Educating New Internet Users When Scaling Tech Products in Africa
Introduction
Optimizing and controlling the product life cycle is easier said than done and starts way before the introduction of the product in the market. It requires careful strategizing, planning, execution and control. Above all, it requires a process and methodology for all phases of the cycle. I normally find the introductory and growth stage of the product life cycle quite exciting. This looks a bit different when you are positioning and scaling your B2C tech solution in different markets in Africa. This is because most of the users you want to sell to are New Internet Users (NIUs) who are characterized as having/being:
- Low digital confidence
- Low literacy levels
- Low digital literacy
- Late adopters
- Low income
- More multi-lingual + limited English
Barriers to entry into different markets in Africa are at their lowest now and more and more solutions are being brought into the market. This gives your target customers a lot of options to choose from. The big question is how do you make sure they decide to use your solution and not that of your competitors?
There is a battle going on out there and the battle is for mind share. There is an explosion of information and products and an increasing number of ways for companies to communicate to prospective customers about a product.
The best way I have uncovered to do this is what is known as ‘Product/Solution Education’. This means reaching out to your target users and openly communicating about the challenges they are experiencing and articulating how your product offers a solution to the problems they are experiencing. Below is a breakdown of how I have done this for tech solutions targeting users in different markets in Africa.
Understanding the Market You are Operating In
To succeed in any market, one needs to fully understand the ins and outs of it. I have always started this process by fully understanding the problem we are solving as a team. This helps me understand the industry better, the competitors in the market, the infrastructure, the set industry standards, the key stakeholders we need to be working closely with, the policies and regulations. This will help one understand the diversity in the African continent and how to execute your tech enabled solution in a manner that will resonate or create a compelling differentiation.
This depth in understanding the market you are operating in is necessary in not only your go-to-market, positioning but also in the creation of your product education plan.
Translating Features into Benefits and Technology into Solutions
Placing the value you deliver to your customers at the center of your positioning is key. The things that make you unique are the reasons why your offerings deserve to exist in the first place. Customers don’t care about your unique features, they care about what those features can do for them. Your product education needs to focus on the value that you alone can deliver to your customers and not the technology alone.
Knowing the customers
Managing the success of a product requires the understanding of the people you are targeting. This means making sure that you understand the problem you are solving by talking to the people you are looking to solve this problem for (just between you and I, this is the part I enjoy the most as a product marketer :-) )
Understanding that Africa isn’t a consumption-driven economy should help you strategize on how to handle your product education, sales training, overall go-to-market planning and growth strategy. Incentivizing users when they view and use your product education content with points that can be redeemed will help. Start off with a clear call to action for the target audience that will not require them to make any payments e.g I am currently supporting a client building a two sided marketplace targeting technicians and vendors and the first high value action they’re required to take is just signup on the website. That’s all. Once we have their details we nurture them into paying clients through different product educational content, sales and marketing programs.
Select Appropriate Channels
Most New Internet Users use different sources when looking for information as they make their purchasing decision. We are a very communal group. We value the input from our leaders, close friends and family members when making decisions. With this understanding, tech solutions targeting users in Africa need to prioritize the use of the following channels/programs:
- Associations
- Opinion leaders in the community.
- Referral programs
- Communities
- Radio programs (talk shows by respected personalities in the community)
- Influencers to boost word of mouth
- One on One onboarding programs
- In- app educational videos
- Forming partnerships with some community leaders will help you earn trust with your target audience
- Using explainer videos, images and audios that breakdown your solution will help you convert since some of the users you are targeting can’t read
Offline Marketing — be sure to establish the value propositions and use cases of your products across all marketing campaigns. Ensure that the marketing channel mix you use reflects the channels preferred by your target audience.
The Power of Storytelling
With storytelling, JUMIA positioned itself as the ‘’amazon of Africa’’, even though some argued that they were far from this. This positioning enabled them to attract capital and several resources, which have enabled them to execute on the opportunity. Using this narrative has undoubtedly helped the company gain thousands of users across Africa. Make sure you’re using storytelling when communicating about the value you’re offering.
Customize the content to Fit Each Customer Segment
The messaging used in your product education has to be customized to fit each customer segment. The way you communicate your value to one customer segment with different uses cases should be different compared to how you communicate to individuals who are new to the internet and learning how to use their smartphones.
Undertaking a Value Gap Analysis
A value gap is the discrepancy in the expectations that we communicated and the actual value we deliver. By constantly undertaking a value gap analysis you’ll be able to uncover the real value your customers are getting which are the expectations we delivered. Through this you will be able to figure out what will make a customer become a power user and :
- Select the proper communication channels to use because you now understand the proper customer journey
- Effectively communicate your product and it’s value to the right users in a way that they will truly and easily understand
- Inform the rest of your product roadmap and make products that the users really need
Localizing the Content
To effectively educate your target audiences about your tech enabled solution, you’ll have to localize your content to suit them. This means ensuring that your content in all formats and in all your channels are translated to the different languages your audience can understand.
Conclusion
Proper product education will help drive major outcomes that will eventually convert your prospective users into actual paying customers. Achieving this means starting out with the big picture of what you want to achieve and taking time to listen to your target customers. Tailoring your educational content to fit the devices being used by your potential customers will help increase its consumption.
