If Start-ups are the key to growth for the NZ Economy, then ANZ should get a pat on the back for their ANZ Biz Start-Up series.
I spoke at two events recently in Hamilton and Auckland. The Hamilton event had about 60 attendees and Auckland would have been 120. The audience was everything from just about to start a new business to 1 or 2 years into the journey. They are the bravest of us all, the risk takers, the most passionate ones and experts in the areas of knowledge that are taking on the world.
The events had a focus on digital needs for small businesses. It is not a surprise that although kiwi’s are big users of smartphones, apps, social media and all things digital in our day to day lives, it does not mean we know what digital stuff is most important for driving small business growth.
A crowd out of Tauranga called Quentosity did a great job talking about the need for Digital Marketing and with 74% of us regularly searching online and 60% buying products and services online (Hubspot 2018), small business need a plan for digital marketing.
The Puttiapps session was focused on the digital building blocks for small business. First and foremost, showing the importance of websites to tell your story, becoming searchable, drive engagement and drive sales. Only 75% of small businesses have a website and scarily only 25% are mobile responsive (Gartner 2016). That is a big gap to where consumers are and how they want to interact. Therein lies the competitive opportunity for small businesses that get their website right, then move to social media, online sales and who knows, a mobile app.
These expert sessions were then followed by story telling from 3 small businesses that are on their way to great things.
What a wicked experience to present to and meet so many driven business owners chasing their dreams. It was rewarding to be able to share our knowledge so that they can get on the digital journey to deliver a modern offering to their customers.
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