Even though the SME industry is considering as the backbone of the Malaysian business environment, truthfully speaking SME is poor in digitalization. COVID 19 is not a new story to us but it already becomes trending news in Malaysia even worldwide, the drastic change in our life caused by COVID-10 had given a big impact on the business environment of the retail industry especially SME.
Due to the SOP rule imposed by the government which allow the certain essential industry to operate which is made harder to operate for the most the business especially SMEs in Malaysia. Besides that, most SMEs operate on a small scale and not focusing on digitalization which is become new trending now in Malaysia. This situation had lead SMEs in Malaysia to move into digitalization.
Why SMEs should digitalise?
For big size firms, the reason behind digitalization is clear, digitalization improves efficiency, competitiveness and economies of scale. Firms can utilize complex technology, for example, the automation of production processes and information-driven quality control processes to decrease expenses and increment revenues.
Notwithstanding, the case for digitalization among SMEs is not as clear. Digitalization is seen as unpredictable, expensive, and unnecessary. Nevertheless, digitalization doesn’t mean costly gear and absolute computerization. There are 5 spaces of digitalization that advantage firms, everything being equal.
- Connecting with clients
An important segment of a consumer is savvy digital native, and their numbers are rapidly expanding. Normally, organizations with an online presence have the high ground at engaging this key group. Yet, digitalisation goes beyond making a site, Facebook or Instagram profile for your organization. The sorcery of digitalisation accompanies the information it gathers. Digitalisation creates experiences to assist organizations with understanding their clients and check the effectiveness of marketing campaigns.
This is crucial for small business with average marketing budgets. Advertising in the online space is more reasonable than in a traditional paper or magazine. It is more targeted too. Businesses can choose the type of clients they might want to advertise the product to, based on age, location and preferences. The web information that is gathered from client interaction with your online resources can likewise convert into important data regarding who your clients are and what they like about your business.
- Advancing processes
When requested to name the top advantage of digitalisation, mostly said that they wished to expand the effectiveness of their business operations. Numerous available cloud services in the market can assist businesses with the work process, easily access information and consolidate key applications. These programmes were beforehand only accessible to the big organization that could afford the hardware and interior IT teams.
- Improving Product and Services
Digitalising could open an owner’s eyes to new income streams and enhancements to current products, given direct feedback from clients. This insight of knowledge could secure a business’s life span as it empowers you to meet changing customer expectation. By remaining sensitive to your customer’s requirements, you can increase consumer satisfaction with service enhancements.
With regards to changing product and service, it might be something as simple as utilizing accounting software to automatically generate a receipt. The next level could involve adding an e-commerce function to your business site or improving a product with an application.
- Empowering Employee
Employee time can be freed up from manual process so that they can channel more effort into work that can help develop the business. Employees and managers who don’t want to digitalisation may essentially require guidance. Without training and know-how, going digital may appear to be an exhausting task, particularly for older employees.
In conclusion, COVID-19 is a hot topic in Malaysia that affected everyone life in many ways. For the business industry, to be able to sustain itself in this tough current situation every SME in Malaysia should urge to start operating their business in digital. If your business is a start-up and looking for a fund for digitalization visit Shinjiru SME Digitalisation Grant Malaysia to claim a RM 5000 grant.
