Business Platform
Grupo Monge
To provide fast and secure financing solutions to more customers
Brand
WhatsApp Business Solution Provider
Grupo Monge builds a unique and powerful automated channel over WhatsApp that allows more customers to apply for lines of credit, cash withdrawals, and make payments all through WhatsApp from wherever they are.
75%
of all cash withdrawals come from automated processes through WhatsApp
50%
of customers now make payments through channel on WhatsApp
70%
of all WhatsApp transactions occur without connecting with a live agent
300%
growth in users on the WhatsApp channel since adding automated processes
*All results are self-reported and not identifiably repeatable. Generally expected individual results will differ.
Their Story
Bringing high-value products home
Starting out as a family-owned retailer of household furnishings, appliances, and electronics – as well as financing solutions for all customers to acquire different products and services in Costa Rica – Grupo Monge has expanded to Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador.
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Providing finance options to more customers
Grupo Monge wanted to make services and products more convenient and affordable to customers who shop and apply for credit. To create a better experience for customers looking to finance purchases, the company developed a true omnichannel and innovative platform that could streamline the credit application process.
Their Solution
An automated, streamlined channel
Customers can easily access their MongePay accounts within WhatsApp
For decades, families across Costa Rica have turned to Grupo Monge for the furnishings, appliances, and electronics they rely on daily for their homes. Putting the customer’s experience first is a priority for the company. Grupo Monge offers lines of credit to customers to make high-quality, durable products more accessible to people.
Grupo Monge customers who live in remote areas or outside the main cities might be limited in their ability to easily apply for credit plans, shop for products, and potentially pay off their purchase without having to travel in person to stores. Even when making the trip to find the right flatscreen TV, customers would still have to wait to complete the qualification process that determined potential credit extension. Moreover, paying their monthly balance often required customers to make additional trips back to Monge stores.
To reach customers at a broader scale and through accessible channels, Grupo Monge looked for a faster, more convenient way to enable customers to shop and pay for products – even before the global pandemic halted in-person shopping. Grupo Monge observed that WhatsApp was widely adopted throughout Costa Rica, with customers already conducting a variety of transactions over chat. Monge teamed up with WhatsApp Business Solution Provider Yalo and its IT services subsidiary Yalutec, to develop a powerful automated communication channel over WhatsApp Business Platform.
When customers connect to Grupo Monge over WhatsApp, they’re greeted with menu options allowing them to shop, connect with a live agent, apply to be pre-approved for a line of credit, check current credit balances, or make payments on existing balances. From the convenience of their device, no matter where they are, customers can find a new phone or refrigerator and obtain financing for it – all within WhatsApp.
“We’re proud to be one of the first companies in Costa Rica to offer customers a more streamlined shopping experience completely through WhatsApp. Customer enthusiasm for this convenient omnichannel solution has driven a roughly 300 percent growth in users of our WhatsApp channel,” says Jean Pierre Quesada, VP CIO CDTO, Grupo Monge. “The versatility of WhatsApp enables us to automate most processes, with 70 percent of all customer transactions completed without involving an agent.”
“We’re proud to be one of the first companies in Costa Rica to offer customers a more streamlined shopping experience completely through WhatsApp. Customer enthusiasm for this convenient omnichannel solution has driven a roughly 300 percent growth in users of our WhatsApp channel. The versatility of WhatsApp enables us to automate most processes, with 70 percent of all customer transactions completed without involving an agent.”
Jean Pierre Quesada
VP CIO CDTO, Grupo Monge
The efficiency of financing through WhatsApp is possible thanks to a relationship between Grupo Monge and a leading bank in Costa Rica. Through sophisticated integrations between the bank’s systems and WhatsApp, customers can enter their national IDs, along with other information such as email addresses and phone number to verify their identity. Their information is linked to data from the bank to calculate a credit score, and within minutes, customers will receive a chat with their amount of credit. From there, customers can transfer the funds they need to complete their purchase directly into their bank accounts.
“When Grupo Monge shared this solution with the leading bank, it ensured that each of the more than 900,000 WhatsApp interactions happening from 160,000 customers is protected by the bank’s full security protocols,” says José Ramón Araguainamo, Founder and CCO, Yalutec.
In addition to its flagship stores, Grupo Monge also operates a variety of convenience stores and other outlets. Able to securely link with customers’ bank accounts, the company has revitalized its Monge Pay program, which functions as store credit, to allow customers to make payments across all affiliates. Using WhatsApp, customers can request cash withdrawals of any size from their bank accounts to Monge Pay.
“Since we’ve offered customers the ease of completing purchases over one channel, we’ve seen 50 percent of our shoppers make payments through WhatsApp. Now, 75 percent of all cash withdrawals come through automated processes in WhatsApp, a dramatic increase compared to the 14 percent rate that happens in-person,” says Quesada. “Making it easier to send and receive funds through WhatsApp has driven a 25 percent increase in customer credit payments.”
Excited by the customer response, Grupo Monge is looking to broaden its payment options through WhatsApp, including more Monge Pay options. There are plans to let customers take out Grupo Monge credit independent of making purchases.
“With WhatsApp as the epicenter of our unique cash withdrawals and payment processes, we’re transforming the experiences we can offer our customers,” says Quesada.
Monge’s payment integration allows customers to make secure monthly payments within WhatsApp
Their Results
Grupo Monge builds a unique communications channel that enables customers to apply for lines of credit, cash withdrawals, and make payments through WhatsApp – driving higher engagement while leading to increases in disbursements and payments.
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More payments, higher growth
- 75% of all cash withdrawals come from automated processes through WhatsApp
- 50% of customers now make payments through channel on WhatsApp
- 70% of all WhatsApp transactions occur without moving to live agent
- 300% growth in users on the WhatsApp channel since adding automated processes
- 160k monthly active users
*All results are self-reported and not identifiably repeatable. Generally expected individual results will differ.
“Since we’ve offered customers the ease of completing purchases over one channel, we’ve seen 50 percent of our shoppers make payments through WhatsApp. Now, 75 percent of all cash withdrawals come through automated processes in WhatsApp, a dramatic increase compared to the 14 percent rate that happens in-person. Making it easier to send and receive funds through WhatsApp has driven a 25 percent increase in customer credit payments.”
Jean Pierre Quesada
VP CIO CDTO, Grupo Monge
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