Zain woos subscribers with value added services

By Macharia Kamau

Mobile operator Zain Kenya has rolled out a raft of value added services that are expected to re-energise its competitiveness and positioning in the mass market.

In the latest push, subscribers on the firm’s network can now request for advance airtime of up to Sh100, use call back request and airtime sharing services.

The company is following in the footsteps of market leader, Safaricom, with its ‘okoa jahazi’, ‘please call me’ and ‘sambaza’ services to intensify its presence in the market.


A Zain employee registers a customer’s SIM card. The company is following the footsteps of market leader, Safaricom to intensify its presence in the market. [PHOTO: FILE]

The value added services — Kopa Credo, please call me and Me2U – are expected to play part in upping the operator’s competitiveness as it gears up to re-brand this October.

Kopa Credo, an advance credit service will offer emergency credit to prepaid customers whenever they run out of credit.

Credit will be advanced in denominations of Sh20, Sh50 and Sh100, unlike Safaricom’s service that has a standard denomination of Sh50.

A ten per cent service fee will be charged on the amount advanced.

Customers will be required to repay the credit loan within three days. The airtime can be used to make calls to other networks.

"This service is open to all subscribers who have been on our network for at least three months.

The amount of credit that a customer qualifies for will depend on an automated credit score vetting," said Rene Meza, Zain Kenya managing director.

customer trends

He added that the new services have been tailored around needs identified from findings of a customer trends study and also the need to make access to telecommunication services in Kenya more affordable.

He said the services would be accessed through simplified interactive mobile phone account management menu service, which will enable customers to access a wide range of value added services through a single short code.

The firm has also revamped its airtime sharing service — Me2U — with the minimum transferable credit set at Sh20.

The ‘Please call me’ service will enable customers to send up to 10 call back requests daily at no charge to both Zain numbers and subscribers of other networks.

Since announcing a renewed focus on the mass market segment, Zain Kenya has continued to roll out products targeting this sector.

Meza said the operator had recorded a steady growth in new customer acquisition following a 50 per cent reduction on calling rates.