I am often asked by people where they can they go to recharge their prepaid mobile plan? My instant reaction is to say go to the telecommunication provider's website. Seems obvious? However the web is not the preferred way for most people when it comes to recharging their prepaid mobile? Think about it a little more and it is actually very obvious.
Many people use prepaid as their mobile offer so they can control how much they spend on their phone. Many have had issues managing the large costs associated with contract plans. Going prepaid means they can use cash to buy a recharge, no credit cards and no contracts altogether means no worries.
To understand what people where doing a little more, I ran a poll for a few weeks in order to understand what was happening locally here in Australia. I would assume that the results would be similar internationally. These are the results:
How do you usually recharge your prepaid mobile plan?
Retail store 37% (37)Via your mobile phone 32% (32)Your Telco's website 22% (22)Other recharge website 3% (3)Other 6% (6)Going to a retail store to complete your recharge was by far the most popular option with 37%. As mentioned earlier, this is actually an obvious choice for many. What also makes retail so convenient is that almost every store gives you the option to buy a recharge through them. In fact many stores have their windows and walls plastered with prepaid mobile posters. It must be a great attraction tool for them, as well as an easy source of revenue.
Second was recharging directly from your mobile phone with 32%. For most of the month that the poll was being run, this option was sitting neck and neck with recharging online but in the last few weeks took off and achieved over 30%. I do wonder whether people understand the difference between buying a recharge over the counter and actually completing the recharging via their phone. However if you dig a little deeper many telecommunication providers actually offer a mobile communication through which you can recharge as well as manage your account.
In third position we have recharging via your Telecommunication providers website"with just 22%. This option I thought would end a lot higher. This and buying a recharge over the counter have been my own personal experience. I will admit that it wasn't that simple to complete. I can see why some people would want to avoid it. If you don't have a credit card or a PayPal account it can be tricky.
Whilst the final two options had pretty low scores, it does show that many people simply don't know they exist and might not be willing to give credit card details over the web. I personally haven't used either of them.
Over the coming months we will be seeing the launch of recharge vending machines. These can be placed on any street corner, train station and even shopping complex. With no manual labour and a margin of 10+% it could a great investment for the owner and a great convenience for everyday prepaid mobile phone users.
Recharging your prepaid mobile plan is likely to evolve enormously over the coming years.
Here are the options you have to recharge your Optus Mobile. The options cover online, SMS, App and via phone.
Compare all Optus prepaid mobile plans in Australia.
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