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#AfriTECH2021: Key takeaways from Zoho’s workshop on Driving Business Growth through CX
For organizations large and small, the year 2020 was the longest year ever. The quick lesson is the urgent need to reorient the workforce to a new way of working to ensure uninterrupted delivery of exceptional CX (customer experience). It came swiftly with playbooks being written and rewritten depending on what leaders were learning from government authorities, medical professionals, and from their own employees.
Andrew Bourne, Regional Manager – Zoho Corp
Thus, CX innovation is now more than merely a topic for conferences; it is a necessity for survival for people-centric organizations.
And this newfound need means that many customer experience trends are very quickly developing and coming to fruition, helping shape the future.
This is the crux of a workshop conducted by Andrew Bourne, Regional Manager – Africa at Zoho Corp. during Africa Tech Alliance Forum (#AfriTECH2021), organised by TechEconomy.ng in Lagos on Wednesday, 13th, October 2021.
He said that the ‘Generation C’, usually referred to as ‘The Connected Society’, expects great customer service; through interactive customer platforms offered on mobile devices as well as efficient and consistent service delivery that will be available 24/7.
These, he said, are all forms of an effective customer experience. Concerning what the future customers expect, Andrew told the Workshop participants that it has become imperative for businesses to carry out research on ‘what’ their future customers will expect.
The Zoho Regional Manager referenced a Forbes report, which reads: “Millennials currently hold the largest purchasing power, but Gen-Z is close behind. The group, which was born between 1996 and 2010, already holds $44 billion buying power ($600 billion when considering their influence on their parents’ spending) and will hit the workforce and become powerful consumers in the next few years. In the next year, they will account for 40% of all U.S. consumers. To succeed, companies need to know how to tailor a great consumer experience for Gen-Z”.
To satisfy customers who fall within Gen-Z, Andrew said, “Businesses should consider: mobile-first as Gen-Z demands quick access on the go; Personalised service – Gen-Z wants a real customer relationship; Video – Gen-Z responds well to visual content, especially videos; Trust – Gen-Z cares about trust and authenticity; and Efficiency, implying that Gen-Z have an average attention span of about about 8 seconds”.
Buttressing his point using a PwC report in 2018, Andrew said that if you give customers a great experience they will in turn buy more, be more loyal and share the experience with their friends; in other words, they will give a great testimonial and/or a review.
CX vs CS
The Zoho Regional Manager said that CX is majorly about customer relationships; adding that CS – Customer Service is reactive while CX is proactive and continuous. Therefore, if CS is expected, CX is how you exceed customer expectations. To do this effectively and efficiently, you would need a CRM – Customer Relationship Management system. “To lead in CX, organisations cannot compromise digitisations such as Online Forms, Customer Portals, Digital Signatures, Website Live Chat and Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistants like Live Chatbots, etc.”
Andrew also demonstrated how to drive customer loyalty through a CRM system. “A ‘Repeat Customer’ comes back because you gave them a great first-time experience; The ‘Loyal Customer’ follows you because of continued great experience and continuous improvement of the CX and the ‘Promoting Customer’ gives your company a boost by promoting you to others based on the experience and will continue if their loyalty is acknowledged and shown appreciation,” he said. Moreover, new customers get introduced to the company through a ‘promoting’ customer which could be triggered by word of mouth, social media recommendations or a customer testimonial.
The workshop drew rapt attention from both government and private sector operators who strongly shared the view that COVID-19 has overwhelmed businesses around the globe, encouraging customer teams to rethink what customer care actually means.
Zoho is well-known for its CRM solution as well as its other SaaS offerings for business management. Zoho CRM is a cloud-based, integrated customer relationship management platform that caters to the needs of businesses and industries of all sizes and types. Be it multi-channel communication, taking care of multiple tasks, predictive analytics or in-depth CRM insights, Zoho CRM offers a host of features that can supercharge a business’ CRM decisions and elevate its CX delivery.
Including its CRM solution, Zoho has 50+ apps in nearly every major business category, including sales, marketing, customer support, accounting and back-office operations, and an array of productivity and collaboration tools.
More than 70 million users around the world, across hundreds of thousands of companies, rely on Zoho every day to run their businesses, including Zoho itself. Zoho is privately held and profitable with more than 10,000 employees.
Anambra State Government has begun a crackdown on illegal Internet Service Providers (ISPs) operating across the state, citing concerns over data breaches, poor service quality, and environmental defacement.
The enforcement, led by the Anambra State Physical Planning Board (ANSPPB) and the Anambra State ICT Agency, follows numerous complaints about unauthorized road excavations and the indiscriminate erection of poles, which deface infrastructure.
Investigations revealed that several ISPs were operating without approval or submitting deployment plans, a violation of regulations governing telecommunications infrastructure.
Authorities stress that the objective is not exclusion but compliance, ensuring only registered ISPs approved by the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) operate in the state.
Residents are urged to report unlicensed ISP activities via the dedicated hotline 02014143039.
Speaking on the development, Barr. Chike Maduekwe, Executive Chairman of ANSPPB, said: “This isn’t about shutting anyone out but about ensuring everyone follows the right process. If you want to offer internet services in Anambra, go through the proper channels. We will support those who comply, but we will not tolerate shortcuts.”
Similarly, Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata (CFA), Managing Director/CEO of the Anambra State ICT Agency, emphasized: “The internet is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity. Governor Soludo has implemented a zero right of way policy to encourage players, but the first step for any ISP must be regulatory approval. The people of Anambra deserve services from providers they can trust.”
The Anambra State Government remains committed to fostering a safe, fair, and well-regulated digital landscape where residents can enjoy secure, high-quality internet services without fear of exploitation.
The enforcement drive signals a new era of accountability in the state’s fast-growing digital space.
In a significant step towards enhancing online safety for teenagers, Meta is proud to announce the launch of Teen Accounts on Instagram in Nigeria. This initiative is part of Meta’s broader commitment to ensuring safe, private, and positive online experiences for teens across Africa.
As more Nigerian teens join Instagram, it is crucial to prioritise their safety and privacy. Parents want to feel confident that their teens can use social media to connect with their friends and explore their interests, without having to worry about unsafe or inappropriate experiences.
Teen Accounts were designed to better support parents and give them peace of mind that their teens have the right protections in place. Teen Accounts have built-in protections that limit who can contact them and the content they see, and we’ll automatically place teens in Nigeria into Teen Accounts, and teens under 16 will need a parent’s permission to change any of these settings to be less strict.
Key protections offered with Teen Accounts include:
Private Accounts: Teen accounts are set to private by default and teens under 16 can only change this setting with parental guidance.
Messaging Restrictions: Teens can only receive messages from people they are already connected to.
Sensitive Content Control: Teen Accounts are automatically set to see less sensitive content in search results and recommended content in Explore, Feed and Reels.
Limited Interactions: Teens can only be tagged or mentioned by people they follow, and the strictest anti-bullying feature, Hidden Words, is enabled by default.
Time Limit Reminders: Notifications prompt teens to exit the app after 60 minutes of daily usage.
Sleep Mode: Enabled from 10 PM to 7 AM, this feature mutes notifications and sends automatic replies to DMs overnight.
“We’re excited to bring these features to Nigeria and help families navigate online spaces safely. Teen Accounts are designed to give parents peace of mind, allowing teens to connect with friends and explore interests without worrying about unsafe experiences,” said Sylvia Musalagani, Safety Policy Manager, Africa, Middle East & Turkey (AMET) at Meta.
Since Meta started reimagining its apps for teens with Teen Accounts globally in September 2024, Meta has enrolled 54 million teens into Teen Accounts on Instagram, with 97% of those aged 13–15 remaining within the strict default protective settings.
While Teen Accounts come with built‑in safety protections, Meta understands many parents want to take a more active role in their teens’ online experiences. With the enhanced supervision tools, parents can:
See who their teen has interacted with: While message content remains private, parents can now view a list of people their teen has messaged over the past seven days.
Set daily time limits on Instagram: Parents can decide how long their teen can spend on the app each day. Once the limit is reached, Instagram will be inaccessible for the rest of the day.
Schedule downtime from Instagram: Parents can block access to Instagram during specific hours, like bedtime, with just a tap.
View the topics their teen is exploring: Parents can see which age-appropriate interest areas their teen is choosing to follow and engage with.
“Meta’s new policy aligns with several core priorities outlined in NITDA’s strategic roadmap, particularly concerning data privacy and protection for minors, now under the purview of the Nigerian Data Protection Commission, and child online protection and digital well-being, which we have collaboratively addressed with our sister agency, the Nigerian Communications Commission.
“NITDA has been a strong advocate for child online protection through various initiatives, including national strategies and proposed legislation, such as the Online Harms Protection Bill, which addresses age verification and parental controls.
“This policy reinforces the need for age-appropriate online experiences and promotes digital well-being.” commented, Barr. Emmanuel Edet – Director Regulations and Compliance Department, NITDA
To mark the launch, Meta hosted an exclusive event where parents, content creators, policy stakeholders, media and teens could engage on the available safety features and tools.
Meta remains committed to developing tools, resources and partnerships that protect teens and foster safer online experiences for families in Nigeria.
For more information about Teen Accounts and updates to parental supervision tools, visit here
Telecommunication companies have threatened to withdraw their Unstructured Supplementary Services Data (USSD), services from banks over what they called misinformation.
MTN Nigeria, Airtel, Globacom and 9Mobile- the telcos disclosed that the banks’ notice to their customers on the new billing system and airtime deductions for USSD services was misleading.
Also, Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) also denied that the directive was from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).
USSD is done via shortcodes on mobile phones and allows bank customers to make transactions in places with limited or no internet service.
Recall that banks earlier this week claimed that NCC has directed them to begin charging them from their airtime rather than from customers’ accounts.
The notice from the banks read in part: “In line with the directive of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), please be informed that effective June 3, 2025, charges for USSD banking services will no longer be deducted from your bank account.
“Going forward, these charges will be deducted directly from your mobile airtime balance in accordance with the NCC’s End-User Billing (EUB) model.
“Under this new billing structure, each USSD session will attract a charge of ?6.98 per 120 seconds, which will be billed by your mobile network operator.
“You will receive a consent prompt at the start of each session, and airtime will only be deducted upon your confirmation and availability of the bank to fulfil this service.
“If you do not wish to continue using USSD banking under this new model, you may choose to discontinue use of the USSD channel.”
Reacting, ALTON, umbrella body of telecom operators in Nigeria, said the banks’ notice is a gross misinformation deliberately hatched to suit their selfish interests.
Hence they threatened to withdraw network support to the banks’ USSD services.
Engr Gbenga Adebayo, chairman of ALTON told Vanguard: ” I don’t understand why the banks are twisting agreements and distorting information just to favour their selfish interests. In the first place, the information wasn’t a directive from the NCC but a joint regulatory agreement between the NCC and the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN witnessed by the telcos and the banks. The agreement was that if the banks finally cleared all USSD debts owed to the telcos by June 2, 2025, they are free to migrate to the end-user billing method, so long as the model of migration is transparent and agreed upon by the telcos.
“The reason for that clause was because the telcos insisted that the process of migration is such that will not allow a customer to be billed twice; in other words, that a subscriber would not have his airtime deducted and also have his or her money deducted for same services from his or her bank account.
” As we speak, some of the banks have cleared their debts, but the majority are yet to do so. So, even if all the modalities of migrating to end-user billing have been perfectly carried out, the implementation cannot even begin because the banks are yet to clear the USSD debt owed to the telcos.
“Our position now is that if that is the way the banks want to treat the agreement, we may withdraw support for their USSD services. It is not a must-have. They can do without it. But, they should clear the debts as agreed,” he added.
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