Why businesses cannot afford to shout 'Gena Mama' anymore

SOUTH African businesses are still using outdated customer acquisition methods equivalent to shouting "Gena Mama" in the street, while competitors leverage AI automation to find and convert customers 24/7. Learn how local businesses have transformed their operations and multiplied revenue through AI-powered systems - and how you can too writes SHAMZ KOYA.

IF YOU grew up in South Africa, you remember: shop assistants standing outside calling to passersby - "Gena mama! Five rand special!" - pulling foot traffic through the door.

It worked. Simple. Direct. Human. That was customer acquisition in the brick-and-mortar era.

Fast forward to 2026. Most business owners still do the equivalent - posting sporadically on social media, hoping someone sees it.

But the streets are infinite now. Billions scrolling past. Your voice gets lost.

Businesses winning today aren't shouting. They Are using AI to find people who need what they sell, profile them, understand behaviour, and show up precisely where they are looking - before they even know they're looking.

This is the evolution from "Gena Mama" to AI automation. If you're not making this shift, you're invisible.

The old way is broken 

Most businesses post when they remember - twice a week, maybe once a month. Random pictures. Generic captions. "Check out our new product!"

Then they wait and hope someone sees it.

Meanwhile, they are working 60 to 70 hour weeks, manually responding to inquiries, forgetting to follow up, losing customers because they took a day to reply instead of minutes.

A medical practice in Johannesburg had posted only a handful of times in six months. When people Googled their services, they were buried on page six while competitors ranked number one. They were losing significant monthly revenue to competitors with better systems.

An e-commerce owner spent hours nightly responding to messages manually, stuck at the same revenue level while competitors with AI-powered systems grew effortlessly.

How AI finds your customers for you 

Traditional approach: Post on Instagram. Maybe 500 see it. Maybe 10 engage. Maybe one becomes a customer.

AI-powered approach: The system identifies your ideal customer - age, location, income, interests, online behaviour, pain points. It finds them on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Google. Shows them content designed to solve their problem.

Tracks their behaviour: Did they click? Visit your website? Check pricing?

When they show interest, AI doesn't wait. It automatically sends personalized messages, books calendars, adds them to email sequences, sends reminders, follows up if they do not show.

All while you are sleeping.

A potential customer fills a form in the middle of the night. Within minutes: personalized SMS, automated response, booked consultation. By morning, they're ready. This is what competitors are doing now.

The transformation is measurable

The results are concrete. A Johannesburg medical practice implemented AI-powered lead capture and automated booking. Within six months: page six to page one on Google, new patient bookings increased over 200%, revenue doubled.

A Durban e-commerce store built email automation and abandoned cart recovery. Revenue increased over 370%. The owner cut work hours in half.

A Cape Town consulting firm built their AI-powered LinkedIn system. Result: millions in new revenue in twelve months, sales cycle cut by two-thirds.

The difference wasn't luck. It was systems.

The streets have changed

The digital "streets" are controlled by algorithms. Facebook decides who sees posts. Google decides who finds websites. LinkedIn decides whose content gets visibility.

You need to understand algorithms, have data on your ideal customer, know where they spend time online, what problems keep them awake, what content makes them stop scrolling.

Then you need systems that automatically put the right message in front of the right person at the right time.

AI automation handles the repetitive work drowning you, so you focus on what requires your expertise: delivering service, building relationships, making strategic decisions.

Where you start 

Start with an honest audit:

Google Visibility: When someone searches for your services in your city, are you on page one?

Social Media: Are you posting 3-4 times weekly with strategic content? Or randomly when you remember?

Lead Capture: Can your business capture leads and respond within minutes, 24/7?

Automation: Do you have email sequences nurturing leads automatically?

Tracking: Can you tell exactly which marketing brings customers and which wastes money?

If you answered "no" to most of these, you're still shouting "Gena mama" while competitors use AI to find, profile, and convert customers automatically.

The good news? You don't need to become a tech expert. You need one decision: keep the old way, or build systems that work while you sleep.

The bottom line 

The "Gena mama" approach worked when streets were physical and customers walked past your door. Today, streets are digital, infinite, and crowded.

You can keep shouting and hoping. Or build systems that find your ideal customer, get in their face with the right message at the right time, and convert them while you sleep.

AI automation isn't the future—it's the present. The only question: how much longer can you afford to stand outside shouting while competitors let AI do the calling?

The streets have changed. Your strategy must change with them.

Koya is the founder and CEO of Social Zip Digital Marketing Agency, Durban

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media. 

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