WigWag, a branch of the South African payment service provider Stitch, has unveiled an AI-powered bot for managing payments on WhatsApp. Aimed at the small and medium-sized business sector, the tool strives to ease the management of payments without needing to switch between various apps and browsers.
Launched in September 2023, WigWag is a newcomer in the payment industry. Stitch, its parent company, caters to the business market, facilitating businesses with the ability to accept, process, and manage payments, and administer financial procedures.
The General Manager of WigWag, Danielle Laity, described the motivation behind founding the subsidiary. She stated that payment solutions aren’t a one-size-fits-all. Startup companies, small businesses, independent contractors, and emerging social sellers are constantly seeking simplified payment methods. These methods should void intricate technical integrations while ensuring excellent service and trustworthy technology. According to Laity, there was a business opportunity in offering these sectors an easy-to-use payment solution built on Stitch’s infrastructure.
The prime element of WigWag’s strategy is using WhatsApp to reach its target market. A study conducted by VodaFone and SafariCom, cited by WigWag, indicates that WhatsApp is the most widely used social media platform in South Africa. An estimated 93% of internet users, approximately 23 million people, currently use the messaging application, a number projected to rise to 28.6 million by 2026.
The WigWag assistant is crafted specifically for business proprietors and managers who already converse with their clientele or manage other business operations through WhatsApp.
Research by World Economics, quoted by the company, reveals that SMEs and informal sellers account for 28.8% of South African businesses, with a substantial number utilizing social media for promotional and sales activities. Furthermore, forecasts by ResearchAndMarkets.com indicate that the social commerce sector in South Africa is set to grow by 63.7% annually, reaching $1.36 billion by 2023, and is further expected to mark a CAGR of 38.4% from 2022 to 2028.
On the topic of mobile device security, Danielle Laity highlights that WigWag, besides having access to Stitch’s ‘enterprise-grade payments infrastructure’, is entirely compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI 1 DSS). This standard is designed to safeguard transactions and cardholders’ personal information.
To ensure only authentic businesses utilize WigWag, a comprehensive digital onboarding process is in place to verify their legitimacy through rigorous checks. These checks include database queries and specific optimizations, according to Laity.
Opening an account with WigWag is free, but the platform does charge a transaction fee starting at 2.95% for local cards, which reduces incrementally with the increase in transaction volume.
