Zimbabwean businesses are going online

Zimbabwean businesses have been late to the online business trend, but they are steadily gaining traction. While the trend was shifting businesses online, Zimbabwean companies did not see it as an option at the time. The dismissal of getting their business online was mostly because:

Entrepreneurs were in survival mode for most of the 2000-2010 era and so couldn’t apply resources to the move

The Zimbabwean market did not have online financial services to accommodate online payments

Due to loss of skills and lack of skills development, companies didn’t have the talent to spearhead online projects 

Nonetheless,  when the economy and businesses were able to invest in themselves, there was a shift towards the Internet. Most companies have a website with information and very little else to interact with. As knowledge of digital marketing spread through the business community, their efforts have become more advanced and varied.

Larger businesses have realized the potential behind social media and invested in their presence there. Social media has been used for advertising and more importantly, for customer service. Smaller businesses have the most potential with social media marketing. The cost of marketing on social media is substantially lower than traditional media. Social also gives SMEs the ability to build relationships with their customers.

Zimbabwe has created a lot of new marketplaces for itself. The markets have evolved to include online payments.

The most significant online SME presence can be found on WhatsApp. The platform has the most substantial uptake among consumers and is an affordable channel to market goods and services.

Applications are also gaining traction. The most popular apps belong to media houses like newspapers, radios, and video-on-demand services. 

The popularity of going online has created a demand for new skills and business services. The biggest beneficiaries of this have been SMEs who are more versatile and affordable than their larger counterparts. How much further Zimbabwean businesses will go online will largely depend on data prices. As it becomes easier to go online, there will be more significant incentives for companies to push the envelope. 

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