In the iBMC community, he’s known as iBMCer-1.
That’s not just a name. It’s a title. The first person to ever register for the Internet Business Mastery Course (iBMC).
But before he became iBMCer-1, he was already someone remarkable.
Professor Olusola Bandele Oyewole is a renowned academic, visionary leader, and devout Christian whose life reflects purpose, resilience, and unwavering integrity.
A Professor of Food Science and Technology (Microbiology and Biotechnology), he has served African higher education with distinction, notably as Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Nigeria, and currently as Secretary-General of the Association of African Universities (AAU), Accra, Ghana.
With a passion for education, Professor Oyewole has championed institutional development, academic freedom, and leadership transformation across Africa. His career is marked by a commitment to mentoring, innovation in governance, and capacity building, leaving a trail of empowered students and strengthened institutions.
A prolific scholar with over 100 scientific publications in Food Microbiology and Biotechnology, he is also the author of several Christian books, including Poverty Must Die, Rising Above Your Roots, and Yearly 40-Day Prayer And Fasting Manuals.
Professor Oyewole’s life is a compelling example of holistic leadership – demonstrating that it is possible to live fully, serve faithfully, and finish strong.
Those are the credentials.
But the story is deeper than titles.
Prof. Oyewole wrote a book called “Courage to Be Different.” It’s a leadership memoir that goes beyond theory. It’s his authentic reflection on what it means to lead with integrity, vision, and courage in challenging environments.
And he’s lived that title.
That’s the kind of man Prof. Oyewole is. A man of towering intellect. A man of deep faith. A man who along his career chose to fight rather than surrender.
And this is the man who became the first student of iBMC.
How It All Started
I met Prof. Oyewole for the first time at the Nigerian Economic Summit in 2014 at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.
I was there with copies of “Bridges to the Customer’s Heart.” I typically carry three copies to these events, hoping to connect with the right people. That day, I gave Prof. Oyewole a copy. And I gave two other professors, A. A. A. Atayero and Isaac Adebayo Adeyemi, copies as well.
Then nothing happened for six years.
No contact. No follow-up. Just silence.
In 2020, Prof. Oyewole called me out of the blue.
He told me he’d been working in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with the African Union. He’d also spent time at the Association of African Universities in Accra, Ghana. And now he wanted me to teach him digital marketing.
I was honest with him: “Prof., I don’t know anything about digital marketing.”
His response surprised me. He said, “Paul, I’ve been reading what you’ve been writing about digital marketing. I’m sure you know a lot.”
I realized he was right. I had been writing about it. Sharing ideas. Building visibility. But I’d never thought of it as “knowing digital marketing.” I was just sharing what I was learning.
So I asked him a direct question: “Will you join if I create a course on this?”
His answer was simple: “Yes.”
And that’s how iBMC was born.
Two weeks later, I ran a webinar. Forty-five people attended. Thirty-five registered for the course.
Prof. Oyewole was the first one to pay. He became iBMCer-1.
What iBMC Actually Is
The Internet Business Mastery Course is designed to teach you how to build a scalable online business from scratch. Not as a side project. Not as a hobby. As a real business that creates financial independence.
Here’s what iBMC covers:
The overarching principles that determine online business success. The four building blocks of digital marketing. How to create a profile that positions you as someone worth listening to. The four core models and six core strategies for building online businesses.
Next, how to build digital assets using proven strategies and tools. The right marketing techniques at every phase of your journey. How to create your first Minimum Viable Product. How to discover profitable niches and monetize them. How to position yourself and create offers that generate leads effortlessly.
It’s comprehensive. It’s practical. It works.
And it started because Prof. Oyewole had the courage to ask for what he wanted.
The Real Lesson Here
Think about what happened: I met Prof. Oyewole once. Gave him a book. Heard nothing for six years.
Then he reached out because he’d been reading what I was writing publicly. He saw consistency. He saw someone sharing knowledge. And he decided to invest his time and money to learn from me.
That wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t written “Bridges to the Customer’s Heart.”
That wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t been sharing ideas publicly about digital marketing.
Here’s what I’ve learned: writing a book, building intellectual property, and sharing what you know in public is not just marketing. It’s the foundation of a personal brand.
It’s how a Vice-Chancellor discovers you. It’s how someone working at the African Union finds you. It’s how real opportunities come to you without you chasing them.
Most people are waiting to feel ready before they share. They’re waiting to be perfect. They’re waiting for permission.
Prof. Oyewole didn’t wait. He chose to be different.
And that choice led him to iBMC, which has now trained 450+ students in how to build sustainable online businesses.
Your Turn
If you’ve been thinking about learning digital marketing the right way, this is your moment.
The next cohort of Internet Business Mastery Course begins July 22, 2026.
This is the same course that started because a Vice-Chancellor believed in the power of building an online business. The same course that’s trained 450+ people to create financial independence. The same course built on real strategies that produce real results.
You don’t need to be perfect. You don’t need to have all the answers. You just need to be willing to learn.
Register for the next cohort of iBMC: https://forms.gle/qiRGMdKNjMg28K1x8
Or if you want to know more first, reach out and let’s talk about whether this is right for you.
Because like Prof. Oyewole, your decision to invest in yourself today could open doors you can’t even imagine yet.
