Secure social business platform Wyzetalk has found a way to set itself apart from other social network platforms. Unlike WhatsApp or Skype, for example, Wyzetalk does not target individuals looking to connect with friends and family, but rather businesses. “It’s a business tool, not a social tool” explains co-founder and CEO Gys Kappers.
The business of being social
The platform allows companies to create communities and groups made up of employees, suppliers or clients. Wyzetalk is the channel through which these communities can communicate and collaborate on various projects. The platform allows members to send private or group messages and share files and can be used on multiple devices from your smartphone and tablet to PCs. As Gys explains, the platform does not do away with the need for face-to-face interaction but rather focuses on communication thereby reducing time spent in meetings.
For companies that need to be in constant communication with clients, Wyzetalk allows companies to connect externally with clients and customers, allowing for greater interaction and real-time feedback. All data is saved on a cloud and stays with the company.
Wyzetalk currently has over 480 active communities. The platform is 100 % local product. This was a conscious decision made by the company to show South Africa’s capability in producing world-class products. “There is no lack of skills in South Africa” Gys insists.
Innovate, collaborate, communicate
The platform has one of the better startup stories, 16 months in and the social business platform already boasts some big-name clients, the likes of financial services giant Discovery, Cash Crusaders and the Protea Hotel chain. They also have over 11,000 users across the globe. These strides have been made possible through “persistence and a never-say-die attitude,” says Gys.
Wyzetalk is the culmination of Gys’ interest in studying business systems and his partnership with co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, Gerhard Pretorius (who had a similar idea in the beta phase at the time ). The project was self-funded for the first 12 months, after which outside funding was generated.
Gys first tested out the concept which now forms the basis of Wyzetalk (largely developed during his time completing his Executive MBA) in his concrete business. He created an environment in which his employees could collaborate and communicate in a non-hierarchal manner and found that it generated creative ideas from his staff. He was convinced of the viability of the concept when an idea from an 18-year-old cashier in the concrete business generated a sizable amount of money for the company.
“You can pursue anything, anything can be done” is Gys’ message to entrepreneurs, but says South African entrepreneurs should be taking advantage of the incredible reach of technological innovations, “with tech your product can travel the world” he says.
