Leading browser developer Opera Limited on Monday launched a new online lead generation platform – OLeads – for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria.  

The new platform offers unique tools to maximize the visibility and online presence of small businesses, increasing awareness about their products and service offerings, and helping ramp up sales.

SMEs that were previously offline can now easily use OLeads to create their first mobile websites and landing pages for marketing campaigns without any prior knowledge of programming or design skills.

It also comes with a user-friendly interface, enabling any business owner to create a mobile website from scratch in less than five minutes. Once an SME registers on the OLeads website, they will be able to choose between a wide variety of website templates that they can personalize according to the needs and goals of their business.

By dragging and dropping text, images and call-to-action modules, the SME can have their business landing page up and running in minutes. The platform also allows business owners to manage the data generated from their website.

Bringing local businesses online

SMEs are the backbone of the Nigerian economy and there are currently over 40 million of them in the country according to data from the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN).

Despite their significance, most of Nigerian SMEs are unable to leverage rapid digital transformation for scaling their businesses since their operations are mainly offline. However, half of the Nigerian population is already connected to the internet with further adoption expected.

“Nigeria is undergoing a rapid digitalization with already more than 110 million people onboarded to the internet, and its estimated to grow to 188 million within the next four years,” said Per Wetterdal, Vice President of Global Business Development at Opera.

With the launch of OLeads in Nigeria, Opera is looking to remove barriers for the local businesses to come online and connect with the fast growing internet population in the country.

“With OLeads, we are enabling millions of businesses to participate in this digital transformation, providing them a platform with user friendly tools and a fast and easy way to come online, reaching Opera’s massive user base,” Wetterdal adds.

Moreover, OLeads represents the next leap forward in Opera’s strategy to transform Nigeria’s digital advertising ecosystem. The new platform integrates seamlessly into the contextual advertising platform, Opera Ads, with direct access to Opera’s huge user base in Nigeria.

Over 3000 businesses already on OLeads

Since its soft launch in Nigeria last month, over 3000 businesses have subscribed to OLeads, Opera said in a press statement.

With this milestone, OLeads is gaining a strong position in the local advertising market as a trustworthy platform that has rapidly grown its user base in a short period of time.

“With the launch of OLeads, we are now helping more Nigerian businesses find their target audiences online,” Wetterdal said. “We have received very positive feedback from the SMEs we have on-boarded during the soft launch of the platform, and we are excited to now offer this service to millions of businesses in the country.”


Accelerating the digital transformation of Africa

Over time, Opera has significantly contributed to accelerating the digital transformation of the African region. Nearly 120 million of its 350 million global user base are Africans, the firm said in the 2019 edition of the State of the Mobile Web.

This includes users of the popular Opera Mini browser, Opera browser, and the standalone news application Opera News, which became the world’s most downloaded news app in the second quarter of 2019.

Opera has also set new growth plans in Africa by expanding its product portfolio beyond mobile applications and introducing new innovative online marketing platforms such as Opera Ads, OLeads and OList. With this strategy, Opera plans to continue leading the digital shift in Africa and maximize the visibility of millions of African businesses online.

Opera Limited is one of the world’s major browser developers and a leader in AI-driven digital content. Its browsers, news products, and fintech solutions are trusted by more than 350 million people worldwide. The firm is headquartered in Oslo, Norway and listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange (OPRA).

Companies interested in registering on OLeads can do so by visiting https://www.oleads.com or by sending an email to [email protected].

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