Top Trends 2026: Salespeople Will Be A Critical Media Channel In Battle For Consumer Loyalty

In what has been described as a dramatic reimagining of the customer experience, salespeople are poised to become the primary drivers of brand loyalty in Nigeria, eclipsing traditional brand attributes as the decisive factor in consumer retention, according to findings presented recently at the Top Trends 2026 event held in Lagos.

The first of eleven trends identified by mediaReach OMD reveals that Nigerian consumers demonstrate 78% loyalty to salespeople compared to 72% loyalty to the brands they represent, a paradigm shift that demands brands reconceptualize their sales forces as distinct media channels rather than just transaction facilitators.

The data also indicates a change in what drives consumer loyalty. Experience-related factors now account for 70% of reasons why consumers return to a brand, dwarfing the 30% attributed to price considerations. Within the experience category, superior quality leads, followed by improved ease of access and poor alternatives in the competitive landscape.

“We’re witnessing the end of transactional selling and the rise of experiential relationship-building,” Prof. Uchenna Uzo, Professor of Marketing explained. “The salesperson has become the experience, and brands that fail to invest in this human infrastructure will hemorrhage market share.” Brand reputation, emotional attachment or habit, and better pricing round out the loyalty drivers, but their impact pales in comparison to the quality of direct human interaction and service delivery.

The urgency of addressing this trend is amplified by alarming projections on brand loyalty erosion. While 5 in 10 consumers switched brands in 2025, this figure is expected to jump to 6 in 10 by 2030. More immediately concerning, 6.5 in 10 consumers have expressed willingness to switch brands in 2026, with projections suggesting this could reach 8 in 10 by year’s end.

The research noted that accelerating disloyalty creates both crisis and opportunity. Brands that successfully change their salespeople into experience architects can capture market share from competitors still operating under outdated transactional models.

The research also identifies distinct implications across three selling contexts, each requiring tailored strategies: in Business-to-Business (B2B) environments, which involve the highest number of stakeholders in buying decisions, relationship-building through sales representatives becomes even more critical. The complexity of B2B transactions means that salespeople must navigate multiple decision-makers, each with distinct needs and priorities.

Business-to-Consumer (B2C) contexts face the most significant impact from Nigeria’s new tax policy reforms, fundamentally altering price sensitivity and purchasing power. Here, salespeople must evolve into consultative advisors who help consumers navigate changing economic realities while maintaining brand affinity.

Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) platforms, characterized by the shortest selling times, require salespeople (or platform facilitators) who can build trust rapidly and create memorable micro-experiences that encourage repeat transactions.

Making Salespeople a Media Channel

The report recommends that brands fundamentally reimagine their approach to sales forces by implementing three critical strategies, including building unique selling points around reliable, consistent, and accessible services. This means investing in sales training that goes beyond product knowledge to encompass emotional intelligence, customer psychology, and experience design.

Secondly, recognize and respond to higher demand for better experiences. The report noted that modern Nigerian consumers, increasingly sophisticated and exposed to global service standards through digital platforms, expect excellence at every touchpoint. Mediocre service is no longer acceptable; it actively drives customers to competitors.

Thirdly, it recommended that salespeople should be treated as a distinct media channel worthy of the same strategic planning, investment, and measurement applied to traditional advertising channels. This includes developing content and messaging specifically for sales teams, measuring their impact on brand perception and loyalty, and compensating them not just for transactions but for experience quality.

The research identifies three critical focus areas for brands seeking to operationalize this trend. These focus areas include understanding that consumers are not merely buying products but investing in relationships and experiences, understand consumer price sensitivity particularly tax policy reforms reshaping purchasing power across all income segments, and salespeople must understand the place of Valued Experience s this varies by region, demographic, and context.

Now in its fifth edition, Top Trends continues to provide the data-driven insights that Nigerian marketers need to navigate an increasingly complex and dynamic consumer landscape. This year’s edition themed “Insight-Driven Decisions to Disrupt the Marketing Industry in 2026” brought together industry leaders, marketers, and brand strategists to explore the forces reshaping consumer engagement and brand strategy.

The platform, founded by mediaReach OMD in partnership with Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University, GeoPoll, and the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), has established itself as Nigeria’s premier marketing thought leadership forum.