AAG Executive Council members call on Graphic MD

The Graphic Communications Group (GCGL) is undergoing a digital transformation for it to remain relevant and help shape the transformation agenda of the national economy, its Managing Director, Mr Ato Afful, has said.

He said although the traditional print publications of the company would continue to be stronger and better, the management was now focusing on the digital media to meet current demands.

Mr Afful made this known when the Executive Council of the Advertising Association of Ghana (AAG) paid a courtesy call on him in Accra yesterday.

The parties deliberated on the partnership between the two groups, while the AAG members welcomed the new managing director, who assumed office a little over a month ago.

Integration

Welcoming the delegation, Mr Afful said advertising was strategic to the business of the GCGL, adding that “you have been with us for years and the success of this company has been with your support over the decades”.

To serve its partners and clients better in the era of digitisation and modernisation, he said, the GCGL was pursuing digital transformation to grow a strong business, while shaping the transformation agenda of the economy.

He said the company’s newsroom was currently being fully integrated to work on both digital and traditional media and would continue to grow its audience base through regular networking and engagements.

He said the GCGL was committed to delivering a business that would enable partners and clients to connect and engage easily, as well as deliver compelling messages and content to suit the audience.

Mr Afful, therefore, urged the AAG to support and make inputs into the company’s business concept and development agenda to enable the GCGL to build better and relevant content.

While assuring advertisers of improved services this year, the Director of Marketing of the GCGL, Mr Franklin Sowa, urged the executive of the association to impress on their members to update their records with the company as it explored new avenues and systems to operate.

As part of its digital transformation agenda, he announced that, the GCGL would soon roll out an online television outlet with impressive content that would enhance the lives of Ghanaians.

Mr Sowa expressed concern over late cancellation of advert orders, saying it disrupted the company’s production.
He told the advertisers that future cancellation of advert orders at late hours would attract a surcharge of 25 per cent.

Reading of newspapers

In his remarks, the President of the AAG, Mr Torgbor Mensah, said the meeting was for the association to dialogue and deliberate on how to strengthen the partnership for mutual benefit.

While eulogising Mr Afful for his past managerial experiences in the adverts industry, Mr Mensah said he was hopeful that Mr Afful would bring his managerial skills and experiences to bear on running the GCGL to achieve excellence in the industry.

He urged the GCGL to do more to encourage people, especially the younger generation, to read its newspapers.
 
Speaking on advertising in Ghana, Mr Mensah said the industry had grown big and it had come to stay, hence the need to forge stronger collaboration to work towards a common goal.

He said the aim of the AAG was to make Accra the headquarters of advertising in Africa and called for support to push that agenda.

GCGL has excelled

For her part, a past President of the AAG, Mrs Norkor Duah, commended the GCGL for its successes over the years, saying: “The GCGL has come a long way and it has excelled.

 It is way ahead of the game and I encourage you to do more.”

She called for advocacy by the AAG and the GCGL to address issues regarding the regulation of some advertisements by the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA).

She also used the opportunity to announce the third Africa Leadership Conference, dubbed: “Africa Rising”, which will be organised by the International Advertising Association (IAA) in Accra in May this year.