SafeBoda revealed Wednesday that they had recalled their riders to reinforce them in customer care skills, a reflection, perhaps, of their commitment to assuage the prevailing situation.
We apologise for the recent inconsistent customer experience. Our growing quality team is working tirelessly to test and retrain SafeBodas in customer care and app use to ensure a good quality service, every time. pic.twitter.com/jTmb2bNXUL
— SafeBoda (@SafeBoda) August 1, 2018
The boba boda ride-hailing company has in the past weeks come under wide-ranging criticism, with passengers observing that riders had started dodging hails, switching off apps early in the day, deliberately refusing to take passengers among other habits that were damaging to the brand of SafeBoda.
Some passengers are also saying that the app has developed issues, including constant crushing and the ‘pair’ button, sometimes, doesn’t respond to command.
Hey @SafeBoda, I think and suggest (with too much anger following what happened today) that you should call back all the 3000 (God knows how many) riders you recruited. They need orientation again.#Thread
— Masheta Baker (@mashetabaker) August 2, 2018
SafeBoda has over they years grown at a slow, but a bit admirable rate, and it is still leading in the number of riders, according to figures given by all the companies.
But of late, its growth has been mainly affected by pressure from competition, according to observers. As the competition expands, observers say, SafeBoda might have rushed to take on more riders, and in the process, sending them to the field without thorough training, thus the resulting issues.
Must read: UCC explains Airtel ‘takeover’ of K2 Telecom
There are currently four main players in the motor cycle taxi hailing industry. They are all competing for riders since it’s the number of riders that influence activity. So, as they recruit riders, they also know that riders may opt for companies with a less rigorous recruiting process. And in the past few weeks, we’ve seen SafeBoda numbers, by helmets, grow at a faster rate. These numbers, analysts say, could have become slightly cumbersome and unstainable by the company.
We’ve also seen the company suspend incentives, which had been motivating riders to work for longer hours. Most riders have said that they spend a lot of money on airtime for data and voice bundles, and, to them, without subsidies from the company, it hurts their income. This is why sometimes some of them will tell you to give them cash when you find them on a boda boda stage and request to pair, or they’ll refuse to pick a customer at a far distance, complaining about fuel.
When we recently talked to the SafeBoda spokesperson recently, she said they were working to resolve the issues, declining to give details. As all this is happening, SafeBoda has shown commitment that it’s committed to grow, and it recently extended its services to East Africa’s biggest economy.
Related:
SafeBoda breaks silence as pressure mounts over ‘sinking’ services
How Dial Jack could crash SafeBoda, Taxify & UberBoda bases
