore, she underscored the need for brands to be emotionally connected with their audience.
She also mentioned the contribution of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria in developing Stock image Bank for Nigerians. She said: “We have gone ahead to develop what we call Stock Image Bank for Nigerians where you cannot just go online, pick up any image you like, and use it for your materials. We are well over 2 million Nigerians. And if you feel you can’t use human faces, beautiful faces of Nigerians, then you will need to give us variations and reasons why you will be using Stock Image.
Bethel Obioma, the Head of Corporate Communications, Sahara Group, in his presentation said that it is no longer about disruption or opportunity, but rather, an equilibrium; where disruption meets opportunity.
On that note, he stated: “while AI is disruptive, while AI can give you a head start, we still need you in the room”.
He stated this, pointing the importance of the human edge. He further fit his presentation into three key points: discovery, slithery and mastery.
Speaking of discovery, he said: “you need to understand discovery first. Why are we doing AI? Why is there a focus on AI? What advantage does AI bring to the table?
“You need to know that if you don’t start off from that premise, AI is going to come for your job, you need to know exactly what AI is, what AI can do, what the limitations of AI are, and how you can begin to thrive over them”.
The next point, sleuthery was distinctly and exceptionally emphasised in his presentation, as this is, according to Bethel Obioma, where the real work is. “That’s where you’re able to put on your thinking cap. That’s where the human edge comes in.
“So, you’re looking at what AI has churned out and you’re bringing that 6th, 7th, 8th sense, and you’re dimensioning it into different parts that makes it relatable to everybody else. AI cannot do that,” he said.
For mastery, he mentioned that after the first two steps are done, mastery can come. He noted that two people can put in some prompts into an AI tool, and produce different outcomes altogether, because sleuthery was at play. “The use of AI can only be as good as the prompt you key into it”, he said.
He also placed emphasis on the human edge, where strategy meets the machine, and gave practical illustrations.
He added that: “AI gives you data, your job is to find the story. Readers will always be able to make out AI story compared to when you have injected some human finesse into the story. AI will tell you 50 people dead after a fire incident, but the human edge will say, you need to interview some of the people who saw it happen live.
“You need to talk to them. You need to go to the hospitals. You need to check out the state of the vehicle. You need to check out if there was anything wrong. And AI will not do that for you. That’s where you bring the story home. AI cannot do that for you. They’re not paying for information right now. What everyone is paying for is that human edge that you bring that transforms AI into what people can relate to”.
Dr. Cherry Eromosele, the Executive Vice President and Group Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of Interswitch Group, represented at the conference by Mr. Tomi Ogunlesi, spoke on new advancements in AI, and took the audience beyond the general knowledge of generative AI to agentic AI, which allows for more complex multi-step workflows than generative AI.
He also mentioned the gap between those who have and are willing to adapt, and those who are not, and emphasised the need to adapt to the technologically-advancing landscape to stay relevant in the industry and among global counterparts, and to also ensure the progress of one’s organization.
The panel session had Lanre Basamta, Co-founder and CEO of Optimus AI Labs, represented by Mr. Segun Umoru, Mr. Emma Adediran, Business Unit Director +Acuity Ltd, Dr. Seyi Akindeinde, Founder of
Hyperspace Technologies, and Tomi Ogunlesi in attendance with insights on issues as regards the theme of the conference.
Highlight of the conference was presentation of awards to exceptional brands such as Dashboard Innovations, Integrated Indigo Limited, LG Electronics, Moniepoint, Sosa Fruit Drink, Malta Guinness, Golden Penny Noodles, Maggi, Roadblock, Peak and Stanbic IBTC.
In addition to this, individuals were also recognized and awarded at the conference.
In his opening remarks, BJAN Chairman, Mr. Daniel Obi, stressed the need for the conference theme, adding that AI is transforming how the industry creates, communicates, plans, measures, and engages hence the need for more enlightenment.
He added that professionals, including journalists and regulators must understand the technology deeply enough to use it ethically, strategically, and intelligently.
