The South African mobile user is riding a new wave of customer orientation that’s pervading the industry like never before.

And it’s about time, says Devon Meerholz, Chief Creative and Operations Officer of IMImobile SA, a communications and software specialist focused on solutions for the mobile industry.

“From experiencing some of the highest mobile charges anywhere, the affordability tide began to turn several years ago with dramatic, industry-led reductions in mobile termination rates that ushered in a new era of voice call affordability,” he says.

“As we move further into 2020, it’s clear from plummeting mobile data charges that the needs of the individual mobile consumer are receiving fresh attention. The mobile industry represents a sustained, quarter-century success story, but it’s clear hard-pressed SA consumers are expecting price relief as slow growth bites,” says Mr. Meerholz.

As the call for more affordable mobile services is being answered, the question becomes: “What other trends will emerge throughout the year?”. Mr. Meerholz provides IMImobile SA’s take on customer expectations.

Businesses must embrace conversational messaging

Challenging times mean individual mobile users have to make seconds count and they seek the reassurance that comes with interacting with commercial organisations in the same way they would with friends and family. This means companies must accelerate the adoption of the business versions of conversational messaging channels such as WhatsApp and others. 

Consumers want less texting and more tapping

Consumers don't want to change the way they communicate simply because of who they’re talking to. Mobile marketers need to make increasing use of flowing conversations and chats that use rich messages, video, location sharing and plenty of links that enable easy tapping and the removable of friction from customer journeys.

Consumers have the time to chat…to bots

While chatbots won’t replace human customer care agents outright, the limited deployment of chatbots across corporate SA appears to have gone down very well with local consumers. This year, improved integration with back office systems means consumers will increasingly want to get to grips with chatbots that offer speedy, effective and simple problem-solving interactions.

The world’s best at home

The launch of homegrown smartphone brands is helping reinforce a new consumer confidence that says Africa is no longer a dumping ground for second-rate products and services.

“The local mobile industry has always insisted on the world’s best at home, hence the original selection of the digital GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) technology over the plethora of inferior analogue systems available in the 1990s. We’ve always offered the best and the SA mobile industry must - in 2020 - continue to explore ways to offer the very best to the one billion human beings who call our continent home,” Mr Meerholz concludes.

IMImobile enables companies to use mobile and digital technologies to improve and automate customer experience and engagement. IMImobile is headquartered in London with offices Hyderabad, Toronto, Florida, Dubai and Johannesburg.