Updating contact information with suppliers can be tedious when you move house or change your contact information in some other way.
Now, a South African start-up wants to do away with all of that PT and make is quick and simple for anyone to update their contact details with any of a number of local service providers, including banks, mobile networks and retail stores — all from one central point.
The Change My Details website allows consumers to select the type of information they want to update and also which service providers to notify of their new contact details. Change My Details lists about 100 of South Africa’s biggest service providers — even Sanral is included.
“During our research, we found that for some service providers it can cost up to R30/entry for incorrect details. This includes costs for post sent to the incorrect address and costs for following up with a client as a result,” says Change My Details founder Colin Bridge.
Bridge says the service is free for consumers. The company charges service providers for facilitating the process of updating user information. “It is in their benefit to have updated customer information and for the service we charge businesses R1 every time we send them information.”
Website categories make it easy to find service providers. Not all service providers listed are supported yet, says Bridge, but those are mostly the banks. “If the user selects a company that is not yet accepting automatic updates from us, you can vote for them to get onboard.”
Bridge says no personal user data is stored on Change My Detail’s servers and no user registration is required. Only the companies that are selected will receive a user’s updated contact information.
When using the service, a one-time Pin is sent to the user’s cellphone to activate the service and they can get a summary of the companies that have been notified successfully.
Bridge also has plans to take the service to international markets, but that will be dependent on how popularity Change My Details proves to be among South African consumers. — © 2014 NewsMedia Central