Last night we celebrated our much anticipated Heavy Chef Session centred around M-commerce. Our expert speakers, Angus Robinson and Jon Hoehler enlightened us on the advancements that mobile shopping has made.
Jon started off the evening with his presentation that gave some great local and international examples of businesses using M-commerce not only for convenience but also to access a new market. He explained that the pace at which this is growing means that one year in mobile is equivalent to 7 years in any other industry. The swipe system is being replaced by tap and pay, which is now shaping consumer behaviour. We also saw some staggering statistics such as Africa having 700 million mobile connections, 96% of that being prepaid and 65% of those mobile users choosing Nokia. 90% of all phones in Africa are mobile ones.
Jon also reviewed the mobile penetration in other parts of Africa. In 1992 Lagos had zero percent mobile penetration, while this year it is at 65%. In Kenya it is common to pay for your taxi with mobile money, and in other countries you can pay your electric bills through M-commerce. With Africa being the 2nd largest mobile market in the world, mobile money is becoming the new African currency.
M-commerce is creating virtual credit cards on your phone, making convenience top priority. A great example given was that of the Angry Birds brand. In 2011 it generated $100 million in revenue with 30% coming from themed merchandise.
Next up was founder and director of mobile at Native, Angus Robinson. He started with a profound quote that intrigued the audience, “Things have never moved this faster and will never move this slow again”. Angus explained that our focus should not be on emerging technologies but emerging markets instead. It is vital to always understand the mechanics of your market first and what your market can do. Angus emphasised that it is also not about a virtual wallet, it is about everything else around that, as M-commerce is not just a currency exchange but an added value.
Some great examples from Angus included “Watch with eBay” which integrates ads you receive on your mobile with what you are watching on TV. Now 18% of all eBay transactions are done via mobile. Another thriving success was that of Red Tomato Pizza. They have incorporated a blue tooth button that sticks on your fridge. Once pressed, your regular pizza will be delivered to your door within minutes. Another successful pizza brand, Domino’s, indicated that 80% of their total sales comes from M-commerce.
Angus also mentioned two brilliant concepts that illustrate the growth of mobile shopping. Firstly, a device called ‘Square’ that plugs into your phone and allows you to swipe your card and pay for things with your mobile. Secondly, a new service called Zungus lets you upload money onto your Facebook account and transfer it to Facebook friends. Angus’ wife was lucky enough to receive R5 when Angus tested the concept.
Keep an eye out for the video which will follow shortly, and be sure to view the pictures on our Facebook page. For more fascinating M-commerce information, follow Jon Hoehler and Angus Robinson on Twitter.
A warm thanks to our brilliant sponsors, Deloitte for the venue that allows us to accommodate our Heavy Chef community, Nokia for the stylish Lumia that was given to the best tweet of the evening, Backsberg for the wine that never fails to impress our guests, and Channel Mobile for reminding you not to miss our insightful events.
