Now based in the US, the award-winning marketing executive is publishing research on how smaller companies can use AI and data to defeat industry giants

LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESS Newswire / December 29, 2025 / In 2017, few Americans had heard of Transsion Holdings. But in Nigeria, Ghana, and across West Africa, the Chinese company was executing what would become one of the most remarkable competitive upsets in consumer electronics history, dethroning Samsung as the continent's largest smartphone manufacturer.

Oluwaseun Kuburat Badmus was at the center of that fight.

As Integrated Marketing Communications Manager for Transsion's West Africa Region, the company's largest and most strategic market, Badmus led campaigns that drove a 25% increase in market share and a 40% surge in brand awareness. She orchestrated the company's first Nigerian celebrity partnership with Grammy winning artist Wizkid, generating a 14.5% lift in sales. By the time she left, Transsion controlled nearly half of Africa's smartphone market, and she had earned the company's highest regional honors: Outstanding Local Employee of the Year and Elite Professional of the Year.

Today, Badmus is turning those battlefield lessons into a body of published research that any business can use.

The Practitioner Who Publishes

What separates Badmus from most marketing executives is that she documents what works. Her research, published across five peer-reviewed journals since 2018, focuses on a single question: How can smaller companies use data and AI to compete with, and beat, entrenched competitors?

Her most recent paper, published in October 2024, examines how artificial intelligence and machine learning can transform business decision-making. Another explores how startups can use AI to optimize resources and compete with larger corporations. A third presents data-driven approaches to predicting customer lifetime value in B2B sales.

The academic community has noticed. Her work has been cited 291 times by researchers worldwide, and she has been invited to serve as a peer reviewer for three of the world's top technology and business journals, where she now evaluates cutting-edge research submitted by other scholars in her field.

"Most marketing research is written by people who have never run a campaign," Badmus said. "I write about what I have actually done. At Transsion, we were not just competing on price. We were using data to understand African consumers better than Samsung did. We built phones with longer battery life for markets with inconsistent electricity. We calibrated cameras for darker skin tones. We supported local languages. That is not intuition. That is analytics applied to strategy. And it is replicable."

How She Did It

The strategy that defeated Samsung was not about outspending the competition. Transsion's marketing budget was a fraction of Samsung's. Instead, Badmus and her team focused on understanding what African consumers actually needed, then building campaigns around those insights.

The data revealed gaps that Samsung had missed. Consumers wanted phones optimized for local conditions: longer battery life for areas with unreliable electricity, cameras that rendered darker skin tones accurately, and operating systems that supported African languages. Transsion built products that addressed these needs. Badmus built campaigns that communicated them.

The Wizkid partnership illustrated the approach. Rather than importing a global celebrity, Badmus championed a local icon who resonated with the target demographic. The campaign generated a 14.5% sales increase and 30% more website traffic, proving that cultural relevance could outperform marketing spend.

"The principles are universal," Badmus explained. "Whether you are selling smartphones in Lagos or financial products in Las Vegas, the question is the same: How do you use data to understand what your customer actually needs, and how do you reach them more effectively than your competitor? The tools change. The math does not."

Bringing the Method to America

Badmus is now applying these same predictive models at Credit One Bank, one of America's largest credit card issuers, helping the institution move beyond traditional metrics to understand the human behavior behind the data. Her work focuses on translating complex consumer insights into marketing strategies that drive acquisition and retention.

Her professional credentials reflect the cross industry application: an MBA from the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business, a Marketing Analytics Certificate from The Wharton School, and Certified Product Manager designation from the Association of International Product Marketing and Management.

Advocating for the Next Generation

Beyond her corporate and research work, Badmus has become a voice for women in technology, particularly in emerging markets. Her speaking engagements have included Africa Tech Radio's International Women's Day Panel, the "Tech, Her and The Future" webinar series, and keynote addresses for mentorship programs.

"When I was one of the few women in leadership at a $7 billion phone manufacturer, I saw both the challenges and the opportunity," she said. "The companies that win are the ones that bring different perspectives to the table. At Transsion, we did not just sell phones. We understood our customers. That understanding came from having teams that looked like the markets we served."

Expert Commentary Available

Badmus is available for interviews and expert commentary on:

• How AI and data analytics are leveling the playing field for smaller businesses

• Lessons from Transsion's disruption of the African smartphone market

• What American companies can learn from emerging market strategies

• The future of product marketing in the age of machine learning

• Advancing women in technology leadership

About Oluwaseun Kuburat Badmus

Oluwaseun Kuburat Badmus is a Product Marketing Manager at Credit One Bank and a published researcher specializing in AI driven marketing strategy and data analytics. She previously served as Integrated Marketing Communications Manager for Transsion Holdings, Africa's largest smartphone manufacturer, where she led marketing strategy for the company's most important regional market. Her published research appears in the World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, International Journal of Novel Research and Development, and International Journal of Engineering Inventions. She serves as a peer reviewer for Decision Support Systems, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, and Technological Forecasting and Social Change. Badmus holds an MBA from the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business, certifications from Wharton and AIPMM, and has been recognized with multiple industry awards including Outstanding Local Employee of the Year and Elite Professional of the Year at Transsion Holdings. She is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Media Contact:

Oluwaseun Kuburat Badmus
Email: badmuseun09@gmail.com
Website: www.oluwaseunbadmuspmm.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/olubadmus
ResearchGate: researchgate.net/profile/Oluwaseun-Badmus

SOURCE: OluwaseunBadmuspmm