- The 2026 Township CX Report introduces the “cost of coping” – the hidden financial and practical burden township households carry because of unreliable services.
- Mongezi Mtati says marketers need to rethink the customer journey because purchasing decisions are shaped before consumers reach the shelf.
- Township consumers expect brands to deliver utility, not just visibility, by saving them time, money, transport costs or data.
- Although 66% of township residents are online throughout the day, data affordability means brands need low-friction, mobile-first experiences.
- Black Friday campaigns should focus on relevance, availability and reducing everyday friction rather than simply offering bigger discounts.
The 2026 Township CX Report offers one of the clearest signals yet that marketers need to rethink how they engage township consumers. Rogerwilco senior brand strategist Mongezi Mtati says the customer journey doesn’t begin at the shelf or on an app – it begins at home, where households are navigating the hidden “cost of coping”.
Rogerwilco launched the 2026 Township Customer Experience Report, produced in partnership with Field & Insights Africa, during a webinar on Tuesday, with speakers from Rogerwilco, MoyaApp, Vuleka and the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group.
Township consumers are not simply looking for cheaper products or bigger promotions. They are making complex trade-offs every day around unreliable electricity, water outages, transport costs and expensive data – and those realities are reshaping how they shop, save and engage with brands.
That’s one of the strongest messages from the 2026 Township CX Report, which surveyed 1 600 township residents across South Africa. The report introduces the concept of the “cost of coping” – the hidden financial, emotional and practical costs households absorb just to keep daily life functioning.
For marketers and advertisers, the report argues that customer experience starts long before consumers encounter a brand.
“The big picture is that economic pressure in township households cannot be understood through income and inflation alone,” says Mongezi Mtati, senior brand strategist at Rogerwilco and lead author of the report. “There is another layer of cost that is much harder to see.”
The customer journey starts at home
The report found that 79% of respondents experience electricity outages at least once a month, while 55% deal with monthly water interruptions. Those service failures directly influence what people buy, where they shop and how often they shop.
Mtati says marketers need to rethink where the customer journey begins. “Someone arriving at a supermarket may already have decided they cannot risk buying too many refrigerated products because their electricity is unreliable. They may have chosen a store because it is closer and saves them another taxi fare. They may be waiting for a bundle or promotion because they need to make their budget stretch further across the month.”
He believes brands need to understand the decisions consumers make before they reach the shelf. As he says, “Being in someone’s consideration set isn’t only about awareness. It is also about how well you understand and respond to the realities of the community you serve.”
‘Useful is the new visible’
One of the report’s biggest challenges to advertisers is its argument that utility now matters as much as visibility.
Township consumers are surrounded by advertising – from billboards and taxi-rank activations to retail promotions and digital campaigns – but only one in five respondents believes brands help them cope with everyday challenges.
Mtati says awareness campaigns still have a role, but they need to deliver something tangible. “Useful is the new visible means asking what the campaign gives back. Does it help someone find a better deal? Does it save them data, time or transport money? Does it provide useful connectivity or information?”
He adds, “Visibility may get you noticed, but usefulness gives people a reason to remember you, trust you and ultimately choose you.”
Data is valuable – earn it
The report also paints a more nuanced picture of South Africa’s digital divide. While 66% of township residents say they are online throughout the day, 37% say data costs regularly prevent them from engaging with brands.
Mtati says brands should stop assuming connectivity equals unlimited engagement. “Access and affordability are two different things.”
He says every digital interaction should justify the data it consumes. “If someone is looking for bread on a retailer’s app, they shouldn’t have to navigate through multiple screens and large amounts of content to find it.”
The report found that WhatsApp promotions and simple, low-data messages are among the digital experiences consumers value most because they minimise friction while delivering useful information.
AI is entering the township customer journey
Artificial intelligence is already influencing product discovery, particularly among younger consumers.
The report found that 28% of respondents have used AI tools such as ChatGPT to discover new products or brands, but trust remains low.
Mtati says marketers should see that as cautious experimentation rather than rejection. “AI still has to prove its utility. People are asking: is the information reliable? Does this actually make my life easier? Is the value I get from it worth the data it consumes?” He says AI, like any other digital experience, will ultimately be judged on usefulness and trust.
Stop stereotyping township consumers
Another key takeaway is that marketers need to abandon the idea of a single “township consumer”.
The research shows people moving fluidly between formal retail, spaza shops, WhatsApp communities, supermarket apps and online shopping — sometimes during the same purchase journey. It also found that 34% of respondents belong to stokvels while 50% gambled in the previous year, with 55% of stokvel members also gambling.
Mtati says those overlaps challenge simplistic segmentation. “People can belong to stokvels and gamble. They can shop at a spaza and order online. They can be highly connected digitally while still being extremely conscious of the cost of data.”
He says the industry’s starting point should be curiosity, not assumption.
Black Friday: Don’t just be louder
Heading into Black Friday and the festive season, Mtati says brands should focus less on shouting about discounts and more on reducing friction.
The report found that affordability influences brand choice for 54% of respondents, closely followed by quality at 53%. It also found that 44% changed stores because prices became too high, while 41% switched for better promotions and 41% chose stores closer to home or work.
“The festive-season opportunity isn’t simply about being cheaper or louder. It’s about understanding the combination of price, quality, proximity, availability and household reality behind the purchase.”
His advice to marketers is simple. “If brands act on one insight before Black Friday and the festive season, it should be to find ways to reduce the cost of coping.”
That could mean better communication around stock availability, smaller pack sizes, more useful bundles, lower-data digital experiences or products designed around the realities of township households.
“Township consumers are already adapting to uncertainty,” Mtati says. “The opportunity for brands is to adapt with them and find practical ways to make everyday life a little easier. That’s how you build relevance beyond a single campaign or shopping season.”
