It has become arguably the most controversial reality TV show to hit the airwaves since its debut in 2006.
The Big Brother Nigeria brand is one which continues to excite and at the same time court controversy because of its peculiarity and uniqueness.
Being a franchise from the parent show, Big Brother Africa, Big Brother Nigeria was greeted with mixed reactions by Nigerians who weren’t quite sure what the idea of having 14 able bodied young men and women living together in an enclosed space for an extended period of time was intended to achieve.
The second and latest installment of the reality show which only just ended in April, and saw Warri born Efe Ejeba emerge winner was widely criticized, but ironically hugely successful for all parties involved.
Big Brother Naija, in spite of all the criticisms and controversies trailing it due to issues of morality in particular ended up becoming a cash cow for the organizers, sponsors and even contestants.
Payporte who were the lead sponsors of the show not only created massive brand awareness with it, they also converted many hitherto ignorant Nigerians about the ease and range of products that can be purchased via e-commerce platforms.
With an unprecedented 26 million votes (which also set an African record) recorded in the week leading up to the grand finale of the show in what became the highest number of votes since the show began, it only meant that the lead sponsors Payporte, as well as supporting sponsors Indomie, Mini Mee Chin Chin and Lumapril, along with Multichoice were smiling all the way to the bank.
For all of the sometimes bad press that has accompanied it on each occasion, the Big Brother Naija brand continues to defy the conservative African culture of “modesty” and secrecy in human relations dynamics, particularly between the opposite sex.
The organizers of the show were well aware that we live in a society where people say one thing and do the other. This explains why the stats on the views and engagement generated during the show continued to rise with each passing week, even as some gropus intensified their campaign for the show to be pulled off the airwaves.
Social media also played a vital role in the success of Big Brother Naija. Users continued to engage increasingly as the show progressed, and embarked on a massive campaign for votes for their favourite contestant.
