The Digital Marketplace
Technology is putting the whole world on our fingertips. With a click of a mouse or a tap to a screen, there is a lot we can do. Talk of discovering the profile and/or history of a person of interest, finding a website, getting a shortlist for a school degree/diploma, trade, to mention but a few. With each passing day, more and more people embrace the use of technology. A decade ago (2011), about 487 million people were using a smartphone. In those days, some of us had long standing “battles” with our parents and guardians as to how we used these devices. Parents called out their kids for being on their phones for so long, almost all the time.
Fast forward to 2021, 5 billion people are using smartphones. That is a monumental increment in just 10 years. How so? People are recognizing the relevance of having the world at your fingertips. More than ever, persons above age 45 are using social media — WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, Telegram, etc. Not to talk of entertainment apps like YouTube, TikTok and more.
My dad called me just yesterday and was talking so passionately about Telegram. In my head, I was like “Yo Yo! Slow down!” “When did you get all excited about the internet and you’re more enthused about a social app than I am!” He went on and on and in the end, convinced me to get my mum and siblings to hop on the Telegram train. Lol!
Interestingly, when I got to my mum’s room to tell her of this app her husband wants us all to sign on to, there she was, completely locked in on her favourite YouTube channel as well. “Wait! What is going on over here?” Aren’t these the parents who used to fight me to get off my phone? I think my facial expression gave me away as we both burst out laughing about what was happening.
Business owners — there’s so much the tech space has to offer you besides SEO solutions and Ads. Don’t get me wrong — your website being top of the search for whatever solution or product you offer is superb! That’s a great reach! And being seen by app users after a few scrolls is also great! We get to see you for what you offer.
How about this? — The ability of your Customers and/or Prospects to make direct purchases from the social spaces you find yourself (WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, Websites, Instagram, USSD)? Imagine the possibility. Think about it for a few more seconds. I know your customers already reach out to make enquiries and probably initiate the ordering process. It can get crazy, having to respond to so many requests as fast as possible. With customers, time is money! The longer you keep a client or prospect waiting, the higher the tendency for him/her to look elsewhere. After all, the solution providers are so many out there.
Instagram used to be a space to showcase to our friends where we are/were, what we are wearing, who we are with, and everything social. Now, it is turning out to be one of the biggest shopping platforms with over 130 million people tapping on shopping posts every month. The question is, “are you one of this significant number?” “How many of these 130 million taps can you pull?”
This is where Rancard Commerce comes in — a singular automated platform to manage all orders across all social channels. As a merchant, you just observe as the Bot responds intelligently to your customers/prospects.
Your job is to ensure that all the orders that come through to you are fulfilled.
Rancard Commerce is the next big thing and I really can’t wait to share all of its exciting features and value with you.
I’ll bring you more in our next post.
Stay tuned!
Sign up to the Rancard email list to keep up with what we’re up to, and find out when we publish the next article in this series.
