
Prime Progress
Prime Progress is Proving that Good News Can Be Profitable
Prime Progress was born out of a commitment to spotlight how Nigerians are tackling social problems with innovation and resilience. Through compelling, solutions-focused stories, the platform has consistently steered narratives toward action and progress, covering topics ranging from climate adaptation to health and social justice.
When Prime Progress joined NAMIP, it was a small operation with just three part-time staff. Despite their limitations, the team demonstrated a strong knack for quality storytelling. However, like many independent media platforms in Nigeria, they struggled with challenges such as limited reach, overreliance on grants, and underdeveloped revenue models. These obstacles represented not just the organization’s hurdles but also a microcosm of the issues plaguing the broader media landscape. NAMIP’s engagement aimed to change that trajectory.
With NAMIP’s support, Prime Progress has evolved into a growing force in Nigeria’s media ecosystem, building a foundation for long-term sustainability while deepening its impact on audiences and partners alike.
Click Here to Download NAMIP’s 3 Year Impact Report
The NAMIP Journey: Building Capacity, Innovating Products, and Making Money
One of the most significant changes for Prime Progress has been its organizational growth. With NAMIP’s needs-based approach to developing and funding bespoke initiatives for Prime Progress, the platform expanded to an eight-person full-time team, creating a diverse workforce that includes Gen Zs, women, and voices from across Nigeria. This diversity has enriched its storytelling and expanded its coverage. Securing a physical office space further helped solidify operations, allowing the team to collaborate more efficiently.
The platform then embarked on bold product innovations. Spotlight, Prime Progress’ flagship product, became a revenue driver by monetizing the by-products of solutions journalism. By partnering with organizations like New Incentives and others, Prime Progress secured funding to document impactful stories, creating a model for sustainable storytelling.
Another standout success has been Prime Woman, a product designed to build a thriving community of women. With over 50 members already engaged, the initiative combines newsletters, training opportunities, discounted courses, and exclusive events. Events like the October 2024 Prime Woman Hangout not only brought women together but also set the stage for future monetization through subscriptions.
Plans for Abuja Prime, a product focusing on investment, career, and housing in Nigeria’s capital, signal an eye on future opportunities, with a 2025 launch in the pipeline.
Since joining NAMIP, Prime Progress has diversified its revenue streams, raising an additional $30,000 (₦43,950,000 at $1 = ₦1,465) in non-grant revenue through sponsorships, advertisements, and donations, while also pioneering a model that secures funding directly from organizations whose impactful stories it tells. This growth is pivotal to note for an organisation that was 100% funded two short years ago.
Growing Reach, Strengthening Engagement
As Prime Progress expanded its product suite, it also intensified its audience engagement efforts. A newly hired Audience Engagement Manager spearheaded initiatives to grow the platform’s reach, particularly through social media and newsletters. While the team is still monitoring these efforts, early results indicate a noticeable uptick in traction and audience interaction.
Daily publishing has replaced the previous weekly schedule, bringing fresh, multimedia stories to audiences regularly. Specialized desks for climate and data journalism have further distinguished Prime Progress’ content, adding depth and expertise to its storytelling.
Learning Lessons
As Prime Progress grows, pipeline optimization and community development will be their short-term goal. While the revenue pipeline shows potential, conversion rates remain inconsistent. Refining the process and tracking performance metrics will be crucial for sustained success.
Along its product diversification journey, Prime Progress is realizing that balancing new product launches, such as Abuja Prime and CryptoClock, with existing operations demands careful resource allocation and strategic focus.
The team is young, agile and is proving the importance of frequent, small, evidence-based experiments and how that helps to build products that provide solutions to their audiences. While audience engagement has increased exponentially, the team is not resting and has set an ambitious goal for themselves of achieving 100,000 weekly site visits. This will require additional investment in bold, innovative audience and product experiments coupled with agile strategic refinement.
A quick summary of key learnings from Prime Progress’ ongoing transformative journey:
- Scaling requires a balance between ambition and resource availability.
- Community and audience-focused strategies yield significant engagement and revenue outcomes.
- Diversifying revenue streams through niche products strengthens organizational sustainability.
- Building a dedicated and diverse team has enhanced storytelling capacity.
- Monetizing Spotlight through mission-aligned partnerships has unlocked significant revenue potential.
- Prime Woman has demonstrated strong community engagement and monetization possibilities.
- Testing and refining revenue pipelines is essential for financial sustainability.
- Community-driven products like Prime Woman thrive on consistent engagement and value-added services.
- Partnership-driven models, such as CryptoClock, enable resource-efficient product diversification.
A New Model for Media Sustainability
NAMIP’s intervention also empowered Prime Progress to explore sustainable revenue streams. A dedicated staff member now manages a pipeline system, pitching Spotlight Plus add-ons to organizations aligned with the platform’s mission. Early successes include funding from mission-driven groups, proving that solutions journalism can be both impactful and financially viable.
Through collaborations and support from organizations like The Albino Foundation and Center for Religion and Civic Culture (CRCC), Prime Progress continues to expand its network and generate funding opportunities, cementing its place as a leader in Nigeria’s solutions journalism space.
The Road Ahead
Prime Progress has come a long way from its humble beginnings. Its growth is a testament to how targeted support and strategic innovation can empower media organizations to thrive. While challenges remain, the platform’s growing audience, innovative products, and sustainable revenue strategies point to a bright future where impactful storytelling continues to drive change.
Click Here to Download NAMIP’s 3 Year Impact Report