Are Kenyan Blue Chips Anti-‘Social’?
Only a measly 22% of companies listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange have a presence on Facebook. That is despite the fact that there are 1 million Kenyans on that platform alone, the majority accessing it via mobile phone. None of the top 3 companies with a strong presence on Facebook have significant presence on retail shelves. One is a telco, the other a media house and the top company on Facebook is an airline.
Participants at the Tandaa Symposium on ‘Growing Your Brand Online’ heard from social media firm SocialLight Media and TNS Research on the online habits of Kenyans and Kenyan companies. A case study by Rupu (rupu.co.ke), a group buying website similar to GroupOn and Weforia, showed it is possible to create an online business in Kenya and turn a profit. The allure of increased profits from online channels has also drawn in shoe manufacturer Bata who now has an active presence on Facebook and Twitter with e-commerce to follow later in 2011.
[slickr-flickr tag=tandaa] There probably has never been a better time to set up an online business in Kenya than the present. Internet penetration is higher than it has ever been, payment solutions that bridge m-commerce and e-commerce are proliferating and the cost of data-enabled mobile phone handsets is falling. The only missing link in the chain is logistics. How can an online business deliver a product to a customer who lives in a place whose physical address relies on landmarks rather than a proper address system?
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