Takealot.com

“People buy from people they know, like and trust"

I am sure you have come across this statement before. Either at a sales training seminar or even from your sales manager training front line customer service consultants. I have for many years admired this statement as it suggests that when you are engaging with prospects or people willing to part with their money for your product and services, they need to do so while having trust, or liking the way you present the product or with someone you already know or developed a rapport with.

As a brand, how do your employees and your brand become liked, known and trusted by your target market? To what levels are you willing to go to ensure that a rapport is established with your target market? Do you know which part of your business aside from the product or service, do your clients, consumers enjoy the most about your business? 

There are many ways to answer the above, however I would like to focus on how one of my favourite brands has managed to become a successful brand by ensuring that their business is customer centric and your experience with their various touchpoints is to your liking.

One of the first brands that may pop up in your mind when I say online shopping is: ………?

Takealot.com

That’s right, Takealot.com having launched in 2011 is today a leading ecommerce retailer in South Africa and one of the largest, most innovative ecommerce retailers on the African continent. Their journey to reaching where they are today is amazing. It involves mergers and acquisitions, but at the heart of it all, it involves you the customer getting the best service every time you engage with their brand. 

 

Takealot.com brand contact planning and management is carefully planned out and has a purpose behind each action. Online shopping in 2017 is different from 2011 and in this space, user experience on the site can equally compete with customer services face to face in the store. Therefore, notion of ‘people buying from people they know, like and trust’ is as equally relevant when shopping online.

When exploring Takealot.com possible brand contact planning process I discovered that long before I purchased a product from the platform, I have been marketed to without realising it. From Facebook sponsored posts, to Google network adverts displaying on articles I ready online. This is my first brand touch point with Takealot.com. 

Now that this brand has brilliantly occupied space in my head, they have also blown me away with their landing page on the ecommerce site. Not only is it easy to navigate, it is also leading. The experience I have on the site resembles a real-life window shopping experience. They are passionate about providing great customer experiences, beginning with the moment you land on our site, until the product you order is delivered safely into your hands. I for one has had a great shopping experience with this platform. 

 Takealot.com values

Having researched this innovative brand, I identified that they value their staff. They communicate their vision really well and have defined goals. Their values drill in their core brand DNA and their staff buy in on these. This contribute to their internal marketing of what the brand represents and in return contributes to the ever-evolving business life cycle of this brand. They have an innovative corporate culture that encourages staffto think outside the box and to brainstorm. There “DRINKALOT” sessions prove to be a good way to allow employees to buy in and contribute to the company in a less clinical environment and no redtape. 

Other great brand contact matrix that this brand has successfully implemented involve their activations, marketing initiatives and CSI programs, great UX and dedication to solving any unplanned incidents with their brand. 

In conclusion, Takealot.com has made me realise that people don’t necessarily by from people they know, trust and like. People buy what they want. Therefore, the experience needs to be conducive, subliminally guided and seamlessly assisted with no regrets. This brand definitely knows how to hold your hand before, during and after. Takealot.com is effective in its brand contact process and internal marketing. They have taken a shopping experience to the next level and have strategically positioned themselves in the consumers mind as a brand to be reckoned with.

Takealot.com’s mission is to be the most customer-centric online shopping destination in Africa.  Our company is built around the simple concept that the customer comes first.