Johannesburg, 27 Jun 2012
SA's fixed-line operator has embarked on a project that will see the company forge partnerships with third-party channels in the retail electronics industry.
In what Telkom says is an endeavour to make its products and services more accessible to customers, the company has started a pilot project with various DionWired stores.
Manelisa Mavuso, MD of consumer services and retail, says retail channels are the predominant channel for customer purchases. “[They are, therefore] key to Telkom's strategy to increase market reach.”
Telkom's pilot project involves DionWired (consumer electronics and appliances) stores at Gateway, in Durban; Woodmead, in Johannesburg; and Canal Walk, in Cape Town. Each of these stores now has a Telkom counter where customers can order the operator's broadband services. The aim, says Telkom, is to test the concept before commencing national rollout.
“In this way, we aim to capitalise on the synergies at the point of purchase where customers buy their PCs and laptops, gaming consoles, Internet televisions, tablets and cellphones,” says Mavuso.
This latest retail store project follows an announcement in March regarding Telkom's partnership with Samsung. Through the Samsung deal, customers are offered Telkom broadband packages as part of their Smart TV purchase. This enables customers to use the Telkom broadband connection to download movies, games and other Internet-based content over their Samsung Smart TV sets.
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