12 Telkom 365 Issue 02 wInTer 2011 13Telkom 365 Issue 02 wInTer 2011

‘Idon’t want you to write an article on how a bunch of surfers are running a business,’ SafariNow CEO Matthew Swart lays his cards

on the table right upfront. ‘We are the biggest accommodation website in southern Africa and we have the widest choice available. We do surf. But we’ve grown up.’

His operations director, best friend and fellow surfer Tom Williams looks up from his oversized Mac screen and nods seriously while outside the office the breakers of Scarborough beckon.

If you were on Survivor, chances are you’d want an alliance with Matthew Swart. He’s just one of those guys. The type that looks you in the eye, thinks before he speaks and does the right thing.

But you can also bet that he’ll outwit, outlast and outplay all the bigger, louder contenders. You just need to take a look at his business track record. Over the last 12 years he’s built an online travel business that’s steadily overtaken any possible competitors to become one of the biggest ecommerce players in the country.

OutwitBack in 1999 the Internet in South Africa was still finding its feet between the frenzy of Silicon Valley start-ups and planning for Y2K’s ‘big crash’. It was two years before the launch of kulula.com and local website activity was dominated by virtual pet stores and news from the Daily Mail & Guardian. Back then there was no Google (remember HotBot and AltaVista?) and, while DSL was just becoming available in offices, most homes with Internet access still had dial-up modems.

Already, a whole lot of people were grappling

with a question that had no easy answer: ‘This “World Wide Web” thing is fun, but how do you make any real money out of it?’ It was the same question that popped into the head of then 26-year-old Matthew. He’d recently graduated from university with a degree in land surveying but was casting his eye around for a strong business idea. ‘I wasn’t really a tech geek. I thought the Internet was cool, but I wasn’t into programming. I just knew it was an opportunity to do business in a different way,’ Matthew says.

His idea was to take an established travel agency model and move it online. The initial concept was to advertise and run tours, with a focus on safaris that appealed to the international market (hence the name). Swart launched the site with windsurfing friend Brad Shrimpton from a 12-square-metre room in Vredehoek and a modest loan from his father.

OutplanThe focus on safaris quickly went out the window. ‘We saw there were thousands of small B&Bs and guesthouses all over South Africa that had no representation on the Internet so we changed course from tours to accommodation,’ Matthew explains.

The next gap was an online marketplace where people could view accommodation options, book them and pay online. They had to spend money upfront to create a sophisticated booking and payment system. The system was incredibly forward thinking, using text notification to alert guesthouses to a pending quote and offering a seamless payment system. ‘That may be standard now, but it was pretty funky back in 1999,’ Matthew admits.

AheAd of the gAmeAn online business needs to be at the forefront of technology and SafariNow has recently added these tech-savvy facilities: All listed establishments are now offered their own free website, designed and hosted by SafariNow. This means that each establishment gets its own URL and website and all payments go through SafariNow’s payment systems. A smart move as the system appeals to Google’s new search engines which go direct to source rather than aggregators.

They’re launching a new SafariNow app on all new Nokia phones that allows users to search for accommodation, request a quote and book.

Through a strategic alliance with privateproperty.co.za SafariNow offers free, professional, 360-degree videos of their offerings.

entrepreneurs

13Telkom 365 Issue 04 summer 2011/2

SafariNow isn’t an overnight sensation, nor a one-hit wonder. Rather, it’s a model of how calculated risk, careful management, brand evolution and staying power are the foundations of a successful business.

Words Sarah Bullen illustration Studio muti

South AfricA

partners in work and play, Matthew swart and tom Williams know how to spot a good opportunity. safarinow was one of the best of them.

Digital survivor

OutplayOnce the grand design was in place, signing clients up was a cinch. Small operators saw the advantage of listing with a business that would promote them for a straight-up commission and handle all the payments. ‘We quickly signed up 200 hotels, mostly smaller ones,’ says Matthew.

The company was on the brink of connecting with a huge market. It had a website and a list of accommodation on offer, so the next step was getting it out there to the 1.8-million Internet users online in 1999. This was no problem for Matthew and he did it using very little money – certainly none on advertising. ‘We were just very, very good at SEO*,’ he shrugs casually. From the start they built search optimisation into the system so the site is packed with those items loved by search engines and users: endorsements, user-generated content, customer and partner reviews and sky-high visitor numbers. The company was also very active in building a strong affiliate programme with larger industry players like 24.com (the precursor to MWEB) and iafrica.com. It was a clever strategy that facilitated much of SafariNow’s growth.

use the mOmentumThe launch of kulula.com in 2001 broke major ecommerce ground in the local market. For many South Africans an airline ticket was their first nervous online purchase and so the floodgates opened. Airline joint CEO Gidon Novick says of that time, ‘As with any new concept there were some sceptics who said it would not work. People won’t want to use their credit card details on the Internet and you can’t market an airline in such a fun way – it’s a serious business – they said.’ How wrong those sceptics were. The power of the Internet in marketing and business was just being revealed.

On the sidelines of SA’s ecommerce boom, SafariNow was steadily growing to dominate the travel booking market. With Matthew and Tom forming the core of the business and with the help of capital injections from investors, SafariNow flourished.

the tribe has spOkenFrom its humble beginnings in Vredehoek the company’s current home is a former restaurant in Scarborough where around 65 staff work, eat, play table tennis and watch the surf. The website now represents more than 11 500 local establishments ranging from houseboats to hotels. They’re expanding up southern Africa,

actively recruiting more establishments. And the team works continuously on refining their booking and customer feedback system. ‘It would be pretty hard for any market entrant right now to catch up with us,’ says Matthew with his characteristically economical style. ‘We’ve covered almost every base in this market and we have the broad reach of many small businesses who have been with us for years.’

That’s how you take home the prize money.

Surf leSSonS for buSineSS

1You improve by practising with people who are better than you.Swart isn’t a programmer, web

designer or content specialist, but he hired the best ones. Recruit the best people – it’s a sure way to help you build value in your business.

2 Take a long-term view. You’ll only know if your business is solid after about 1 000 days, and making it

valuable will probably take longer. There are exceptions, but generally building an Internet-based business is an expensive, slow-moving process.

3 Even the best wind can blow out.SEO* may not be around forever. Even if on a winning wicket, you need to

keep innovating and seeking new avenues to open up the market, expand your base and diversify. Mobi might be hot right now but ask yourself, what are the next-generation ways in which people will do business?

You can check out the website and make bookings at www.safarinow.com or learn more about Matthew Swart at www.beachbreaks.co.za.

Over R2 billion was spent online in SA in 2010.

The figure was expected to reach R2.8 billion in 2011.

There are roughly 5.3 million Internet users in SA.

52% of Internet users are between the ages of 25 and 45.

25% of Internet users are under 25 years of age.

920 000 Internet users made online purchases (17 %).

30 000 online shoppers are over 65.

entrepreneur

SOuTh AfrIcAnS OnlIne

51 % of South Africans with Internet access are shopping online with 75 % of these having done so in the past three months.

*seO (search engine optimisation)is a way to get Google to index your pages. the better your search phrases, the more hits you’ll get.

14 Telkom 365 Issue 04 summer 2011/2

Grab a GetawayYou could be the lucky Telkom Pinnacle customer to win a weekend away for two at one of these famed establishments:uMlani BushcaMp* Valued at R11 980, this premier prize includes meals, drinks, bush walks and game drives. Visit www.safarinow.com/go/umlaniBuffelsdrift GaMe lOdGe*Valued at R3 000, your stay at this award-winning destination includes a bush safari experience and excludes meals. Visit www.safarinow.com/go/BuffelsdriftLodge craWfOrds Beach lOdGe*Valued at R3 520, inclusive of dinner, bed and breakfast in a deluxe suite. Visit www.safarinow.com/go/CrawfordsBeachLodgefalaZa GaMe parK and spa*Valued at R3 000, inclusive of dinner, bed and breakfast. Visit www.safarinow.com/go/falaza.

To enter, email your details to telkom365@newmediapub.co.za. Put the name of the getaway you’d like to win in the subject line. *Prizes exclude transport and are valid until 30 November 2012.

(From The Online Retail in SA 2011 report published by World Wide Worx)