A pair of commerce heavyweights have teamed up to launch a joint initiative to boost the digital capabilities of small business.
Australia’s largest business management solutions provider, MYOB has teamed up with bank Westpac to launch ‘Ready for Business’ – a joint initiative to encourage at least 100,000 Australian small businesses online.
The duo will join forces to provide a digital toolkit called ‘Ready for Business’ which offers SMEs the tools they need to start and grow their business, all in one place. Key to this is including a tool to build an off-the-shelf website, which has been identified as a key revenue driver.
The initiative launch follows dire results revealed by the ‘Westpac Ready for Business Report’, which surveyed 1,000 Small to Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs).
The report found that over half (53 per cent) of Australian small businesses do not have a website, equating to potentially more than one million businesses who are not online, promoting their business.
The report also surveyed 1,000 Australians on their preferences when shopping with 50 per cent of those consumers surveyed saying they always use the internet to research prior to purchasing a product or service, and over half (53 per cent) reporting they spend more than an hour shopping online a week.
Westpac general manager retail banking Gai McGrath said the results of the report indicate the swift need for change among Australia's business community.
“The results demonstrate a divide between the ‘digital haves’ and the ‘digital have-nots.’ Many businesses without digital tools such as a website and online invoicing and payment capabilities are competitively disadvantaged,” she said.
‘Ready for Business’ will also help facilitate both online invoicing and payments with the report revealing that two in three (66 per cent) SMEs believe that having the ability to be paid online through a transactional website would provide an advantage for their company.
The inkling is supported by the survey results, which revealed that of the small business owners who have a transactional website, 91 per cent reported an increase in revenue as a direct result of the transaction function.
The majority of those surveyed also responded that having an online payment facility made it easier for customers to make purchases (94 per cent), increased sales (79 per cent) and revenue (75 per cent). Interestingly, 43 per cent of small business owners list time as the scarcest resource over money (33 per cent).
Overall, however, two of the biggest challenges identified by respondents were getting set up (28 per cent) and knowing where to start (22 per cent), indicating a need for additional support.
“We understand the major issues faced by SMEs and topping the list is getting paid, getting more customers and getting more time. With more than 300,000 new businesses registered each year in Australiai,'Ready for Business' is just one of the ways Westpac is supporting small business to make it to that crucial second year in business and beyond,” McGrath said.
“The research also found that over half (53 per cent) of small businesses surveyed believe that they have missed out on business opportunities due to not having a website. These figures suggest that a large group of Australian businesses are missing out on a significant amount of money as a consequence.”
MYOB CEO Tim Reed added that the 'Ready for Business' initiative aims to make business life easier by helping small businesses across the country to engage in the digital economy.
“The benefits of being online include the ability to compete on a more level playing field with local and global rivals, increased productivity and less time spent on administration,” he said.
“Businesses taking up 'Ready for Business' will be able to build an attractive website, raise invoices, get paid online and integrate this with their business bank account where transactions are automatically fed through to their online accounting. What’s more, they will get help along the journey from MYOB and Westpac experts.”
Specifically, the ‘Ready for Business' will offer the following services for SMEs from this week:
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Attract Customers: MYOB Atlas is a website builder that makes it easy for businesses to get online and start attracting customers. It includes social media integration, online search optimisation, and is free for the first three months
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Manage Your Earnings: Westpac is offering SMEs a Business One Low Account with no monthly plan fees for 12 months. MYOB Atlas also offers the ability for SMEs to easily get paid through a website transaction facility
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Get Paid Faster: MYOB LiveAccounts is an easy online accounting solution that includes key features such as secure bank feeds and easy invoicing. It is also free for the first three months
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Plan Ahead: Westpac’s Davidson Institute will provide online tutorials to create a comprehensive business plan to detail the company's purpose, identify it's core proposition and manage key performance metrics to help the business grow. In addition, business operators can book a complimentary one hour consultation with a MYOB Certified Consultant for an introduction to MYOB Atlas and/or MYOB LiveAccounts.