Competitions and promotions
Code under the cap, enter on any phone. We validate the entry, cap entries per number, keep the audit trail and draw the winners, using the same validation approach we use for our WhatsApp competition bots.
02 · Engage › Customer messaging › USSD services
Reach every device in South Africa. No app, no data.
USSD is the *120# menu that works on any handset, on any network, with zero data. We design, build and run USSD services for competitions, loyalty, payments and self-service, and plug them into the systems you already have.
USSD at a glance
- Any phoneFrom a R200 feature phone to the latest flagship. If it makes calls, it runs USSD.
- 0 MBNo data bundle, no app store, no download. The session rides on the voice network.
- 4 networksOne short code on Vodacom, MTN, Cell C and Telkom through a licensed aggregator.
- *120#A code short enough to print on a bottle cap, a poster or read out on radio.
Where USSD earns its keep
Built for the moments a smartphone app can’t reach.
Six things our clients’ customers would rather do from a *120# code than from a download.
Loyalty and vouchers
Check points, redeem airtime or data, claim a voucher at the till. Rewards the customer can reach without a data bundle, on the phone they already have in their pocket.
Public sector self-service
Account balances, meter readings, fault reporting and service updates for residents who will never download a municipal app, and a queue at the counter that gets shorter.
Banking and fintech
Balance checks, mini-statements, airtime top-ups and transfers. The channel every South African bank already trusts, built to the compliance standard your auditors expect.
Surveys, polls and registrations
Three questions, no data, two minutes. Capture an answer, a vote or a sign-up from the people web surveys and app push notifications never reach.
Lead capture and callbacks
Dial, pick a product, get a call back. Turn a radio ad, a taxi-rank poster or a pamphlet into a qualified lead on the spot, with the number already captured.
No app, no data, every phone. Tell us the campaign or the service and we will spec the menu.
Talk to us about USSDHow it works
Four steps, one session.
A USSD session is a quick conversation between the handset and your application, carried by the network.
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Dial
The customer dials your code, for example
*120*1234#. The network opens a session and hands it to your application through the aggregator. -
Menu
Your application replies with a screen: a few lines of text and numbered options. The customer answers with a digit or a short piece of text.
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Session
Every reply is a round trip to your system: look up an account, validate a code, record a vote, reserve a voucher. Sessions are short-lived and time out if the customer stops.
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Result
The last screen closes the session. We follow up with an SMS confirmation, a WhatsApp message or a call back, whichever the customer actually has.
The honest constraints
USSD is powerful because it is simple, and simple comes with rules. We design around every one of them, and our free simulator checks them for you.
- 182 characters per screen, numbered options included. Every word has to earn its place.
- Sessions time out, typically between 30 seconds and 3 minutes depending on the network. Flows must be short.
- Text and digits only. No images, no links, no buttons, no emoji that every handset will render.
- Shallow menus work best. Three levels and nine options or fewer per screen keeps customers from getting lost.
- No memory between sessions unless you build it. We do, so a customer can pick up where they left off.
- Someone pays per session. Standard rate to the customer, or reverse-billed to you. Decide before you print the code.
What you get
From the short code to the reports.
One partner for the whole service, so you never have to referee between an aggregator, a developer and a designer.
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Short code
A shared code such as *120*1234*56# to launch fast, or a dedicated code of your own when the brand has to carry it.
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Aggregator setup
Connection across Vodacom, MTN, Cell C and Telkom through a licensed USSD aggregator. We handle the applications, the testing and the go-live.
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Menu design
Scripts written for 182 characters and a two-minute attention span, in the languages your customers speak. Tested on real handsets, not just the simulator.
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Backend integration
Hooks into your CRM, loyalty engine, payment gateway or competition rules. The same backend that already answers on your website and WhatsApp.
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SMS and WhatsApp follow-up
Confirmations, one-time PINs, reminders and winner notifications on the channel the customer actually has.
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Reporting
Sessions, drop-off per screen, entries per region, redemptions by store. A live dashboard, not a monthly PDF.
Short code, menus and reports. Live in weeks, not quarters.
Get a quoteQuestions we get asked
Before you dial.
Who pays for the session?
By default the customer pays a standard USSD rate per session, the same way they pay to check airtime. Reverse billing, where the session is free to the customer and billed to you, is available on the major networks and is the norm for competitions and public-sector services. We will recommend one based on who your customers are and what you are asking them to do.
Shared or dedicated short code?
A shared code is quicker and cheaper to launch; your service lives under a prefix, for example *120*1234*7#. A dedicated code is shorter and easier to put on a billboard, and takes longer and costs more to provision. Most clients start shared and move to a dedicated code once the service has proven itself.
How long does it take to launch?
A simple campaign menu can be live in a few weeks once the aggregator has approved the code. Services that touch bank accounts or payments take longer because of the compliance work on both sides. We will give you a dated plan before you commit.
Does it work on smartphones too?
Yes. USSD works on every GSM phone, including iPhones and Android. Smartphone users can also get the WhatsApp path; the USSD path is for everyone else, and for every smartphone owner whose data has run out.
Can we reuse what we already have?
Yes. If you already have a competition engine, a loyalty platform or a CRM, we connect the USSD service to it rather than rebuilding it. If you do not, we build one that will also serve your WhatsApp and web channels.
What about POPIA?
The channel collects only what you ask for. We design the opt-in screens, store the minimum, document the processing and give you the records you need under the Protection of Personal Information Act.
One backend, two front doors
WhatsApp for the smartphone. USSD for every other phone.
The same competition rules, loyalty balance or booking engine should answer on WhatsApp, on a *120# code and on your website. We build it once and expose it on all three, so a customer who starts on a feature phone and finishes on WhatsApp is still one customer in your data.
Got a code in mind?
Tell us the campaign or the service.
We will come back with a menu script, a short-code recommendation and a cost, usually within a week. Or prototype the menu yourself first and send us the spec.
We already build for FMCG brands, banks, municipalities and traffic management. See who we work with.