E-commerce
Business
The Influencer Tax: Why Most Businesses Should Build Their Own
The writer argues that influencer marketing functions as a largely unavoidable cost for businesses entering new markets or channels, but for small enterprises in Cameroon selling low-margin goods, the return rarely justifies the expense. Rather than paying established influencers, most small businesses should either create their own content or use influencers as distribution partners on native terms.
Five Starter Business Ideas for the Digital Age in Cameroon
This piece outlines five low-barrier, phone-first business models—furniture, fashion, books, electronics, and accessories—each requiring minimal capital and leveraging social media for reach. The writer emphasizes the importance of quality, presentation, and digital marketing skills as differentiators.
Monetizing a Fanbase: Album Sales, Proof, and the Cameroon Music Industry
The writer questions inflated sales claims around a major local album release and uses it as a springboard to examine what transparency in music earnings might teach emerging artists. The piece argues that unverified figures obscure the real economics of music in Cameroon and that artist credibility rests on talent, self-directed marketing, and authentic fan engagement rather than assembled teams.
Job Posting: Marketing & Operations Assistant at Just Food
Poise shared a recruitment notice for a Marketing & Operations Assistant role at Just Food, a Yaounde-based food processing company transforming traditional African dishes into convenient, health-focused ready-to-cook products. The position, posted in January 2021, required marketing and business credentials, bilingual fluency, and a broad range of operational responsibilities spanning customer engagement, logistics, and administrative work.
Marketing & Operations Assistant at Just Food: A Portrait of Cameroon's Food-Tech Moment
Poise shared a job posting from Just Food, a Yaounde-based food processing company seeking a marketing and operations assistant. The role encompassed customer engagement, logistics, production oversight, and administrative work across both local and international markets—a snapshot of how small Cameroonian food enterprises were beginning to professionalize and scale in the early 2020s.
Cameroon's Artists and Web Analytics: Building Beyond Social Media
A practitioner in Cameroonian digital marketing observes that local musicians, bloggers, and creatives rely almost entirely on social media metrics while neglecting their own websites and the analytics tools that could reveal their actual reach and audience behaviour. The piece argues that understanding web data—not vanity follower counts—is essential for artists to attract industry partners and build sustainable careers.
The Case of Jumia and Our Resistance to Technology
The writer examines Cameroon's deep technological resistance as an economic and cultural drag, using Jumia's withdrawal from e-commerce as a symptom rather than a cause. The argument centers on how a combination of consumer technophobia, inadequate digital literacy, and the failures of major service providers has stalled digital adoption across the economy.
Tell Our Own Stories: A Business Model for African Children's Content
The writer proposes a practical business model for producing and distributing cartoons based on African oral traditions—specifically fables like the tale of the tortoise. Drawing on personal memory and cultural observation, the piece outlines a complete go-to-market strategy: production (partnering artists with educators and anthropologists), distribution (USB sticks and digital downloads), pricing, promotion (nursery schools and churches), and potential merchandise.
Youth Entrepreneurship 1: Snapburger
A reflection on discovering Snapburger, a new burger joint in Yaounde opened by two university students, and what their venture represents for Cameroon's economic future. The piece weaves personal appetite for authentic American-style burgers with broader observations on the role of entrepreneurs in building a robust economy.
Mobile Money Monopolies and E-Commerce Stagnation in Cameroon
This piece argues that while structural barriers—poor addressing, low card penetration, and skepticism of online transactions—are real obstacles to e-commerce growth in Cameroon, the deeper problem lies with MTN and Orange's control over mobile money infrastructure and their simultaneous investment in Jumia, creating a conflict of interest that stifles competing platforms and innovation.
Ridesharing and the Friction of Digital Commerce in Cameroon
The post surveys the state of internet-based entrepreneurship in Cameroon, tracking the barriers that young founders face—chiefly gatekeeping around payment APIs and regulatory ambiguity—before introducing Takwid Express, a ridesharing platform attempting to formalize the existing informal practice of ride-sharing on intercity routes.