Review: Avo App Nedbank

Did you know that in South Africa about 1kg of avocados is consumed per person per year? Whether you top your toast with avocado at breakfast, serve it as a healthy dip for raw vegetables as a snack, or chop it into a summer salad for a delicious dinner, the avocado is without a doubt one of nature’s most luxurious foods: rich and creamy, and simple – yet satisfying.

Naturally, when you see an advert in your social feed related to this luxurious food, you pay attention. And that is how I got to reading about the Avo App by Nedbank. Described as a ‘Super App’ bringing customers and businesses together, the story reads that the app accurately matches a customer’s lifestyle needs to product and service offerings through powerful artificial intelligence, safe and secure payments, and bank-grade security.

It sounded intriguing, so I shared the link with the MoneyShop team, and we decided to do a review of this ‘Super App’. Especially in the times we are living in now, online shopping and other conveniences have become a day-to-day conversation and we’re constantly looking for new ways to make our lives a bit easier. The ordering groceries part of the app was especially appealing, so I decided to test that out as a first step.

Nedbank Avo allocates a connoisseur to your order, this is the guy or gal who does the actual shopping part, and they communicate with you around replacements when something isn’t available.

I like and use various apps often and I think of myself as quite tech savvy. But my experience with using the Avo App was not that simple.

This was my experience:

Downloading the app – easy

Functionality and usability of the app and setting up your Avo Wallet – not so easy. I think the app functionality in general is not where they want it to be yet. Adding items to your cart and going in and out of the suppliers linked on this app is just not sleek enough (especially for a SUPER app, which they claim to be).

Ordering, paying and delivery – After an hour (almost two) of just figuring out the set up and the ordering, I eventually got to the payment part. I got an email from OneCart (Nedbank partners with OneCart on this) indicating that I could track my order, but when I clicked on the link, it didn’t work. You can only choose from a limited bouquet of providers at the moment, which will probably change as the app grows (the partners currently are Woolworths, Pick ‘n Pay, DisChem and Clicks).

The actual shopping part – The first WhatsApp came through saying ‘no sparkling water available’, and this then went on for about six messages, with various items not being available at the store. If you are busy at work for example, this isn’t the best experience, as it is a back and forth conversation around unavailable items and what it needs to be substituted with. You earn Avo Points back when they don’t have what you want, so you can use this on your next purchase.

Overall, it was a bit of a mission. Looking back, putting on my mask and going to the shop would have meant that I’d probably get more of the items I actually wanted, and I could have made more accurate decisions in regard to substitutes, plus it would have taken less of my time. Perhaps as the app’s artificial intelligence bots get to know my activity better, it will it be easier, but in general, this was not a great experience. One positive is that I could order champagne to be delivered from Woolworths, which was a bit of a consolation after all that effort to get one bag of groceries delivered.

Till next time – stay healthy, stay fit, stay wealthy.