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Friday, February 10, 2006
Project provides SMEs tools to put up online stores
CEBU’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) will have better chances of capturing the global market once their online stores open.
The online stores are part of the SME.Net project, which aims to develop Internet-based infrastructure that will serve as a virtual office where companies can post information about their products and services.
The online stores will be launched next month, said Abraham Licayan Jr., project coordinator of the SME.Net project.
He said there are 19 SMEs have availed of the project.
The P2.5-million SME.Net project is funded and implemented by the Private Enterprise Accelerated Resource Linkages Phase 2 and Central Visayas Information Sharing Network (Cvisnet), in cooperation with the Department of Science and Technology 7.
The online stores will contain pictures and description of products as well as prices and contact information.
“From March last year when the website was launched until this month, we have 54,613 hits,” Licayan said.
Visitors
The website began attracting more visitors in June and July last year. August was the peak month with 16,000 hits, he said.
“We have an average of 4,000 to 5,000 hits a month. We can’t tell how many of these Web visits turned to actual sale but at least we can tell that they (SMEs) are getting inquiries, and therefore, more chances at making sales,” he said.
He added that seven SMEs from the garments sector, four from fruit processing, one from processed food, one from gifts and houseware, and six from the tourism sector have joined the project.
Those are priority sectors because they are “under-served,” he said.
“Our web presence helped us a lot. We are getting many inquiries from China, Canada and Singapore,” said Arnel Malumpon, marketing executive of Sunshine Fresh Food International Corp., one of the SMEs that availed itself of the project.
Orders
He said in a separate interview that through its website, the company now gets orders from Canada.
Jeffrey Llanto, Cvisnet manager told Sun.Star Cebu that the capability of Cebu’s SMEs on e-commerce has improved a lot.
“They are getting more into it because of their existing websites. We train and empower them. They are now the ones that update the content of their websites,” he said.
A survey conducted last year by Cvisnet on 13 SMEs showed that all of the firms have personal computers and 93 percent have access to the Internet. The firms’ Internet access, though, were used mainly for emailing and chatting, and none had any web presence, the survey said. (ALC)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (February 10, 2006 issue)
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