PENANG, 18 August 2020 – Exabytes launched Sama-Sama Digital, an initiative with Ekuiti Nasional Berhad (Ekuinas) through its corporate social responsibility unit, ILTIZAM to help Bumiputera small and medium enterprises (SMEs) recover and sustain their businesses post-Movement Control Order (MCO).
Supported by Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), MYNIC and Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN), the initiative offers two (2) types of All-In-One Business e-Solutions:-
- All-in-1 Ecommerce Solutions
- All-in-1 Digital Solutions
Sama-Sama Digital is also partnering with nine (9) outreach partners: TERAJU, Dewan Perniagaan Melayu Malaysia, Precession Capital Berhad, SME Corp Malaysia, Mara Excellent Ventures Sdn Bhd, Perbadanan Nasional Berhad, Bumiputera Retailers Organization, Association of Selangor Tubers and Technology Park Malaysia (TPM). These organisations/bodies help to reach out to Bumiputera SMEs to be a part of digitalisation.
Chan Kee Siak, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Exabytes said during the launch, “With only 20% of Bumiputera SMEs being part of the digital economy, we must maximise our efforts to enable these businesses to upgrade their existing systems and strategies.”
As we brace through these challenging times, many businesses are facing the extra hurdle in weathering the economic downturn. Micro and small businesses are impacted heavily by the COVID-19 pandemic. For some of these businesses, they have even experienced involuntary closure due to the inability to operate remotely.
“We are seeing companies struggling to cope with the new realities as consumers shift in terms of the way they shop and consume. As such, we launched Dana Ihsan Covid-19 ILTIZAM to assist the affected communities and one of the ways we identified is to extend help to support the digitalisation of Bumiputera SMEs to ensure they are able to sustain and survive throughout this difficult period. We hope the initiative acts as a stepping stone for more Bumiputera SMEs to embrace the digital space,” said Syed Yasir Arafat Syed Abd Kadir, Chief Executive Officer of Ekuinas.
Of the 4,094 companies surveyed by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) between April 10 and May 1 2020, only 25.4% of the businesses polled responded that they could last for three to six months amidst the MCO. Only 4.7% responded that they can last more than six months. In the same survey, 42.5% of the companies polled responded that they would require more than 6 months to recover, 3.5% said that they would need less than 1 month and 1.9% responded that they will never recover and are expected to close their businesses down.
Surina Shukri, Chief Executive Officer of MDEC supports Exabytes’s initiative in assisting digitalisation said, “At MDEC, we strive to ensure that Malaysia makes the digital leap into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The primary goal, of course, is to see more SMEs transform into a properly digitally-powered businesses. Before the pandemic, digitalisation was always an optional consideration as they were still able to operate with a brick-and-mortar setting. However, that had changed in short order and going digital now doesn’t mean having an online presence alone. Instead, businesses must always consider how they can be more cost-effective, faster and efficiently sustainable in the long run.”
Datuk Ts. Hasnul Fadhly Hasan, Chief Executive Officer of MYNIC also added, “We want to help SMEs out there to be prepared for the global digital economy. As with the pandemic, digitalisation is inevitable and at MYNIC, we want to enable digital inclusivity to Bumiputera SMEs out there. Not only will these SMEs be able to reach a wider market, they will be able to reap other benefits such as an increase in sales and revenue.”
Under the Sama-Sama Digital initiative, there are two (2) types of offerings to assist in the Bumiputera SMEs digitalisation. The first one is the All-in-1 Ecommerce Solutions targeted towards Bumiputera SMEs without a digital presence. Bundled with an eCommerce store, payment gateway, shipping, domain, email and basic design and setup, the plan is affordably priced and subsidised by Exabytes, ILTIZAM and MYNIC. Upon successful registration, companies are required to pay RM199 for the first year and subsequently RM899/year as renewal fees. Shown below is the subsidised price of the plan:
Secondly, Sama-Sama Digital offers the All-in-1 Digital Solutions for Bumiputera SMEs with an existing online presence and would like to grow their online businesses. Based on the packages, companies may choose from the solutions offered such as Google & Facebook Ads, Microsoft Office 365, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Alibaba, Email Marketing, SMS Marketing and more. Successful applicants will get to enjoy up to RM10,000 subsidy from ILTIZAM and MDEC. Shown below is the subsidised price of the packages:
Sama-Sama Digital’s All-In-One Business e-Solutions cover 5 key digitalisation areas to assist Bumiputera SMEs to digitalise and navigate their businesses in this new normal. The identified key areas, or the 5-O, is the current trend among Malaysians whereby it is foreseeable that everything will go online in the future. The 5-O is depicted in the diagram below:
“Considering that businesses may take up to 6 to 12 months to recover, it is vital for the digitalisation process to be effective and efficient. This means a comprehensive system is needed and the 5-O plays an integral role in that system. Some businesses have hesitated or avoided digitalising because of the cost to be invested upfront. To alleviate this concern, Sama-Sama Digital provides subsidies to ease the burden of cost and we are able to do so thanks to the support of ILTIZAM by Ekuinas,” said Chan Kee Siak.
The deadline to register for Sama-Sama Digital’s All-In-One Business e-Solutions: (i) All-in-1 Ecommerce Solutions and (ii) All-in-1 Digital Solutions is by 31 December 2020. For more information on the eligibility of this initiative and its requirements, please visit https://www.exabytes.my/sama-sama-digital/.
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