Avoiding agent churn in fledgling markets: keeping agents busy from day 1

Keeping Agents Busy from Day 1

Simon Aderinlola

Mobile Money Africa Johannesburg May 29 2013

A vibrant agent network is a

fundamental requirement for a

successful mobile money service

29 May 2013 2 © 2013 Accendo Associates Limited.

So how do you keep your agents “vibrant”?

1. Have a solid business case

2. Build Trust

3. Provide tangible value-add

4. Nudge toward success!


1. What is the business case for the agent?


Pilot Commercial Launch

• De-risk the service by giving

the agent start-up e-money.

• Incentivize as many services

as possible to increase

familiarity and build trust.

• Clearly defined commission

structures and charges.

• Number of transactions per day.

• Number of customers using the

service.

• Commission per transaction

type.

• Taxes payable

• Incentivised services

The problem of the first 16 Pilots in Nigeria

“I want to be able to do as

many things as possible as soon as possible and as

conveniently as possible”

5 29 May 2013 © 2013 Accendo Associates Limited.

• It was difficult for the service

providers in Nigeria to offer a

broad range of services during

the Pilot since the investment

to build additional services was

not readily available.

• A reason the investment was

not available at Pilot stage was

due to the uncertainty created

by regulation: CBN ‘approving

in principle’ too many players

and moving the goal-posts of

the Pilot often.

Agent

$

Regular face-to-face interaction

2. Build Trust

Service provider brand association/pedigree

Training Reporting On-time payments of commissions

Maintain service standards

Raise awareness through marketing

Liquidity management

& support

Efficient and friendly call centres

Field support systems

$

Regular face-to-face interaction

The Problem in Nigeria regarding Agents trusting mobile money…

Service provider brand association/pedigree

Training Reporting On-time payments of commissions

Maintain service standards

Raise awareness through marketing

Liquidity management

& support

Efficient and friendly call centres

Field support systems

$

Jan 2013 VISA survey: NIGERIA http://corporate.visa.com/_media/mm-nigeria.pdf

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3. Provide tangible value-adds

• Provide services that benefit the AGENT’s everyday business

• Give new lines of business to the Agent – make her a digital services outlet!

• Increase the profile of the agent, demonstrate its impact vividly & allow them talk about it (WoM)

• Drive footfall to the Agent through consumer promotions

• Give them new ways to manage personal and business finance

• Build confidence through careful, relevant & nurtured education


4. Nudge toward success

• Run promotions like “Win a Mobile Phone”

• Recognize “Agent of the Month”

• Subsidize services for their own use

• Build strong feedback loops from the network

• Remember – one size DOES NOT FIT ALL!


A clear need to Reboot the approach


So, just why will an agent stay?

1. Have a solid business case

2. Build Trust

3. Provide tangible value-add

4. Nudge toward success!


And how does Accendo help?


• At whatever level your pilot, project, product launch/rollout is, you’ll find an engagement with Accendo memorable and enlightening

Simon Aderinlola

Senior Associate – Accendo Associates

[email protected]


Avoiding agent churn in fledgling markets: keeping agents busy from day 1

Economy & Finance

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