With over 500 million users across the world, WeChat is a major force to reckon with when it comes to chatting apps. But it’s not just a mere chat app; it is a free messaging and calling app that allows you to easily connect with family & friends across countries. In this exclusive interview with Innovation Village, WeChat’s country manager for Nigeria, Idemudia Dima-Okojie, describes the uniqueness of WeChat, the Nigerian market, plans for developers/entrepreneurs and agenda for 2015.
Innovation Village (IV): WeChat has been in Nigeria for some time now, how has it grown over the years?
Idemudia Dima-Okojie (IDM): I must say that the growth of WeChat in Nigeria has been really impressive. In the past year, It’s been interesting seeing how the youth are adopting WeChat and especially how they are using the app. An example of this is how more and more young people are connecting with each other using the ‘People Nearby’ feature on WeChat. This feature allows a WeChat user to see other WeChat users who are geographically close to them, and allows them to easily connect if both parties accept each other. It is important to note that this feature can be disabled if a user does not want to be seen on the ‘People Nearby’ Feature. WeChat generally seeks to empower people and organizations to do more with their mobile devices, because we believe that messaging is at the heart of mobile.
IV: How many Nigerians use the service?
IDM: Well, I am not allowed to disclose the actual country figures to you right now. However, what I can say is that we have a really healthy base of smartphone users that run into the millions in Nigeria.
IV: Where is the biggest market for WeChat?
IDM: Globally, a large portion of our over 500 million users come from Asia; however, in Nigeria, I must say Lagos is the biggest market. Naturally, with more than 15 million people living in Lagos and the Internet penetration here, it is expected that more users will be domiciled here.
IV: What do you think is unique about WeChat compared to similar services?
IDM: A lot. In fact it`s almost impossible to compare WeChat with other ‘similar’ services. WeChat is in a world of its own. I see most of the other services as 2-Dimensional, providing basic Instant Messaging functionality; Whereas WeChat is 3-Dimensional in the sense that in addition to basic Instant Messaging, WeChat has a lot more to offer users like: Video calls, ‘Walkie Talkie’ feature, a ‘Shake’ feature which allows WeChat users to connect to anyone in the World who is shaking their phone at that point in time. WeChat also has Location-Based Services and stickers (animated emoticons), which make chatting More Social, and More Fun. But even more important is the fact that WeChat has a functionality called Official Accounts that allows businesses to create Mobile Apps within the WeChat ecosystem, and allows them to reach out to their target audiences who are WeChat users.
What is truly powerful here is the fact that businesses or brands, whether larger, medium or small, no longer need to spend a lot of time, effort and resources building native apps, because WeChat is available on all major mobile platforms (iOS, Android, Windows Phone, BlackBerry, Symbian etc); and with a WeChat Official Account, people can easily discover and engage with your mobile service; transact and pay for goods and services all within WeChat; and this is all for FREE. Already, we have some major brands on WeChat, some of which include: Jobberman, OLX, DSTV, Airtel, Etisalat, Beat FM 99.9, Inspiration FM, Careers24, News24, Big Brother Africa, Super Sports and the list goes on. So today, people looking for jobs can easily search for and apply for jobs on Careers24 or Jobberman directly from WeChat. You can also listen to your favourite radio stations that are on WeChat live, or even manage and pay your DSTV account from within WeChat. There’s simply so much that can be done with WeChat.
IV: Even though WeChat has been around for a while; it is not yet as popular as would have been expected. Why is this so?
IDM: WeChat is actually quite popular; Download and register on WeChat, and you would be positively surprised to see that a lot of your contacts are already on WeChat. The misconception on the popularity stems from the fact that we in sub-Saharan Africa are typically influenced by western services (services from North America and Europe); and because WeChat is not originally from the West, there is less awareness in western media, which we (Nigerians) follow. However, we are now active in the market and partnering with relevant stakeholders and players in the mobile ecosystem to add value to users and the market at large; and as we move ahead, you will begin to hear more and more about the impact of WeChat in the Nigerian market.
IV: Who is the ideal WeChat user in Nigeria?
IDM: I would say any mobile User would potentially be a WeChat user. However if I were to drill down, I would say WeChat is enjoyed by young people or people who are young at heart. Our typical early adopters range from ages 13 – 35 years, with other age groups following. In addition to being great for individuals, WeChat is a cost effective and ideal platform for content and service providers, especially for consumer-focused businesses or establishments.
IV: What is the target for WeChat this year?
IDM: Our aim this year is to educate the market on the value of WeChat and actively win over users, one mobile user at a time. I can tell you that we are well on our way.
IV: What new cool stuffs are happening at WeChat, what should we expect soonest?
IDM: I am really excited about the possibilities of WeChat in this market. We will work even closer with our existing partners to enhance their services to a market that is predominantly young (keeping in mind that well over 60% of our population is under 35 years); and using the power of mobile to scale these services. Today, most services out there are not designed for mobile, and with more people getting smartphones, it is imperative for brands and businesses to develop a mobile strategy beyond simply sending texts messages, or putting posts on Social Media. Your customer or audience should be able to transact with, consume your mobile focused content or service directly on their smartphone. We will also be reaching out to young developers and entrepreneurs who may have unique services and would like to get these to the market; already plans are in the works for a set of events to give people the opportunity to pitch their services/ideas, which we’ll eventually support to make them a reality.
So businesses, especially our entrepreneurs have a lot to look forward to, and the entire Nigerian market at large, as we have a robust platform that can truly provide the mobile experience (at little or no cost) that many brands have been pursuing for quite some time.
IV: Wechat is available on a number of operating systems. Which one has more users? Why do you think this is so?
IDM: WeChat is one of the few mobile applications that is truly agnostic. WeChat is available on a number of mobile platforms including iOS (Apple), Android, Windows Phone, BlackBerry (OS 10 and some older versions), Symbian and even Java (though many cool features might not be available on Java). WeChat is also available on Web via web.wechat.com and available on Mac OS.
As expected, in line with Smartphone sales in Nigeria, there are more WeChat users on Android with over 60% of our total users on this platform; unique to Nigeria and a few other markets, BlackBerry follows, then iOS and others.
IV: Is WeChat generating revenue yet in Nigeria?
IDM: For now, we are focused solely on being More Social and More Fun. We want users to experience the various interesting features available on our app; and of cause we will work with our partners to provide true value to all.
