Our Client

A deposit money bank and financial services provider in Nigeria. 

Context

In the aftermath of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s sudden revocation of Heritage Bank’s banking license, misinformation and fake news spread, alleging our client’s and other banks’ licenses were to be revoked. Despite official statements from the apex bank and our client, news across social media continued to allege otherwise, necessitating immediate action to disspell the rumours and stop account closures, while creating a foundation to rebuild trust.

Influence

The Influence Agency designed a crisis communications and influencer strategy drawn from our understanding of the finance services sector, influencers and digital media channels, especially X (Twitter) and Whatsapp – platforms primarily utilised for misinformation, to address the rumours and debunk the fake news; confirm the stability of the bank, as guaranteed by the Central Bank, and establish a foundation on which to build trust. Our support included:

• Messaging design
• Crisis management and influencer engagement strategy
• Content development
• Influencer management

Impact

Within three days, influencers reached over 1.75 million people across WhatsApp and X (Twitter). By the final day of the campaign, there were clear indications that the reports were rumours, improving positive thematic associations with our client by 85%, as our influencers’ activities drove awareness about the prevalence of fake stories and assurance of the bank’s stability.