Super apps as a new means of reaching customers?

WeChat and Alipay are the most notable examples of a “super app revolution”. They serve as a model for mobile apps designed to enable users to organize every aspect of their day-to-day lives. But what are these super apps, what advantages do they offer users and what benefits do they give companies?

From the moment you get up through your commute to work and your lunch break to the evening’s activities at home, WeChat provides a range of services. At the heart of these is a payment system enhanced by other services. What all super apps have in common is that they follow the “mobile-first” approach.

There are essentially two different types of super app:

• Super app of a company enhanced with various additional functions.
• Super app+ with so-called mini-programs from third-party providers.

Super apps are the new means of reaching customers

With every new service or mini-programme, super apps attempt to attract the user’s attention and monopolize their time. They have generally already secured the consumer’s money because they assume the role of a bank account as a payment system. From the consumer’s standpoint, it’s all really simple and convenient.

The advantages of a super app lie in the short route to action (convenience) and the variety of services concentrated in a single place.

Four trends in consumer tech. Source: YouTube

The prerequisite for success

Super apps prevail where smartphones are the central tool in day-to-day life. Every media disruption ultimately prevents this type of app from becoming the everyday platform.

It’s not just in South East Asia that super apps have taken hold, but also in South America and Africa – two other “mobile-first” societies. The Columbian start-up, Rappi (originally a courier service) already operates in seven countries, plying its trade in sectors such as e-payments, scooter-sharing and financial services.

In Africa, the first super apps such as “Tingg” have also begun to take root. The pan-African payment company, Cellulant, provides a standardized platform via which users can settle any kind of incidental expense.

In India, Amazon is also well on the way to becoming a super app, offering services including e-payments, flight reservations, ride hailing, food delivery and more, either directly or via other companies it has acquired.

Super apps – realistic in the West too?

And what about in the West? Until now, apps in the West have been designed to meet a single user need, i.e. purchasing or paying. These so-called single-purpose apps are an integral part of everyday life. The natural process would be for some of these apps gradually to incorporate an increasing number of platform characteristics. And while it might not appear so at first glance, there is already movement in this direction.

The move by Facebook towards payments with Libra is a particularly large step towards a super app. Furthermore, Uber has begun to merge its ride hailing services and Uber Eats into a single app.

In this new scenario, retailers, manufacturers and brands should consider whether they want to become part of a platform or become a super app in their own right in order to remain relevant for customers.