eSIM could be the key to diversifying your services
There are almost two million applications available on Apple’s App Store, offering a convenient avenue to better serve customers, deliver a personalized experience and enable a real-time company-consumer connection. But what if your app could offer another service, one that goes beyond your bread-and-butter offering and generates an additional revenue stream? Here, Hamish White, CEO of embedded connectivity provider Mobilise, explains how any business could diversify and offer telecommunications services.
In the bustling app marketplace, whether it’s Apple’s App Store or Google Play, standing out requires more than just delivering core functionalities. Apps need to evolve, not only to meet user demands but also to explore new ways of distinguishing themselves from the competition. With the advent of eSIM technology, businesses have a unique chance to access the telecommunications space, transforming their app into a service hub.
Diversifying with eSIM
Imagine your app, already beloved by customers for its core services, now offering seamless global connectivity. Whether it’s a banking app providing secure, always-on connections for travelling customers or a travel app ensuring users stay connected abroad without exorbitant roaming charges.
eSIM, or embedded SIM, can make that possible. Unlike traditional SIM cards, eSIMs are reprogrammable and embedded directly into devices. Rather than a user needing to physically insert a SIM card into their device to access mobile services, they can download and activate an eSIM directly from their device via an internet connection. Some eSIMs require a QR code in order to activate them, while others can be installed directly through the app that provides them.
Many consumers are already familiar with the technology due to its increasing adoption across mobile networks and the growing availability of eSIM-enabled mobile devices.
Branching out with telecommunications
Let’s imagine what this could look like. If you’ve flown on a budget airline before, you’ll have likely purchased additional services such as seat allocation, in-flight meals, travel insurance, or car rental. With the addition of eSIM, another supplementary service can be added to the airline’s service offer.
Customers could purchase a data bundle via the airline’s app to use while travelling, in the same way they might add travel insurance when booking a flight. A similar methodology could be applied elsewhere to hotels or apps for booking accommodation. Here, guests could purchase a cost-effective, eSIM-enabled data package to use on the trip, no longer relying on unreliable Wi-Fi, risking the shock of a high roaming bill or worst of all, turning their data connection off altogether.
Making it happen
So, how can businesses make the leap into telecommunications? The answer is an embedded connectivity software development kit (SDK). A plug-and-play solution designed to be flexible and easy to integrate, providing all a business needs to pursue a connectivity offering via eSIM, Mobilise’s own eSIM SDK service takes away the heavy lifting.
Able to sit seamlessly on top of an existing app, the SDK enables in-app eSIM activation — with no QR code or physical SIM required — alongside reliable 4G and 5G global coverage and automatic APN settings to help your business become a telco, even without any prior telecommunications experience. At Mobilise, we believe eSIM SDK will be the key to helping businesses diversify their offers and, as a result, accelerate their customer experience delivery. In a matter of weeks, a business that was once far removed from the telecoms sector has access to a $275 billion industry, can enhance their service quality and, crucially, keep their customers on their app for longer. Launching a complimentary telecommunications service may not have been a key business agenda item, but the ease of working with eSIM changes the game for any brand. And in a crowded marketplace, offering a full-circle digital connectivity experience could be the key to standing out.
