Sustainable shopping with ReSpek Nature and geewiz.co.za
South African shoppers now have the opportunity to shop more sustainably through carbon off-setter ReSpek Nature and online retailer geewiz.co.za.
Shoppers will be shown a message at checkout asking if they would like to offset the carbon footprint of their shopping basket by donating R10 to ReSpek Nature’s spekboom planting programme in the Karoo.
Shoppers who respond positively will receive an electronic certificate confirming that they “planted” a spekboom in the Karoo, along with the GPS coordinates of where it was planted on their behalf.
According to the Climate Collaborative (www.climatecollaborative.com), on average, packaging accounts for about 5% of the energy used in the life cycle of a food product making it a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions.
And for some products – not only food – the packaging used has an even bigger impact on climate change than the fuel used to ship it to market.
Platform: Any device with an up-to-date Internet browser.
Stockists: Log on to geewiz.co.za and get shopping.
Expect to pay: The cost of the purchase, delivery fees and an additional R10 to play your part in preserving the environment.
Read more on the next page about an app to compare connectivity providers in your area, d6 School new listing for trusted services, MFC verified cars on Gumtree, Payment24’s fleet management service, and Netcare VirtualCare.
Pindrop
Pindrop is a South African telecoms solutions provider that uses geo-location technology to allow customers to compare connectivity providers.
“Due to COVID-19 a lot of organisations required and still require some of their staff to be home-based, with no certainty of the connectivity of the employee’s homes” says Pindrop commercial product manager Corrie Lotter. “While organisations were willing to subsidise connectivity for staff, they needed to understand the connectivity available.”
Companies can now interrogate the Pindrop system and report on the connectivity options available to them at their locations, allowing their employees to choose the best suited connectivity option.
Platform: An app is not needed. A company signs up for the service, inputs the employee’s address details and is shown a range of Interest connectivity options that work best in the area.
Stockists: Visit Pindrop here registration details.
Expect to pay: A free service for businesses to use.
Read more on the next page about d6 School new listing for trusted services, MFC verified cars on Gumtree, Payment24’s fleet management service, and Netcare VirtualCare.
d6 School Branding Sponsor
In an attempt to help raise money for schools, d6 has launched its School Branding Sponsor local listings platform. The idea behind the service is to allow school families to find local services offered by trusted people they know in their school or neighbourhood communities.
The local listings platform includes child specific services such as aftercare and child-care facilities, clothing and sports supplies, therapists, leisure and play offerings, and services for parents such as electricians, plumbers, vehicle repairs and personal care. Schools get a 50% share on the advertising revenue generated by local listings.
“Schools are at the heart of communities – with thousands of people in every school community,” says Willem Kitshoff, CEO of d6. “The d6 advertising platform allows businesses which surround schools to advertise and reach school families directly.”
Platform: Any device with an up-to-date browser
Stockists: Schools can get in touch with d6 to setup a listing platform here
Expect to pay: Prices vary, depending on advertisers and the number of parents signed up on the platform. A basic pricing structure can be found here.
Read more on the next page about MFC verified cars on Gumtree, Payment24’s fleet management service, and Netcare VirtualCare.
Verified by MFC on Gumtree
With a spike in online shopping scams, Gumtree has partnered with MFC, Nedbank’s vehicle finance division, to offer consumers additional protection when buying or selling vehicles on its platform. This offering is aimed at individuals interested in buying or selling privately owned vehicles instead of using more traditional channels like motor dealerships.
Through a digital process, users can have their vehicles verified by MFC and attach a “Verified by MFC” badge on the advert.
“With people now relying more on online shopping, opportunists have emerged seeking to prey on unsuspecting individuals through a variety of scams locally and abroad,” says Douw Leadley, head of Sales at MFC.
For instance, in a buyer scam a false proof of payment is generated and sent to a seller, usually for high-value goods such as laptops, gaming consoles and even vehicles. In seller scams, substandard or counterfeit goods are delivered for the full price, and this is detected only after conclusion of the deal.
To get the Verified by MFC badge, sellers must input specified information on Gumtree, which then sends the information to MFC to conduct the following checks:
- Police checks – to indicate if a vehicle has not been stolen or wanted.
- Accident checks – to assist in verifying if the car has been in an accident.
- Finance checks – to show that the car is under finance and the finance is in good standing.
Once the vehicle has passed all these checks, the badge is added to the advert, giving potential buyers assurance that both the vehicle and seller are legitimate.
Platform: Any device with an up-to-date browser.
Stockists: Visit Gumtree here to list a car for sale. Once listed input the specific information to get the ‘Verified by MFC’ badge.
Expect to pay: Listings are for free, however, sellers will have to pay Gumtree a success fee once a sale has gone through. Sellers will also have to pay a fee to MFC to run the background checks.
Read more on the next page about Payment24’s fleet management service, and Netcare VirtualCare.
Payment24 fleet management service
Mastercard has partnered with Payment24 to offer a payment solution that will help fleet management companies streamline payments and prevent fraud.
Payment24’s platform uses Mastercard’s payment technology, enabling drivers to make fuel payments anywhere Mastercard is accepted, without requiring additional approvals at the pump.
This will allow commercial fleet management companies to have more control and visibility into a driver’s spend, with the option to add purchasing controls to eliminate fraud. For instance, a company could opt to enable the driver to pay digitally for border post charges or for accommodation and meals, removing the need for unsafe cash advances.
The fuel solution is flexible and adaptable to customer needs, with various payment mechanisms available including fleet cards, tokenised tags, e-wallets and vouchers that can be allocated to a driver or a vehicle. Each transaction is protected by Mastercard’s multiple security layers, and fraud and dispute processes.
Platform: Virtual Mastercards are loaded onto a driver’s Android or iOS mobile with fleet managers being able to remotely manage how much is spent.
Expect to pay: Prices are available once a fleet manager has registered and a plan chosen.
Stockists: Visit Payment24 here for registration details.
Read more on the next page about Netcare VirtualCare.
Netcare VirtualCare
Medicross and Netcare recently launched the VirtualCare telehealth platform, designed to be a secure service for virtual doctor consultations. It keeps social distancing to a maximum by enabling patients and doctors to maintain contact without physical interaction. Virtual doctor consultations can take the form of either video consultations via mobile devices or computers, or telephone consultations via a mobile phone or landline.
Medicross kicked off the campaign by the implementation of virtual consultations within the Netcare Group, offering patients and doctors across 50 Medicross centres and increased choice for interacting.
Travis Dewing, chief information officer of Netcare, says that virtual doctor consultations are provided through the secure Netcare VirtualCare platform, with all data encrypted to protect the patient’s privacy and confidential information.
Using the platform does not require an app and it also provides a dial-in function for individuals who do not have Internet connectivity.
How it works
Appointments for virtual consultations with Medicross doctors can be made in the same way as traditional appointments, either through the online booking system available on the Medicross website, or by phoning the medical practice.
Patients receive confirmation of their appointment via email and SMS, as well as a reminder 15 minutes before the appointment. They are then provided with a link to access their virtual consultation. The appointment and link are similarly confirmed in the doctor’s calendar.
Platform: Any device with an up-to-date Internet browser
Stockists: An appointment can be made by clicking here or dial 0860 555 565
Expect to pay: The booking service is for free but doctor’s fees still apply.