How SMS Services Can Help Grow Client Bases

UGANDA boasts one of the highest rates of new businesses being set up, having topped the world in the 2003 Global Entrepreneurship Monitoring survey. What this means is that there are lots of businesses coming up every day, which translates to a cut-throat competitive environment.

As a result, businesses need to hold onto their regular customers and find ways of selling more to them by keeping in touch with them on a regular and personal basis. One easy way is through SMS, says Innocent Nahabwe, a director at Blue Cube, an SMS service firm.

“With regular messages, you can stand out of the crowd and get ahead of the competition,” Nahabwe says. With over 10 million mobile phone users, businesses can now tap into the benefits of these numbers.

What the service providers offer

“We offer a platform that enables one to keep in touch with their current and potential clients, thereby building a rich relationship through SMS. At the same time, one will be reminding clients of their new services and goods,” says Simon Kaheru, the business director of SMS media, a bulk SMS services firm in town.

These services can be tailor-made to suit one’s particular sector and clientele, Nahabwe adds.

Which businesses can benefit?

According to Kaheru, retail shops, boutiques, restaurants, savings societies, micro finance organisations and bars can all benefit from the SMS services.

Ruth Wanyana is an attendant in one of the cosmetics stores at Garden City mall and says they use short messages to keep in touch with their customers. “Establishments like schools can remind parents of outstanding balances on their children’s school fees, for example,” Nahabwe says.

Churches too can benefit from these services, which they can use to reach out to members and remind them of any new developments at the churches, adds Nahabwe.

The strengths of this method

“This method of communicating with clients helps build and entrench personal relationships, thereby ensuring customer loyalty,” Kaheru says. The short messages are also affordable, considering that most growing businesses
have limited budgets for publicity, Kaheru adds.

In addition, sms has ‘viral’ benefits and can be shared and forwarded to many people if the initial recipients liked the message.

Challenges to this medium

“For businesses to benefit from this service they need to have customer databases, which most don’t have,” Nahabwe says. Most small businesses also don’t have computers and internet access, which are important in realising the full potential of the SMS service.

There are still some elements of mobile phone illiteracy among the populace, especially if those receiving the messages cannot read them because they do not know the applications on their phones, he added.

Network failure, which at times stops the messages from reaching the recipients, or in other cases diverts them to wrong recipients, is also a challenge, adds Kaheru. 

Anticipated developments

“We plan to make this service available in several local languages suitable for upcountry businesses,” says Kaheru.

News Article : Source By Michael Kanaabi