Intelligent CXO Issue 11 | Page 55

REGIONAL ROUND-UP

AFRICA APAC EUROPE MIDDLE EAST NORTH AMERICA

INNOVATIONS THAT WILL RESHAPE BUSINESS IN KENYA

As global spending on Digital Transformation is projected to reach US $ 1.78 trillion in 2022 , James Bayhack , Director , Sub- Saharan Africa at CM . com , looks at innovations that will reshape the business landscape in Kenya in the future .

As 2021 has come and gone , many businesses are still responding to changes in the business environment brought on by COVID-19 . The global crisis introduced the necessity to innovate , forcing many to rethink how they communicate with their customers and repackage product and service offerings for the new landscape – one that is defined by Digital Transformation .

A single solution for omnichannel communications
As more businesses engage with their clients in online and remote spaces , there is a need to streamline and improve communication channels . The result is an omnichannel approach to the
James Bayhack , Director , Sub-Saharan Africa at CM . com customer experience ( CX ), comprised of multiple platforms on which customers can engage with business operators and services . It ’ s a process that ’ s kept as simple as possible , while also being accessible and cost-effective .
Automation and humanity
Automation has been with us for centuries , but its application in the digital age is something entirely new . We are seeing it creep into almost every aspect of our lives , with far-reaching and neverbefore-seen results .
Take , for instance , at sporting events such as the 2021 Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix , where fans could order tickets , procure refreshments , secure purchases and get all their questions answered through a chatbot that runs through WhatsApp . With the help of data reporting and features such as suggested answers , internal collaboration and skill-based routing , the Dutch Grand Prix could interact with fans efficiently and effectively . This was made possible by deploying a Customer Data Platform ( CDP ) to manage event preregistration data and using marketing cloud software to introduce attendee reductions due to the pandemic . The technology helped create a seamless experience for both event organisers and fans .
While this kind of technological automation has been focused on improving customer experience , it has the potential to impact employee experience ( EX ) as well . Because in 2022 , the notion of total experience is set to guide many business decisions . Strong CX principles or taking the stance that the customer is always right , cannot come at the expense of employees ’ wellbeing . This impacts the well-being of the business itself .
The power of mobile connectivity
No more a device for just making and receiving calls , mobile phones accounted for more than half of all web traffic globally in the first quarter of 2021 . A sizeable portion of the world ’ s population interacts with the Internet via a mobile device , creating the necessity to innovate and expand service offerings on them .
Kenya itself is home to Africa ’ s biggest mobile platform success story , M-PESA ,
which revolutionised mobile banking and dramatically improved financial inclusion across the continent . Beyond banking and retail , most other sectors have also embraced mobile platforms to deliver quality service and products to customers , deploying solutions that digitise traditional processes and improve convenience . x www . intelligentcxo . com
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