ASuccessfulWebsite COZWaitasei?

Impact of Online Advertising in Zimbabwe

2008-03-25T20:43:00.000+02:00

The Internet is only one of many platforms on which an enterprise can publicise itself. At present Websites are competing for advertising attention with Print and Television advertising content. Let us seek answers for the following questions:

How much advertising material are web consumers exposed to?
This helps an enterprise formulate effective marketing strategies, which involve their website. DSTV, ZTV, Billboards, Clothing Publications (Labels), Movies, Food Courts, Specific Magazines, Newspapers, just to name a few.

Do webverts ™ (Website Adverts) work?
It is not a matter of just advertising, but an effectiveness measurement has to be put into place. Relevance, convenience, quantity, structure, of adverts should be considered.

What is so different about Webvertising ™?
Marketing gurus classify Advertising methods according to emotions nowadays – Fear and Love being the two extremes. We see this on Television and in Print media. Marketers often make consumers feel as though left out, if they do not acquire their product or service. This does not work on the internet, because they so freely move onto another website.

The most effective extreme is love based advertising, wherein marketers build a sense of belonging that allures consumers. The most common emotion to address on the internet is love, because every consumer wants to belong somewhere. I am a good example. Cabsonline.co.zw and Google.com have given me care and a personalised touch, hence will be loyal to them. We all have our websites we visit because of the loving aspect.

LURING WEB CONSUMERS
When it comes to “Zimboz” (as they are called), cyber strategies that work in the west or east do not apply. There are two issues concerning this subject – What Annoys them and How to promote your website.

What Annoys Zimbabweans?
Zimbabwean web consumers are serious and shrewd people when online. Without education, they can filter SPAM, POP-Ups, and other JUNK MAIL. Anything in these lines will not be tolerated. They value their space and freedom on the Web, to the extent of dismissing any form of deemed violation, whether valuable promotional material or not. My advice to enterprises that want to deploy POP-UP strategies is being very careful. When I worked as a Systems Administrator in a Printing company, I noticed how my network clients so often expressed their irritation in regards to SPAM (annoying email from unknown senders) and POP-Ups (Webverts that flash onto your screen after a web page is opened).

How to attract Zimbabweans
How then, do we attract Zimbabwean web consumers? Try the following:
 Promotions that have incentives.
 Through search engines.
 Advertising on other websites.
 Offline – Build Web oriented marketing strategies that are applicable in brick and mortar set ups. Examples are given in the Examples.co.zw chapter.

Property Websites in Zimbabwe, and Opportunities Available

2008-03-25T20:38:00.000+02:00

Database Driven
Most of them are database driven, making it difficult for each entry to be found by search engines like google.com. Most use Cold Fusion, a technology not easily accessible by Google scripts. Google uses Perl. The difference is that Perl dumps information on every query (Client Driven), yet Cold Fusion keeps everything on the server on which the query is being requested (Server Driven).

What has influence these web publications
• Mindsets
o People only read from newspaper classifieds only.
o Who would want to invest in a vibrant website?
o It’s Zimbabwe anywhere!
• Lack of understanding of marketing in cyberspace.
• More of a presence issue, for corporate image issue.

The Technologies Used
Most of the websites were developed by WebDev and Design@7. WedDev is strong on Wed Development (the Database side), hence their sites have that orientation. Design@7 is strong with Graphics, hence their sites have that orientation. Some other sites were developed by small companies, which seem not to understand websites or Internet at all.

Opportunities

What is not fully utilised • Titles – Search Engines maximise on website titles. If you search “real estate in Zimbabwe, or homes, or property” with Google, the results will not immediately produce the above websites.
• Newsletters – Only one website had a newsletter link, where one could sign up for a newsletter. It has been two weeks now, I am still waiting for the newsletter.
• News and Information – Only one website has Newsflashes, but only has one story. Zimbabweans love news. They go on the Internet to look for news of anything, especially Obsessives and Bare Necessities, which are the two target audiences.
• Photography – Each website poorly captivates the properties in question. Their photography is very insufficient

What do consumers want?I believe that the above websites are not really addressing what the consumers want, and some are underutilising their tools.

• Target consumer groups should be understood. There are only two target groups – Obsessives and Bare Necessities. I am an Obsessive, I just want to be notified or given information in good time, of properties available, preferably earlier than other people. Learn how these tow behave.
• Sufficient information to make a decision.
• Seeing the beauty of the property (or worth), commensurate the price. Consumers want to feel good about each transaction.
• A non-technical website.

Effective Business Communication through Websites

2007-09-24T07:35:00.000+02:00

In these times of challenging economic conditions, businesses are being forced to find alternative means of communicating with stakeholders, especially customers. On the other hand, the subjects of Internet and websites are no longer painful ones as they were a few years ago. The distance between the consumer and the company is now being made shorter through websites, as more businesses in Zimbabwe are launching their businesses, products, and services on the “.CO.ZW” cyber landscape.

Reaching customers, knowing their concerns over products or services provided, and ensuring return business is are the core concerns of any company, and all Business Communication is channeled into various media in order to achieve this. Without struggling for recognition or dominance, the Internet has become the fastest growing and most effective delivery channel for all Business Communication in the World, and Zimbabwe has not been an exception. Marketing, Product Delivery, and Public Relations are the three most important functions that guarantee business success in the future. To facilitate the achievement of this purpose, websites are the easiest and most cost effective platform to deploy these strategies to ensure success.

For businesses to be effective in the communication – Marketing, Public Relations, Customer Relationship Management, and Product/Service delivery, websites have to be at the core of their strategies. A website has the ability to transform a company’s Marketing Strategies, as it is the fastest platform to deploy promotions and launch products. With a good website, revenues can surge and market share increase in a short space of time. At present it is very difficult to measure a brand’s market share in a short space of time using other media, other than websites. With a website, you are guaranteed enough statistics that help in market share analysis. A company is able to know how consumers behave, and how long they spend on the Internet, so as to formulate effective marketing communication strategies. Marketing on the Internet is often referred to as Online or Web Marketing. We have gone past this stage of ignorance, as the Internet or Website, is an integral part of the “4Ps” of Marketing.

The opportunity cost of not having a website puts a huge dent on effective business communication, resulting in loss of business, inability to acquire market intelligence, decrease in sales revenue, and eventually closure of business. There are reputable companies which are suffering from the pricing blitz only because they did not maximize on the potential of their brands on the internet.

Examples of Effective Business Communication through Websites in Zimbabwe, is in the Retail and Banking Industries. The year, 2007 has brought in some improvements on the “.CO.ZW” cyberspace, as a few companies are now offering Online Transactions from their websites. Several Chain Supermarkets and Hardware Stores now have online shopping facilities.

Effective Business Communication through Websites or Internet can also be achieved through online communities such as eGroups, which are consumer discussion groups, and Newsletters, published weekly or monthly. Examples of these include the Unleash Greatness, a newsletter published by Innov8 – The Motivation Company, and “Youth Encounter Online”, an eGroup for Youth Encounter Zimbabwe.

This article was published in the Financial Gazzette in Zimbabwe, on the 20th of September, 2007.

ASuccessfulWebsite Wildfire 2007

2007-09-16T00:24:00.000+02:00

After publishing the book in August 2006, I have closely looked at the progress of the book, to see if it is a success in itself. To date, through the book, I have trained more than ten companies and individuals, ranging from Internet Cafes, Internet Service Providers, Web Developers, Students, Marketers, Churches, Pastors, and Entrepreneurs, who have bought a copy of the eBook.

The book has sold approximately 25 copies, of which a Website, Training, and Web Consultancy have been born out of "each" Copy. I am currently working as a Consultant with Innov8 - The Motivation Company, where amongst other goals, one of them is to assist the company add on to the ".CO.ZW" sphere, two more websites and blogs, in the ".COM" sphere. Innov8 will be launching www.innov8motivation.com and www.innov8bookshop.com, in October 2007, which are transaction enabled, giving people the ability to buy books and pay for workshop online, using the eTranzact platform.

One of the other exciting results of this book has been the Youth Encounter Online Project, that begun in September 2006. The YEO Project comprises of a Newsletter, a Website, and an eGroup. The eGroup has approximately 500 Zimbabwean Youth and Twenty-somethings, from Zimbabwe, Australia, United Kingdom, Zambia, New Zealand, South Africa, Botswana, just to name a few, who chat online. This is a healthy platform for counsel and an opportunity to advertise products and services.

Innov8 - The Motivation Company also has a vibrant eGroup, a result of ASuccessfulWebsite eBook, called Motiva8ed. This group consists of more than 1500 people, from all parts of the world who are customers and readers of Innov8 publications and motivational literature. This group has allowed the company to have good Customer Relationship Management, generating buying traffic in all their outlets.

I believe that this the ASuccessfulWebiste eBook has begun a wildfire in the ".CO.ZW" web sphere, which will help in building a strong economy, as Zimbabwe begins to reform, for African Dominion.

written by Oscar Manduku, AUTHOR

New Spying Law 'Unconstitutional'

2007-08-26T05:26:00.000+02:00

THE Interception of Communications Act, signed into law by President Robert Mugabe last week, is unconstitutional and can be successfully challenged in the courts, legal experts said yesterday.
The government will find it difficult to adequately monitor communications, particularly e-mails and other internet communications, they said.
The law authorises the government to set up an interception centre to eavesdrop on telephone conversations, open mail, and intercept e-mails and faxes.
But legal experts told The Standard yesterday the law was an unwarranted infringement on people's rights.
David Coltart, secretary for legal affairs in the pro-Senate faction of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), said the law was unconstitutional and will have serious repercussions on people's rights and freedom of expression.
"There is no independent review of any interception of a person's communication," said Coltart. "It (the law) is an unjustifiable invasion of a person's rights."
He said the government would have a tough time implementing the law.
"There are practical difficulties in implementing the law," he said, "especially in the current environment when there is no foreign currency in the country. The equipment to monitor communications has to be imported, and I doubt if the service providers have the capacity to do so. They will find it difficult to adequately monitor communications, particularly e-mails. "
The president of the Law Society of Zimbabwe, Beatrice Mtetwa, said the law could be challenged in the Supreme Court.
She said: "They had been intercepting before the debate, and what this law simply does is to legalise what they have already been doing".
The spokesperson of the Morgan Tsvangirai anti-Senate faction of the MDC, Nelson Chamisa, condemned Zanu PF for using Parliament to deprive people of their liberties.
"Instead of expanding people's freedoms, we are restricting them," said Chamisa. "This is an anti-technology, anti-people and anti-modernisation law. This is a state of paranoia and panic by this regime. Nobody is safe -- the church, the media, workers' union, opposition parties and civil society. The law will be used to crucify whoever is perceived to be of a different political view to those in power."
Chamisa sits in the parliamentary portfolio committee on transport and communications. He said yesterday that during public hearings on the law only soldiers overwhelmingly supported it.
"We need to put to finality this madness of using Parliament to rubberstamp this crescendo against the people. This is clearly a war against the people. What is left now is for them to legalise the setting up of gadgets in people's bedrooms," said Chamisa.
Chairperson of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Zimbabwe Chapter, Loughty Dube said Zimbabwe did not need such laws which stifled freedom of expression. He said prying into people's conversations was "simply an indication of a government that is afraid of its own citizens".
Under the law, Internet service providers (ISPs) have to install equipment to facilitate interception "at all times or when so required" and ensure that the equipment allows full-time monitoring of communications.
An official with an ISP in Harare, requesting anonymity, said they did not have the capacity to implement the requirements, and -- like shop owners in the ongoing price blitz -- could be forced out of business.
"This law is too expensive for Zimbabwe. All the equipment has to be imported, and we do not have foreign currency for that. Most ISPs would be forced to close shop," he said.
Last year, the Zimbabwe Internet Service Providers Association (ZISPA) told the parliamentary portfolio committee on transport and communications that the law (then a Bill) "is very vague in its provisions and extremely broad in scope".
ZISPA also warned that "private and confidential personal information could be intercepted and misused by officials who obtain access to it".
"This could include communications between lawyers and clients, doctors and patients, priests and their flock, journalists and their sources", wrote ZISPA.
Yesterday ZISPA chairperson Jim Holland was said to be out of the country.
The government says the law is necessary to protect the country from international terrorism and espionage, and is not unique to Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe Standard (Harare)
5 August 2007
Posted to the web 6 August 2007
By Vusumuzi Sifile

Zim ICT Bill threatens free speech

2007-08-26T05:23:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwean Internet service providers (ISPs) are struggling to install costly equipment to monitor the flow of information in the southern African country, according to online activist Web site Kubatana.

President Robert Mugabe formally signed the Interception of Communications Act earlier this month. It enables the government to intercept phone calls, e-mails and faxes with the intention of protecting national security.

The law stipulates ISPs are under mandatory obligation to pay for and install the monitoring equipment.
“The law now stipulates that licensed Internet access providers and their ISPs must install the lawful interception equipment at their own cost,” says Shadreck Nkala, chairperson of the Zimbabwe Internet Service Provider Association (ZISPA).

The Act further states an ISP that fails to provide assistance in terms of this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years.

Nkala says there is a need for discussion between communication providers and the government as to the financial logistics of installing such equipment.

“There will be a problem in obtaining foreign currency to pay for the equipment. The cost of implementing the equipment can vary from several thousands of US dollars to a million or more, depending on the sophistication of the installation chosen,” he adds.

Zimbabwe's inflation is at around 4 500%, which causes business operations difficulties as it is, he says. “This law will put pressure on ISPs and other communication operators, amid torrid economic times in Zimbabwe.”

ZISPA has engaged in talks with the communications regulator Potraz and the ministry of transport and communication on finding a realistic solution.

Information control

The monitoring equipment intercepts information from the targeted user, without him or her noticing it is being filtered. The information is then recorded, explains Nkala.

Leonard Vincent, Africa correspondent for Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF), says the law will make the “free flow” of information in Zimbabwe next to impossible.

According to an RSF statement, the promulgation of this law is further evidence of Mugabe's desire to keep news and information under close control.

The Zimbabwe government denies the charge, insisting the new law is in line with international trends to fight terrorism and ensure national security.

The government has continued to justify its decision by citing Canada, SA, UK and the US as countries with similar legislation to protect citizens against the imposing threat of terrorism, says Mathew Takaona, president of the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists.

The Google Story - Book Review

2007-07-02T04:28:00.001+02:00

Written by David A. Wise, 306 Pages
Reviewed by Oscar Manduku, for Innov8 Bookshop, Zimbabwe

The Google Story starts with extremely bold financial results, for a small start up. Founded in 1998, Google.com became the world's fastest growing Corporation to ever grace the earth, even before going public in August 2004. This book is not about Technology or America, but about how innovation, locked up in every individual, can be turned into a Money Machine within the shortest time frame, without changing one's personality. It is a book about how focus, vision, determination, and endurance can change the way people conduct business the world over.

Google was not started by the US Government as we “Techies” thought. It was started by two humble students, who chose to take on the world, by creating what everyone needs information access for all. The money behind the business is not as important as the vision behind the founders, who consider themselves to be in the infant stage of their “Google Story”.

Upon establishing the company, The Google founders sort to build an environment that was very conducive to productivity without having to be academic or industrial per se. They managed to fuse a good culture by employing certain individuals who influenced the culture they wanted. They were ready to make sacrificial decisions so as to ensure that the culture that best delivered the vision was enforced.

Google Products have managed to create what is now known as The Google Economy, where more than 10 billion web pages are affiliates of Google Advertising Programs. These products have re-shaped the Internet landscape, creating an undisputed advantage for Google. Google's objective is to make available ALL information to the ordinary web consumer. Sergey Brin and Larry Page, the founders, have personal ambitions to download, store, and make accessible the whole WEB. They offer products and services that normally other firms charge, for the sake of retaining a consumer. Their products also make serious assaults on their competitors, and recruit new ones in every new territory they move into.

Google Inc displays unique Team work, as it operates as an Academic Research Institute, with a Membership Club and Project Management Concept, where people are assigned certain projects new ideas, product development, etc, with a Project Leader. These teams are not more than 5 people to allow maximum innovation. They are goal driven, with specific time lines, and objectives, that have to be met, or else the whole ship will sink. This production structure allows maximum mind contribution by each member of staff and helps deliver Quality of Service, which competitors are failing to match.

Corporate Governance and Innovation have been fused well by the founders, who sort the guidance of the Industry's most successful man Eric Schmidt, to captain this small ship that had a cargo even lager than the titanic itself. Google has managed to stay innovative in corporate administration, product development, and service delivery. So often Corporate Governance, Product Development and Delivery are always pulled in different directions. Not so for Google; because Eric Schmidt, the founders choice, successfully turned the idea into a world in itself. The Google Story is also about guidance and stability.

Google is without competition, even from Microsoft, who woke up one day to find Google ahead of the technology race. Google went beyond competition when they invested in product development that lasted many years of losses, and recruited personnel whom they could not pay for a while, but ultimately managed to turn the company around into their destined place number one, even on the NASDAQ bourse. The Google Story is about Corporate Competitiveness in this Global Economy.

The Google Story is about involvement in the lives of consumers. Google did so in consumer communities with their generosity initiatives, as they seek to cooperate with every consumer in order to satisfy them. Their advertising and marketing costs are next to nothing as word of mouth is their strength. Because Google Cares, they are getting more and more users by the day, making them the best Online brand, if not Offline as well.

Zimbabwe Internet after ZANU PF

2007-06-29T11:49:00.000+02:00

Featured Companies
Zimbabwean News Websites, Newspapers, and Media

Zimbabwe Internet during ZANU and Mugabe
If you search on Google.com using the words “Mugabe” or “Robert Mugabe” or “ZANU”, you will get not less than 2,500,000 web pages as results. There is a lot said about these three phrases by .CO.ZW, .CO.ZA and .COM websites, as the nation goes through transformation into an economic powerhouse. Day after day, emails, web links, pictures, slideshows, jokes, forums, chats, instant messages, electronic magazines, Newsletters, Newspaper Articles, photos, graphics, and other files are moved from on email box to another, from one continent to another, and from one website to another. Stories are created, cartoons are drawn and posted. Some true, some fabricated. There is a hive of “all” opinions on the subject matter.

Zimbabwe Urikuendepi: Where are you going?
Without being political, my focus would be on the motives, the business, and the going concern of the News, Debates, Books, Publicity, Campaigns, Thesis, and Related Information, now and afterwards. Nothing lasts forever except the Maker of Eternity. There will come a time when ZANU, Mugabe, and everything associated will no longer be viable information to publish or even consume on the Internet. What then will these .CO.ZW, .CO.ZA or .COMs do? Where will they generate their revenue from adverts or even hits from visitors? It is interesting at present as the stories, rather news, is juicy for publication. But there seems to be one song being sung by almost everyone. When I crawl on the Internet about Zimbabwe, I often ask myself what a foreigner would say; “Is everything in Zimbabwe about Mugabe?” Zimbabwean Independent Media, internet included, is running a risk of chasing foreign web consumers away, painting a wrong image of the nation, and archiving a minute portion of our history. Look at Malawi. Their worst years are over and they are focusing on rebuilding. What would have happened had they put their media focus on archiving vision, hope, prosperity, and profiling every opportunity available to the foreign investor? They are currently one of the beggars at IMF and World Banks does, only because of Media foolishness.

Zimbabwe Internet Hope, for the Foolish!
Instead of shooting yourselves in the legs, as a community and people, why don’t you start archiving news that brings hope to the Zimbabwean Consumer, Citizen, and Foreign Investor, creating hype, just as you are doing with the Mugabe issue? To all the Websites, Emailers, and Forums that talk about “Mugabe” or “ZANU”, I challenge you to grow up and become more visionary than what you currently are. It is good that someone changed things for us, causing some to cry out “Who Moved My Cheese?” so that we can be very creative offline, and online too. We now need to start refocusing our efforts to productive content, lest we become another Malawi, though having the best Infrastructure Online in Southern Africa, yes even better than South Africa.

Impact of Online Advertising in Zimbabwe

2007-06-29T11:45:00.000+02:00

The Internet is only one of many platforms on which an enterprise can publicise itself. At present Websites are competing for advertising attention with Print and Television advertising content. Let us seek answers for the following questions:

How much advertising material are web consumers exposed to?
This helps an enterprise formulate effective marketing strategies, which involve their website. DSTV, ZTV, Billboards, Clothing Publications (Labels), Movies, Food Courts, Specific Magazines, Newspapers, just to name a few.

Do webverts ™ (Website Adverts) work?
It is not a matter of just advertising, but an effectiveness measurement has to be put into place. Relevance, convenience, quantity, structure, of adverts should be considered.

What is so different about Webvertising ™?
Marketing gurus classify Advertising methods according to emotions nowadays – Fear and Love being the two extremes. We see this on Television and in Print media. Marketers often make consumers feel as though left out, if they do not acquire their product or service. This does not work on the internet, because they so freely move onto another website.

The most effective extreme is love based advertising, wherein marketers build a sense of belonging that allures consumers. The most common emotion to address on the internet is love, because every consumer wants to belong somewhere. I am a good example. Cabsonline.co.zw and Google.com have given me care and a personalised touch, hence will be loyal to them. We all have our websites we visit because of the loving aspect.

LURING WEB CONSUMERS
When it comes to “Zimboz” (as they are called), cyber strategies that work in the west or east do not apply. There are two issues concerning this subject – What Annoys them and How to promote your website.

What Annoys Zimbabweans?
Zimbabwean web consumers are serious and shrewd people when online. Without education, they can filter SPAM, POP-Ups, and other JUNK MAIL. Anything in these lines will not be tolerated. They value their space and freedom on the Web, to the extent of dismissing any form of deemed violation, whether valuable promotional material or not. My advice to enterprises that want to deploy POP-UP strategies is being very careful. When I worked as a Systems Administrator in a Printing company, I noticed how my network clients so often expressed their irritation in regards to SPAM (annoying email from unknown senders) and POP-Ups (Webverts that flash onto your screen after a web page is opened).

How to attract Zimbabweans
How then, do we attract Zimbabwean web consumers? Try the following:
- Promotions that have incentives.
- Through search engines.
- Advertising on other websites.
- Offline – Build Web oriented marketing strategies that are applicable in brick and mortar set ups. Examples are given in the Examples.co.zw chapter.

Zimbabwe Internet Facilities Needed

2007-06-29T11:08:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwe does not have sufficient numbers of the following facilities, capable of securing consumer confidence:

Online Transaction Processing Systems. By this I refer to a simple software application that allows web consumers to purchase goods or services over the Internet, without the use of bank notes. These are more transaction oriented than credit rating oriented. I know of one such innovation, through the Zimbabwe Association of Inventors. One of our members developed an electronic wallet, which is currently going under scrutiny with our Reserve Bank. This product is not a duplication of western technology, but a literal new innovation. When it passes the test, it will transform eCommerce in Zimbabwe.

Online Credit Rating. We are one of the few Literate countries which have not been affected or bulldozed by Visa or Master Card, in our credit rating systems. I believe that this is a good thing because it enables the birthing of our own credit rating processing Systems.
The good news is that Credit Rating will not be difficult to implement in Zimbabwe because many banks, offer some form of credit rating. Howbeit Uniswitch or Zimswitch take this further to become our own versions of VISA and MasterCard. Believe me, we poised for great heights as a nation. Insurance companies may also venture into this business, in partnership with banks, and Uniswitch.

Information Portals. Does it not strike you that we are very educated, yet do not have many information portals in our Cyberspace. Out of the existing portals, many have foreign styles, not necessarily relevant to the Zimbabwean Web Consumers. Zimbabweans behave differently from Tswanas, Zulus, English, Portuguese, French, or Chinese. Do we not have Behavioral Marketing Consultants in our midst, which are able to advise us as we build these portals?
I believe we have the potential to do greater than what we have done, only if we look within ourselves, and around us. A very simple allegory for an Information Portal is our very own Waterholes in the wild. An Information Portal can be likened unto a Waterhole in the wilderness of Zimbabwe. All animals throng to it at specific hours. They come to drink, quenching their thirst. It is a place for interaction with other creatures. At the Waterhole, there are Predators and Prey, there are Parents and Children, and there are Critics and Supporters. This is what you can create your Information portal to be, a place where you can contain all such people, and make money.

Free Services. Thanks to websites like Ygm.co.zw, yo.co.zw, and fbnet.co.zw one of the cries of my heart has been answered. Zimbabwe now has its own answer to Yahoo.com I believe, with enormous potential. Free services, especially email are very beneficial for a nation in Cyberspace, because they provide a reference point for the physical businesses, where enquirers can visit when offline. The more we have free services, the greater chance we have of establishing in consumers’ minds this wonderful world of technology. Free service websites provide alternatives for consumers as they browse the Internet. The more alternatives, the healthier competition is, and results in increased Internet usage. There are businesses which need platforms to market themselves, and free services websites offer a good platform.

Who’s eCommercing 2007: Online Transactions?

2007-06-29T11:07:00.001+02:00

Featured Companies
FoodWorld, OK, DST, eTranzact, PayPal and CABS Online

Zimbabwe eCommerce in 2007
This year has brought in some improvement on the .CO.ZW cyberspace, as a few companies are now offering Online Transactions from their websites. Food World and OK, the chain supermarkets, both have online shopping facilities. eTranzact, PayPal, and CABS Online are strong on the Backbone of Zimbabwean Online Transaction Processing Systems. Despite being over politicized, eCommerce has taken off on a good note this year, because the most popular banks now have eBanking facilities, and the Zimbabwean Consumer now has external funds stored in banks outside our borders.

Food to the Zimbabwean eWorld – www.foodworldzim.com
Food World Chain Supermarkets has two mirrored websites that it uses for eCommerce purposes. They have a local .CO.ZW website and the above .COM website. The .COM website is the one that is connected to PayPal.com, one of the leading Online Payment Systems in the World, which is able to process transactions in any currency except Z$. On the FoodWorldzim.com website, you are able to choose the items you so desire, adding them to your basket, and paying for them with the PayPal facility.

Everything is OK in ZIM Online – www.zimland.com
Zimland.com has made a deal with OK Zimbabwe to provide online grocery shopping for those families in the Diaspora. Families in the UK, US, or AU can visit this .COM and buy goods for family members who are in Zimbabwe, who then collect them from OK Zimbabwe. This facility is processed through PayPal.com, just as the FoodWorld.com website.

Do you want Some Timber for your Building Online – www.dst.co.zw
DST, the hardware and building supplies company has an eCommerce website launched early this year, where families and companies can buy building material through the eTranzact payment system. Shoppers can browse through their website adding items to a shopping cart, which will be processed as and when the shopper requires.

Pay anyone with CABS Online – www.cabsonline.co.zw
eCommerce in cannot be a success without the efforts and brilliance of CABS Online, the first company, and Bank to offer Online Transaction Processing through their website. With a CABS account a consumer is able to signup for the eBanking facility and start to pay “Anyone” or “Any Organisation” using CABS Online’s simple website. I have paid for my rates, done inter bank transfers, and other interesting transactions using this facility. Without a doubt CABS Online has more users than any other payment system in Zimbabwe. They have the largest POS network, and are also Mobile Online.

Zimbabwe Websites Misconceptions

2007-06-29T10:59:00.001+02:00

The following are some of the many marketing misconceptions that I would like to address in this book:

Websites are Marketing Expenses. This is false, because a website is an investment. We live in the days of the Google Economy, where you even earn US$ for just reserving a portion of your website for Google AdSense, and in the days of Advertising Synergies.

Not many people use the Internet. This is false, because Zimbabwean urban consumers are very technology oriented. There are more literate consumers in urban centers now, who have equal access to Internet – through Internet Cafes. The Computer Population is Zimbabwe is growing, especially the Laptops, whose owners want Internet access as soon as they buy them.

Websites are for Internet presence only, because we cannot implement eCommerce in Zimbabwe. This is false, because websites are for consumers not your company, hence can be used for more than just your business card. eCommerce in Zimbabwe is transforming, with a few hiccups though. Nonetheless, it is growing – CABS Online, eTranzact, NMB-Direct, and CBZ Online, just to name a few.

Websites are for technical people only. This is false, because websites are nothing close to being technical only. In fact less than 20% of a website is technical. The rest is Marketing and business genes.

Information Services in Zimbabwe, 2005

2007-06-13T11:05:00.001+02:00

INTRODUCTION
Since the commercial inception of many Information and Communication Technologies and various business methods in Zimbabwe, consumers have been hoping for an ever increasing Quality of Service (QoS) in Information Services. This has not been the case; due to a contribution of various factors influencing the direction of growth of this industry.
There are basically seven types of Information Service Points, which this paper seeks to address the audience, to shed light upon the dealings thereof. These are Websites, Directories, CDROMs, Periodics, Mobile Phones, Kiosks, and Cafes. Closely examining these will help define this industry, and point out a way forward – that’s the aim of this paper.

DEFINITION
Information Services can be defined as any repetitive business concept of publishing data, in any relevant format, to inform an audience, whilst achieving profitability. Please realize that in the 21st century, there are many industries which are springing up because of the dynamics of Information and Communication Technologies, manipulating data. As a nation in a continent deemed 3rd world, I beg to differ with this mindset, and aim to prove our un-extracted wealth in these regards.

INFORMATION SERVICE POINTS

WEBSITES
In 1996, there was an enormous uprise of Internet Services in Zimbabwe, with many Internet Service Providers either opening shop or beginning to penetrate the Zimbabwean Market. Unlike other western or eastern nations, Zimbabwean Cyberspace grew with an unstructured marketing concept. There was no separation between the Internet Service Providers and Web Portals. Web Portals are websites which offer information services to web browsers. This hampered marketing innovation, as most portals were based on western commercial ethics.
By the turn of the century, there had been many start-ups and shutdowns, due to the stiff competition from sites like the .coms and .zas – being American and South African websites. It is now five years into the millennium, and there still have not been any sound and well grounded web portals (Internet Information Service Providers). Many may argue upon my conclusion, but an example would be: “Have you ever wondered why it is easier for a Zimbabwean Web Consumer to source a .com for information than a .zw?” – Relevance is the key, not access speed (bandwidth).

DIRECTORIES
In 1980, Zimpapers was formed by the Mass Media Trust, which then incorporated AC Brabys to form BoldAds. AC Brabys is a South African Directory Publishing company, with a 10% stake in BoldAds. They provided BoldAds with basic principles, which been in use up to date.
The decade of the 1980s also saw the introduction of another publisher called Directory Publishers (DP), based in Bulawayo, and founded by the late Bruce Bill. DP and BoldAds have co-inhabited and equally split the market share for the past decades. Of note, DP has an agreement with the well known Service Mark Yellow PagesSM who is the global leaders in directory information services.

Still with these financially sound and strategically connected local giants, directory information service provision has not changed a bit since their inception. They have gone from paralyzing consumer mindsets, to totally disappointing unto death the whole nation. This is evidenced by the recent wrangle between BoldAds and TelOne, and the “too thick” a directory of DP.
Thumbs up for their dominance, but their QoS is rapidly becoming extinct.

CATALOGUES (PERIODICS)
The concept of cataloguing has never really grown in our nation. This quarter of a century of our nation saw the instant rise and fall of many Catalogue Publishers, which left consumers relying on foreign publications. Consumers have been left believing that Catalogues are only found in South Africa, Botswana, United States of America, and/or the United Kingdom.

KIOSKS
There is virtually no information kiosk in Zimbabwe. A kiosk is an ATM like information point that consumers enquire thereof, for a fee. The City Council used to have on at their Information Centre at the Unity Square Gardens in Harare, called InfoSite™. The Ministry of Information and Publicity has been trying to revive these, but these are better revived by business enterprises, because of capital expenditure and QoS.

MOBILE MARKETING
I have to express my patriotic disappointment with our Network Operators, who have not fully allowed the free entry of third party Mobile Marketers onto their networks. In as much as I am endangering my relationship by these comments, far be it that I allow such grievous activities continue. I regard this as social and economical oppression. Let us discuss more.
One would ask; “What happened to 1-2-1 Cell Money ®?” To those who know, please note that there is a thin line between being a Mobile Market Leader and being a Mobile Titanic Operator. The Titanic sank, with all its brilliance. The innovation of information services never got off the ground because of reasons only known as “the African business mindset”. Thumbs up for SMS, but there is more that can be offered.

CAFES
When this word is mentioned one instantly thinks of Internet Cafes. The years 2003 and 2004 saw the “rapid” expansion of these cafes in Harare. Internet cafes are there for convenience and as socializing points, to web consumers.

Thumbs up to QuickNEasy (QE), who has dominated this part of the industry. My only open question is: “How do they manage to accurately acquire convenient shop space, in these days when office or shop space is extremely difficult to find?” besides this question mark, I believe QE are what the Internet Services segment needed. If QE are to become Internet Service Providers, they will surely steal a huge chunk of the market share from other giants. Their brand is well established amongst the young adults. If we rewind time, you cannot help notice the instant rise and fall of cafes like eTouch, who had sound financial and technical backing. Then the biggest question is: “What went wrong?”

CDROMS
I have vigorously scaled the scopes f our uptown Information Technology consumer markets, and am still to come across a locally produced CD or DVD-based consumer information service. As the Print Media, cataloguing on a commercial basis has never taken flight in our nation, even in the presence of such technologies as we possess.

THE CHALLENGES
Apologies for my aggressive stance; I believe I am one of the few people given the grace to address issues in such a manner. I would like us to move on to the mountains, which have affected these Service Points, in a quest to solve our challenges.

1. PUBLISHING
This is a misunderstood industry, profession, concept, and business. It is and Industry because it covers many commercial areas, namely Software, Websites, Motion Picture and Video, Broadcasting, Commercial Print, Music, and lastly BOOKS. It is a Profession because as it spans these seven surfaces, there is a common value chain structure, which requires a Publisher (the individual) to possess fundamental skills. It is a Concept because there is no entity that can exist without publishing as a method of communication. It is a business because, apart from intellectual goals, profit is the main reason for publishing.
There is more that can be discussed about this subject, but its dynamic behaviour has made many entities ignore its importance, yet graceful beauty once harnessed and innovatively manipulated.

2. GOVERNMENT
Each time something goes wrong in our nation, all eyes and voices are on this word – Hurumende or Government. I will say this; for a child to be born, the mother’s body has to facilitate this process with pangs. This forces the mother to push out the fruit of her womb. Sometimes the mother’s body fails and the child dies, or an operation is conducted. I believe that the Zimbabwean government is like the body of Zimbabwean businesses, which facilitates us with birth pangs. Please finish off this allegory for yourself.

3. PATRIOTISM
There is a lack of patriotism amongst those who can offer sound information services. By this I refer to the ethos of certain individuals and organisations which focus on the personal greed, at the expense of QoS and eventually national economic advancement. The fact that Information Services have not been sound; this means that businesses and consumers have been distanced from one another, resulting in our current economic stagnation. Note that a combination of small things amounts to even greater ones.

4. INNOVATION
There is a lie that the African mind has been told, that creativity is unrealistic and unprofitable; hence the high density of clerical and administrative businesses and professions. In Africa, especially Zimbabwe, Africa’s intellectual capital city, the word Entrepreneur has been extremely abused; limiting to mean anything other than Risk Taking and Experimental business ethos.

5. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
A lack of respect, education, and practice of this subject and its subsidiaries, has caused greater disasters in our economic framework. For example, more than 90% of Zimbabwean businesses operate without a registered trademark; yet aim to export their products and services to easterner or westerners, who understand trademark laws and other intellectual property. This subject covers Industrial Property (Patents, Utility Models, Designs, etc), Trademarks and Copyright and Related Rights, and others.

Intellectual Property affects Information Services because Copyright and Trademark issues are the core of this Industry. For more information and education on this subject matter, I refer you to Gift Sibanda, Director General of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation; a father of Intellectual Property in Africa, born Zimbabwe.

6. TECHNOLOGY
Zimbabweans are the most literate people in Africa, and most parts of the world; therefore adaptation to new technology is out of the question. What needs to be addressed rather is how technology is presented to consumers. This boils down to QoS. Please tell me that you are fully satisfied with our Information and Communication Technology businesses!

7. VISION
Dear audience let it be known that I see a commercially liberated Africa, and this begins with Information Services. Our oppression begun with information; and we should be restored with information as well. Many Information Service businesses lack a destination, apart from profitability.

It is a well known fact that those who do commerce with a profit mindset achieve frustration, and billions of US-dollars and fame always follow those who do commerce for pride and sheer pleasure.

Overview of Property Websites in Zimbabwe, October 2006

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Database Driven
Most of them are database driven, making it difficult for each entry to be found by search engines like google.com. Most use Cold Fusion, a technology not easily accessible by Google scripts. Google uses Perl. The difference is that Perl dumps information on every query (Client Driven), yet Cold Fusion keeps everything on the server on which the query is being requested (Server Driven).

What has influence these web publications
• Mindsets
o People only read from newspaper classifieds only.
o Who would want to invest in a vibrant website?
o It’s Zimbabwe anywhere!
• Lack of understanding of marketing in cyberspace.
• More of a presence issue, for corporate image issue.

The Technologies Used
Most of the websites were developed by WebDev and Design@7. WedDev is strong on Wed Development (the Database side), hence their sites have that orientation. Design@7 is strong with Graphics, hence their sites have that orientation. Some other sites were developed by small companies, which seem not to understand websites or Internet at all.

Opportunities

What is not fully utilised
• Titles – Search Engines maximise on website titles. If you search “real estate in Zimbabwe, or homes, or property” with Google, the results will not immediately produce the above websites.
• Newsletters – Only one website had a newsletter link, where one could sign up for a newsletter. It has been two weeks now, I am still waiting for the newsletter.
• News and Information – Only one website has Newsflashes, but only has one story. Zimbabweans love news. They go on the Internet to look for news of anything, especially Obsessives and Bare Necessities, which are the two target audiences.
• Photography – Each website poorly captivates the properties in question. Their photography is very insufficient

What do consumers want?
I believe that the above websites are not really addressing what the consumers want, and some are underutilising their tools.

• Target consumer groups should be understood. There are only two target groups – Obsessives and Bare Necessities. I am an Obsessive, I just want to be notified or given information in good time, of properties available, preferably earlier than other people. Learn how these tow behave.
• Sufficient information to make a decision.
• Seeing the beauty of the property (or worth), commensurate the price. Consumers want to feel good about each transaction.
• A non-technical website.

eCommerce & Internet: Zimbabwean Perspective 2003

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Technology-wise, the world has moved into the Internet Era – birthed in 1995. This has seen the birth of Electronic Commerce (eCommerce). In short Internet means ‘network of networks’, in terms of Information and Communication Technologies.
eCommerce, through the Internet and other related technologies, is the bringing of Investors, Employees, Management, Consumers, Customers, Suppliers, Competitors, and Government Departments together in a virtual business environment.
1.1 Globally

The Internet is now the widely viewed as the fastest growing communications phenomenon of all time. The comparative chart below places into context the dramatic pace of growth of the World Wide Web (www), a central feature of the Internet for most users.
ITU, January 1999
At present the Internet user rate is at an estimate of 300 million, and is expected to reach 500 million in 2005. Revenues are currently estimated at US$1.3 trillion, which are expected to rise to about US$3 trillion by 2005.
1.2 Africa

We will view the growth of Information and Communications Technologies from two perspectives – political and Industrially.
Politically – By virtue of international governance, our technological advancement has been determined by bodies, which have been stirring us in their desire directions – deemed to be relevant. In these last two decades, international organisations have created spearheading bodies like the African Information and Communications Initiative (AICI), which is a child of the United Nations – Economic Commission for Africa (UN/ECA). The UN/ECA held a conference for African Ministers in Addis Ababa in May 1995, requested so as to set up a high-level working group on Information and Communications Technologies in Africa, made
Copyright © 2004 by Regai Oscar Manduku Copyright © 2004 by Regai Oscar Manduku
up of African technological experts, to prepare an Action Plan in this field. The group was set up, which is now in operation, spearheaded by the AICI. The vision of the plan is ‘Building Africa’s Information Highway’. The vision of the AICI is to support and accelerate socio-economic development across the region by focussing on priority strategies, programmes and projects.
Industrially – The relentless competition, innovation and massive drops in the price of Information and Communications Technologies, and fundamentally altered the nature of the global economy, mean that Africa has a window of opportunity to use these tools to accelerate its own socio-economic development. With the youngest population in the world, Africa has unique opportunities because youth most easily adopt new ideas and ways of working with information and communication tools.
1.3 Zimbabwe

eCommerce is still at its tender stages. The reasons being lack of knowledge by most economic entities. This has been caused by the slow deregulation of the Communications Industry, which is a major entity in eCommerce. However, the introduction of more players in Communications Industry brings us to a very strategic position in the near future. We are the only country in the continent to have six players – three fixed providers (PowerTel (ZESA), TelOne, and TeleAccess) and three mobile providers (NetOne, Telecel, and Econet). We can successfully compete with any nation for dominance. We have the ability to serve the region in terms of communications, which is the backbone of eCommerce.
However, we have slackened on the Information Technology side. Please read more details from the Competitor Analysis below.

eCommerce: Education & the Labour Market 2003

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One of the challenges being faced by the local Information Technology Industry is the increasing migration of specialists; leaving for other countries which offer better remuneration and advanced Infrastructures. The following are some of the recreation by players and educationists:

a) The Computer Society of Zimbabwe introduced the International Computer Driving License (ICDL), which has taken the market by storm. This course makes it easier for anyone to find an Information Technology related job.
b) The Harare Polytechnic (rep of HEXCO) Computer Studies Department has embarked on a campaign to introduce degrees in the next few years to come. The major assistance is from Asian educational and industrial players.
c) Occupational training facilities have increased in the past decade. These have majored in products from world leading vendors like Microsoft, Sun, Cisco, CompTIA, Compaq, Caldera and Dell.
d) Institutes like SIRDC and AVU (African Virtual University) have introduced courses, which are only accessible to a few privileged Information Technology professionals.
e) The Ministries of Education have lagged behind in Information Technology education, with most secondary schools not even having any form of Information Technology curriculum – further straining future developments.

These moves have resulted in a lot of negative factors, further contributing to what they fear – specialists’ migration.
The following are some of the effects of the above moves:
a) An influx of Product Specialist as compared to Technology Specialists. This has caused the specialists to migrate to places like USA, where these products have ready employment opportunities.
b) Lack of specialisation in Technologies has resulted in the production of maintenance managers, support engineers, and re-engineering developers.
c) There is an expertise gap caused by the inaccessibility of specialised education and occupational training; thus also resulting in them migrating.
d) There are abortions and suppressions of visions and talent from students owing to the lack of policies and structures guaranteeing Information Technology education at critical schooling levels (Secondary and Tertiary).
e) Lack of effective Information Technology Communities – other than the Computer Society of Zimbabwe – to spearhead the industry, which is too vast to be covered by one body.

In short, technically, we have a lot of novices, a small amount of outward-bound experts, and no effective production of innovative patriots.

Internet Consumer Analysis: Basics 2003

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There are five major aspects affecting consumers, which contribute to the success of eCommerce in Zimbabwe – namely Disposable Income, Literacy, Migration, Economic Instability and Technological Changes.

6.1 Disposable Income
Most people spend their disposable income on commodities than unique experiences. Others have their disposable income locked up in liability promoting expenditures. This poses a challenge to eCommerce players to create more disposable income, and eventually employment, through their inventions.

6.2 Literacy
The 35year and above age demographic group is the most Information and Communications Technologies illiterate; yet the bread winning group. This poses a huge challenge to eCommerce players in educating these income holders.
There is however hope in the younger generation, as they are the most literate and also increasingly attaining employment.

6.3 Migration
People are migrating to other nations with better living conditions. Our nation is losing an estimate of Z$20 billion each month, because of citizens’ migration (±20000 people paying ±$1m on airfare). This shows that money is available, but there have not been any innovative eCommerce players to influence other sector to attract these consumers or investors.
On the other hand, this migration is a positive because we now have a world wide Zimbabwean consumer and investor market – a chance for eCommerce to thrive.

6.4 Economic Instability
The current conditions have left consumer in a panic and impulsive buying of commodities. This has been caused by the runaway inflation rates, and most recently, shortages of commodities, even cash. This is however a very big positive to eCommerce, because it promotes a notes (cash) free society. Other positives are the unpredictable ‘stay – aways’, which hit places like the stock exchange, who will be registering a minimal loss of Z$250 million a week.
6.5 Technological Changes
Information and Communications Technologies have dramatically changed, even in Zimbabwe. We apparently have at least 80% eCommerce enabled Information and Communications Technologies. consider the following facts and figures.
- The new Sony PlayStation II is Internet and DVD enabled. This means families can communicate via their television sets.
- Mobile phones are Internet and Wireless Application Technology enabled. This means that they can be used to tap into any computer system using a protocol called WAP.
- It is cheaper to buy a computer than a TV and/or VCR. A DVD enabled Computer costs approximately Z$3.5m, which can play videos, music, and connect to the Internet.

Webcology: Types of Websites

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Websites are different, derived from their purpose. There are informative, Transactional, Referral, Behavioural, and Mixed.

Informative Websites
These are websites whose sole purpose is to provide information, whether commercial or academic. Websites that offer information for Commercial purposes usually sell their information. These websites require you to join a community, having paid a subscription. Most of these use the credit processing systems available, such as VISA and MasterCard. Websites that offer information for Academic use usually give out information for free. These include Public Databases, Archives, Community Institutions (e.g. Churches), and Government Departments, just to name a few.

I came across an information website the other day, when I was looking for a template for a Shareholders Agreement. I visited the LawDepot.com website, which contains templates of legal documents. This website helps you build your desired Agreement. After filling in the template, the results will come out in another page, summarised. A bill will be displayed on that page, requiring you to pay for the template before it is emailed to you. Such websites are available topics like Shopping (Discounted), Auctioning, Education (Certification/Examination), and Consultancy, just to name a few.

Transactional Websites
These are websites whose sole purpose is to facilitate a transaction, between Businesses and Consumers, or Businesses and Businesses, or Consumers and Consumers, or with Public Bodies. The transactional aspect of the Internet is usually plugged into many websites, whose purpose may not be solely transactions. The transaction aspect is usually a background or conclusion of what the web consumer would have been offered. For example the Law Depot website first offers you information, and then bills you for it.

There are however, websites such as Supermarkets, and other Shop stores, who have shopping baskets on every page, enabling the web consumer to add items to their basket and check the balance, as they go.

Referral Websites
They are also called Advisory Websites. Their sole purpose is to link a consumer to the closest possible desired haven – whether product or service. The difference between an Informative website and a referral website is the commercial aspects. Most referral websites charge a commission for each reference, as opposed to informative websites which are usually free of charge.

The best example of such a website is an auction website. The most popular is eBay.com, which, in simple terms, refers the Seller to the Buyer, for a fee. The eBay.com phenomenon has revolutionised commodity broking in Europe. Whoever has an item to sell, posts it on eBay.com. eBay.com then finds a buy, who pays for the item. eBay.com then pays the seller, retaining a commission.

Other referral websites include Vehicles, Paintings, Crafts, Holiday Packages, and Insurance just to name a few.

Behavioural Websites
These are websites that change their behaviour (appearance, theme, subject, purpose), in accordance with a specified purpose, for example, just as a television channel. I believe this is a type of website that has not been explored. Imagine your website having the ability to completely change automatically just as a television channel. Glimpses of this type of website are seen in places like Microsoft’s ABC television, and AOL’s quest for MTV. These websites are used only to watch, not interact. Scale this thought to organisational level, and visualise how you can apply this. For example, a Restaurant can have their website change each day of the week, according to the Day’s Special. Lift this up to Hotel level, just to name a few.

Technically it is possible. Developers know what I mean here. It is merely a Time Manipulation issue. This does not change the Designer’s core business except adding more pages to the website. The enterprise, on the other hand has to come up with different ideas for this. Glimpses of behavioural websites at present also include interactive websites, which ask consumers to choose language and other things, and respond accordingly.

I am speaking of the future here. Coming is a time when websites can pick your computer logon identity restrictions, and customise its website to suite your profile, furthermore, use your profile for transactions, regardless of operating system – Windows, Linux, UNIX, or MAC OS.

Mixed Websites
There are many websites having more than one behaviour, being all or a combination of these – Informative, Transactional, Referral, and Behavioural. The transactional aspect often dominates in the mixtures, being the ultimate goal of enterprises who build websites – eCommerce as it is called.

BROADCASTING REGULATIONS

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In November 2004, many nations, through the Word Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), begun to work on the amendment of their broadcasting services in the form of a Broadcasting Treaty. This came about when nations realised that Radio-communication and Telecommunication was being intertwined in commerce because of the Internet. There is a clear distinction between Cable-casting (data transmission through wire/fibre), Broadcasting (data transmission through radio waves), and “now” Web-casting (data transmission through both, using the Internet).

Zimbabwe followed through by amending the Broadcasting Act, to incorporate Webcasting per se, found in the Broadcasting Regulations. The amendments now include charges payable by Internet Service Providers and Content Providers, just to mention a few. Knowledge of this change gives you insight on the environment in which your website is being regulated. This may not be important; but as this saying goes, “Being for warned is being for armed”. I recommend Designers, Developers, and Publishers to get a copy of this Act.

DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN WEB DESIGNING, WEB DEVELOPMENT, AND WEB PUBLISHING

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In understanding what content is, entrepreneur ought to understand the difference between Web Designing, Development and Publishing respectively. This helps the enterprise know the role they play in regards to the website.

Web Designing has to do with the Graphics, Art and Layout. This topic deals with the artistic creativity that is put into creating buttons, menus, pictures, animation, and page layouts. A Web Designer understands the beauty and image aspects of the Internet, which include Themes, Appearance, Colour, Placement/Position, and Navigation. Content to a Web Designer would refer to anything in relation to the aforementioned, focusing on what the web consumers will see, not necessarily what they will do – THE FACE.

Web Development has to do with the creation of Software Applications and background instructions that are used in conjunction with the website. This includes Feedback Forms, Shopping Carts, Registers, and other content manipulation tools. Most of these applications are Database Driven, meaning they have enormous sharing abilities, and data stored on an accessible server, no matter the size or complexity of the content you want to keep in them (Multimedia, Text, or Graphics). A Web Developer understands the Technology of the Internet, which includes Programming Languages, Network Administration, and Website Administration. Content to a Web Developer would refer to anything in relation to the aforementioned, focusing on what they will do, rather than see – THE INSIDE/BACKGROUND ISSUES.

Web Publishing combines Designing, Development, and Internet Marketing skills to deploy and sustain a website. This also includes Market Research, Journalism, Advertising, Promotion, and many more. A Web Publisher understands the Business, the Market, and the Technology of the Internet. Content to a Web Publisher encompasses what you see (THE FACE), what you do (THE INSIDE), and how it will succeed, such as What Consumers want, How to attract consumers, Effectiveness, just to name a few.

Webcology: Seasons of Life

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There are three standard stages websites go through when uploaded onto the Internet. These are Presence, Interaction, and Transaction. These are like a seasonal cycle a website goes through.

Presence
This is the stage at which a website is first introduced onto the Internet. At most, the idea is to make it known only. More effort is invested in retaining web consumers. The enterprise goes all the way to give freebies, infotainment and attractive webverts. Retention and Hit rate are very important at this stage. Many websites take up an informative behaviour, news being the most popular.

It is not advisable to jump this stage, as this may cause premature growth, or future abortion. On the other hand, it is important to plan and have the second stage on standby. A good example of these scenarios is Amazon.com. When it was launched, Amazon.com could interact and transact and the same time. Their Retention and Hit rates were abnormally high that they had to shutdown for a while.

Overwhelming success is usually a result of poor planning, or premature exposure. When launching a website, it is advisable to keep track of Retention and Hit rates. These are good indicators, which determine when you should go on to the next stage.

Interaction
This is the stage at which a website begins to talk to its consumers, responding to their requests. This is done using tools like Feedback forms, and many others. In this stage, web consumers are very demanding in that they know that when you have given them a platform for interaction, they will do so – INTERACT. Feedback forms are a simple way to interact with web consumers yet underutilised. Often time’s enterprises do not reply or attend to web consumer requests. It is important that once in this stage, an enterprise can use eGroups; an interactive way to consolidating their presence.

Transaction
This is the stage at which a website has the ability to facilitate a transaction, between the consumer, and its owner (the enterprise). Once a website is past Interaction, the noble thing to do is transaction processing. It is advisable to start offering eCommerce facilities.

eCommerce in regards to Transaction Processing can be simplified into three levels.
 Enquiry Processing – At this level, the website only gives web consumers the ability to find out if the product or service they require is available.
 Order Processing – At this level, the website gives web consumers the ability send requests of enquiries, receiving confirmation and invoicing documents.
 Payment Processing – At this level, the website gives web consumers the ability to use their banking details to pay for invoices generated – a complete transaction.

Each of these levels of Transaction Processing has different system requirements, meaning that the website behaves differently and is structured differently.

All-In-One
There are yet many websites that ignore the stages and offer all at once. In a normal circumstance, this is not advisable, especially in our part of global commerce. The major cost on a website is the Transaction Processing aspects. Investing in such a tool may be irrelevant to an enterprise, which has barely retained a good number of web consumers. This is over capitalisation. The money spent in a Transaction Processing system could have been used to consolidate the enterprise’s Presence or Interaction.

Webcology: Types of Websites

2007-06-11T04:40:00.001+02:00

Bend It Like Beckham

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If you have not watched this movie, the moral is that every Midfielder wished they could bend a football into the net or at the feet of a striker, like David Beckham. Question is, “Is this the only way to play winning football?” With this same thought, many Zimbabwean enterprises have adopted styles, structures, and content that they have not engineered, but copied. There is nothing wrong with copying, except when it limits an enterprise to unleash the greatness within them – thumbs up to Milton Kamwendo, on this subject.

Beautiful Graphics
Many websites in Zimbabwe are “very beautiful”, flamboyant, fully animated, and intriguingly spectacular. Are they successful? I know of a manufacturer whose website I have been trying to open for the past three years. No matter where I access the Internet, I have never seen their website. It has music in the background, and an opening count which reaches 100% but never opens. I tell you the truth, it is better to publish such a website as a .com rather than a .co.zw.

When designing a website to be accessed by Zimbabweans, one ought to consider the issues we discussed earlier; consumers do not have patience. Considering the state of our telecoms networks, animated websites do not go down well, unless they are conservatively built. Remember the Google.com and Msn.com comparison.

Corporate Image Only!
Have you noticed that many websites in Zimbabwe are corporate image websites only? There is more talk of the company than its products. It is good to have a corporate site; but it is not all. Many enterprises just want to have a presence on the Internet. There is more!

Your image is good, but do not end there. Present yourself in a manner that web consumers will not be offended or deem you pompous. This may cause a reduced frequency in the number of visitors. I know of enterprises in Zimbabwe, which have good products, yet talk more of the corporate image than their products on their website. This is terrible.

No Content and Poor Content
At one extreme there are websites without any content, yet owned by flamboyant enterprises. Sorry for picking on listed companies, it is just that they represent us in globally. Many of the listed companies do not have content on their websites. Try their websites for yourself. Compare with the amount of content they put into TV and Print platforms.

It is not good to put too much attention on TV and Print, at the expense of your website, which is the first point of call, both locally and internationally. It is advisable to keep a balance.

On the other extremes there are those with poor content. There is no excuse to publish insufficient information about an enterprise or its products, on the Internet. Enterprises usually publish poor content when they rush the process – they just want something online. I was once told, taking a wife is easy; but keeping her is hard work that bares much fruit. The secret is in preparation. If you are not committed to manage the content (or hire content managers, such as ourselves or those who built your website), do not publish one at all.

The greatest success story in regards to poor content, I can give you, is the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange website (Zse.co.zw). For many years this website had nothing but contact details, and brief profiles. It was not enough, even as a contact detail website. I spent about two years visiting it after three month intervals, and downloading a copy of each page possible. I tried to imagine how it will be viewed by investors outside Zimbabwe. It was not good.

I am proud to announce that this is no more. The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange website is now one of the most content rich sites, which is updated everyday. Thumbs up to the Publishers of this website, and more so for the ZSE, who have taken time to change their image, and strategy on the Internet. Access it, and see for yourself. It is not only beautiful, but it is sound, fast, and content rich.

Zimbabwean Web Consumers are Special

2007-06-11T04:35:00.000+02:00

Fellow Entrepreneurs, there is something unique about the Zimbabwean consumer, especially on the Internet. We are a nation that has been hit with various pressures – economic, social, spiritual and political. Each time I think about the hardships in our nation, I quickly remember those of USA in the late 1920s and early 30s – the Great Depression. When it ended, USA was never the same. They went into a boom, whose fruit is still being enjoyed to date. The 21st century USA could not have been, without the souls of the early 20th century, who helped transform the nation, by consuming the products and services.
There is something about consumers in times of hardships, especially those that stand firm. I believe that knowing that special thing about Zimbabwe consumers will assist you in building a successful website.

Literacy
Have you ever wondered why it is so easy for Zimbabweans to adapt to new technologies? Notice how mobile phones, computers, satellite equipment, and DVD equipment, have boomed without need for consumer education. Furthermore, have you noticed the number of SMEs who offer after sales services, such as repairs? In this same thought, Zimbabwean Web consumers are able to move in Cyberspace without much education. I noticed this in one Internet Café where I train new Web Consumers. We are taking college students and introducing them to the Internet. In a week, we have trained an average of seventy students, who are now frequenting the Internet Café. We conducted five minute introductory sessions, with batches of ten students each. Nine out of ten in each group had never used a computer before. They have become comfortable in Cyberspace. This is special.

Power of Migration
One of the characteristics of our modern day “Bantu” nation, inherited from its ancestors, is Migration orientation. The Bantu are able to move from one place to the next, carrying all their possession, and settling well in the new lands. Nomadic people have the ability to settle in new environments and quickly customise them to suite their needs.

Over the past six years, Zimbabwe has exported its citizens to all four corners of the earth. This means Zimbabwe is no longer limited to the physical borders we know, but has cluster communities in nations like England, USA, Australia, Canada, South Africa and so forth. As much as Zimbabwean consumers are based in England, their Bantu genes will cause them to crave for Zimbabwean content. There are many examples of thriving websites with Zimbabwean content; though most of it being news. These include websites like zimupdate.com, sadza.com, and zimnews.com, just to name a few.

Consider this: Why not promote and/or attract Zimbabwean immigrants in Cyberspace, who are physically located outside the borders of our nation by helping them migrate with your content? A good example would be the United Kingdom, which was nicknamed UK after “Unit K’ in Chitungwiza. This may not sound like an opportunity, but imagine if you could allure Zimbabwean Web Consumers in the United Kingdom, who will consume your information, linked to your products. Examples are given in the Examples.co.zw chapter.

Enterprising
Every adult in Zimbabwe has a personal business project, and/or is formulating yet another. If the web consumption market comprises of enterprising people, this means that they are very inquisitive, willing to learn, in search of opportunities, and patiently awaiting a chance to shine.

This is a good state, creating an enormous demand on content for commerce. What better platform to deliver such content than the Internet.

Free Blind Mice

2007-06-11T04:29:00.000+02:00

Because the Internet is not an academic priority in most Marketing Programmes in Zimbabwe, Web Marketing has been a nightmare for many marketers, seen by the inability to thrive online as they do offline. My first business mentor is one of Zimbabwe’s top Marketers, who took me up early 2003, when I quit my comfortable IT position at Zimpapers Natprint. I noticed that he was a student of online marketing ever since then, only to take up online business four years after, with a serious innovation, if I might add.

I know another brilliant Marketer with more than ten world class food brands at her disposable, yet has only one website – a corporate website, that talks more about the company - Corporate Profile, than the products or its consumers.

I will not mention bankers, clothing manufacturers, department stores, bookshops, car dealers, insurance institutes, asset managers, chemists, sports institutes, just to name a few. I love our marketers, but can not stand and watch them be overwhelmed by foreign institutions online. The online competition is stiff, and some websites serve the Zimbabwean web market uncontested. It is as if Zimbabwean marketers become blind as the three blind mice, yet online innovation is free for all. It just takes the same concepts as the offline, to build success on the Internet.

What I have seen to be the problem is how marketers perceive the Internet, especially websites – a business card, company profile, and a notice board. We come from a Mass media oriented marketing background, relying heavily on TV, RADIO, and NEWSPAPER to market products, services, promotions and brands.