Coronavirus: Bizom, Yellow Messenger partnership lets kiranas transact with brands, consumers on WhatsApp
A partnership between Yellow Messenger’s conversational AI platform and Bizom’s retailer app and distribution management systems will enable consumers and retailers to order directly from brands on WhatsApp in the time of coronavirus.
and Mobisy Technologies’ flagship product have announced a strategic partnership to ease retail execution for FMCG and CPG brands in the time of coronavirus and after.
As part of the partnership, Yellow Messenger’s conversational AI platform and Bizom’s retailer app and distribution management systems will enable consumers and retailers to order directly from brands, said Lalit Bhise, CEO and Co-founder of Mobisy Technologies.
While the strain on supply chains is easing in several states, the pandemic has brought home some hard truths for CPG brands, including the large holes in distribution systems. In most cases, supply chains couldn’t withstand the prophylactic measures brought on by the lockdown. Ecommerce sites and supermarket chains also could not ensure adequate stocks.
The often overlooked kiranas came to the rescue of consumers by quickly changing suppliers and ensuring the availability of essential goods.
Raghavendra Ravinutala, CEO, Yellow Messenger
Lalit said: “While the jury is out on the longevity of the supply chain-related changes that the pandemic has brought, the need for digitisation of distribution systems and supply chains has been heard loud and clear. Yellow Messenger’s conversational AI platform can help Bizom’s customers to serve the consumers of the real heroes of the moment – the kiranas.”
Staying nimble
Brands that ensured continuous supply were nimble ones with sorties of salespeople and real-time retail intelligence. These brands connected directly with retailers and identified retail outlets that were operational even in the early days of the lockdown to plan their supply chains.
Bizom’s retailer app and DMS have been helping consumer brands address their visibility challenges even before COVID-19. Most brands in India’s traditional trade-dominated markets sell through distributors and wholesalers. They do not have visibility in tertiary sales to track order fulfillment rates accurately and keep up with changing consumer trends.
The retailer app helps brands address these challenges by digitising the brand’s retailers and distributors to order directly on the app and providing access to real-time retail intelligence.
Yellow Messenger’s AI-powered WhatsApp chatbots, used by over 100 global enterprises for consumer engagement, allow consumers to purchase and pay for their orders, seamlessly within WhatsApp. The chat bots not only predict customer preferences correctly, but also enable absolute tracking for both brands and consumers. They allow multiple back end integrations and respond to consumer’s product-related queries both on desktop and mobile platforms.
Owners of kirana stores already use WhatsApp to communicate with their customers. The same WhatsApp access to brands will go a long way to ensure the right products, in the right quantity, are always stocked in kiranas.
Raghu Ravinutala, CEO and Co-founder, Yellow Messenger, says: “Digital commerce is a very public, customer-facing aspect of any business that chooses to pursue it. As a result, optimising the customer experience is critical to success. We're proud to partner with Bizom in delivering an end-to-end D2C on WhatsApp Solution for their clients.”
(Edited by Teja Lele Desai)