ROUTINE DEFINITION
FOUR LEVERS TO GROW THE MOBILE MONEY NETWORK
As it is typical for networks, the benefit for an individual user strongly depends on the number of participants that he or she can transact with (e.g. by sending or receiving money). Thus, the key to succeeding in the market is to rapidly increase adoption. To do so, telcos have four major levers that they can pull:
(1) Building a dedicated mobile money sales force
Today already, most telcos in African countries have dedicated sales forces, called mobile money agents. Their purpose is to both recruit new customers and to educate existing mobile customers about all the benefits that mobile money has to offer (e.g. airtime top-up, or bill payments). Often traveling in teams, mobile money agents cover large parts of the country, targeting highly frequented locations such as weekly markets or the large cities' main streets. Rather than trying to lure people into shops, deploying such sales teams is much more effective because they go where the crowds are and directly engaging with (potential) customers.
(2) Providing attractive end-user pricing
Especially for customers new to the service, high transactions charges can be a deterrent. By offering attractive pricing for certain transactions (e.g. low-value peer-to-peer transfers), telcos can minimize this entry barrier. In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, many players even waived their fees altogether in order to support the local economy and grow their business at the same time. Kenya's largest telco operator Safaricom, for instance, canceled all fees on peer-to-peer transactions within a defined range and raised the transaction cap for small and medium enterprises.
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7) Washington Post (2020): The coronavirus is upending cash economies. Mobile money could emerge as the winner, www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/05/15/coronavirus-is-upending-cash-economies-mobile-money-could-emerge-winner/
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