The Battle of E-Wallet: The Key to Wins Customer Interest by Communication Strategy
Money in paper will only be restored at the museum, twenty years later.
Digitalization is a well-known word for millennials in the 21st century. Every aspect of education, society, to trade has entered the digital realm. The popularity of product digitalization is wrapped neatly by each producer with rashness and rapidity of access. Digitalization is also visited in the economic industry, especially trade.
One of the most well-known digitalization and very supportive of the economic wheels of society today is e-payment or online payment based on technology. The key to the success of online payments in reaching various groups both young and old is the medium, which is cellular phones.
All online payment digital products can be accessed with one “click” of the application button that has been downloaded on the user’s mobile phone. The use of cellular phones as a medium has become an effective form for online payment companies because the more their products are used easily and effectively, the level of fame and company revenue will increase as well.
In Indonesia, there are various online payment applications or electronic wallets that still growing, such as GoPay, OVO, Dana, Link Aja, Doku, and other choices. It needs to be high awareness in society about the importance of this electronic wallet for everyday transactions. Many financial technology development companies are competing to highlight the security features and how this electronic wallet becomes a simple, everyday necessity.
In business, competition is something that can actually maximize the potential for companies to be better than other companies. Various ways have been carried out by this electronic wallet product in attracting the attention of society by implementing a communication strategy.
One of the most effective and most frequent communication strategies carried out by these companies is to collaborate with outsiders who share strong branding. Dana with TIXID, OVO with Grab and Tokopedia, then GoPay, which is partnered with its biggest holding company, Gojek.
In order not to be too biased in interpreting, the author decided to discuss two of the most widely used electronic wallets in Indonesian society, which are OVO and GoPay.
OVO, which is a large subsidiary of Lippo Group, started a strategic penetration to get the attention of the Indonesian people by joining Grab. The phenomenon of online transportation shares the same trend at this time making OVO an online payment transaction therein.
However, for both new and old users of online transportation, using this online payment model is considered more practical than having to spend money after getting off the vehicle. Observations also prove that online transportation (drivers) also participate in product branding to customers by offering top-ups. Of course, this is an added value for OVO which also carries out communication strategies by spreading various promos and cashback in the Grab application.
Unconsciously the OVO users who had been passive became active with various kinds of benefits provided by the company. Therefore, branding and marketing are a unity that encourages the creation of public trust in a product.
Communication strategies that promote collaboration with other parties are also implemented by GoPay. Be part of the Unicorn-company Gojek makes GoPay took a starting point as an online payment application. GoPay chose to expand cooperation with outside parties besides fellow start-ups, one of them is with local governments.
This time GoPay cooperated with the North Sulawesi regional government by sponsoring the Manado Fiesta 2019 event conducted to celebrate the anniversary of the area. This collaboration is in accordance with the agreement made by Gojek with the Manado government in June 2019. In this activity, the GoPay strategy is a very effective point. Being a sponsor of an event made GoPay a payment tool at the food festival with attractive promos.
In addition to Manado, GoPay also sponsors the activities of the Semarang Old City Festival which was held in early October 2019. In the event directly visited by the author, GoPay is the biggest payment method for buyers at culinary festivals. Although competing with other applications, but with a large promo branding, GoPay is the application most often used by users at the event.
Cooperation as a communication strategy attracts the masses to use electronic wallets that have been realized by Adrian Suherman, CEO of OVO. Quoted from his interview with Kompas.com, Adrian explained that he had seen from the very beginning if they did not use the open-platform method or cooperate with other parties, then they themselves would have difficulties. That is because services such as financial technology require an open and mutually supportive ecosystem so that they can be equally developed.
Without Grab, Gojek, or standing as a sponsor in certain government events and collaborations, these e-wallet companies will be quite interested. This because the penetration of electronic purses or rather electronic payments has not been widely sought by the people in the regions.
This is because local communities are still more comfortable using traditional payments compared to electronic payments. This quote is equally with the statement of the Head of PR OVO, Shinta Setyaningsih, that the current focus of OVO is to educate about the excess use of electronic transactions.
Not only big as a company that bears Unicorn, but the electronic wallet management company must further think about the prospect of financial technology in the future. There is no guarantee the success of financial technology remains in the future.
However, by choosing a partnership strategy with other parties, this electronic wallet application product will always have more impact at least for now. Because collaboration between two or more strong names will automatically create stronger product branding.
There is a mutual symbiosis that both drive the progress of the company. Furthermore, there is a strong value inherent in this strategy which is trust. Trust has an impact on increasing the value of products in people’s daily lives.
REFERENCES:
Putera, Andri Donnal. 2019. “Melihat Strategi “Open Platform” Ala OVO”. Kompas.com. https://ekonomi.kompas.com/read/2018/05/28/090900226/melihat-strategi-open-platform-ala-ovo?page=all diakses pada 13 November 2019.
Tarigan, Maesista. 2019. “”Cashback” Bertebaran, Bakar Uang yang Menguntungkan?”. Kompas.com. https://video.kompas.com/view/1096695/cashback-bertebaran--bakar-uang-yang-menguntungkan%3F?clickout=articleplayer diakses pada 13 November 2019.
