Digital Service Squad program to help small businesses
Picture Butte mayor Cathy Moore has spoken briefly about an ongoing program through Community Futures called the Digital Service Squad program.
The program is aimed to provide support to small businesses looking to create better digital strategies for their small business and was brought up at a recent council meeting.
The program offers a way for businesses to expand their reach and cater to e-commerce shoppers, and expand their presence online. Moore said, “because it is free for anyone wanting to go through it, it could greatly benefit them.”
It could be especially beneficial for business owners in a town as locally-minded as Picture Butte.
Moore added the training team, “will walk you through the process,” of expanding digital skills for small businesses in Picture Butte and the greater region serviced by community futures.
Depending on the needs of the business, the program may include search engine optimization (SEO) training to help increase online visibility, social media strategies, and other skills which are vital to businesses operating online in any capacity. The free program, funded by the government of Alberta, offers businesses a way to expand beyond loyal local customer bases in the town itself. Moore said the importance of a digital presence is important, “especially with COVID, and (business owners) being unsure if they would make it, and having to find another way.”
Moore also said consumers are sometimes tempted by, “the convenience of Amazon,” and other major e-commerce players, and a better digital strategy for small businesses can cater to online shoppers and make it easier for them to support small or local businesses. Although e-commerce is certainly not new, COVID-related shutdowns made it hard for some small businesses to prosper, and many people are not equipped to move their services and offerings online without training.
In the height of pandemic shutdowns, some consumers were quick to criticize local businesses for not moving quickly enough to adapt to the “new normal” and provide e-commerce options, but many small businesses are not equipped to transition, or are unsure of how to move their services, branding, and strategy online. Even now, as services and businesses have re-opened and are again catering to in-person service, creating a strong digital awareness can raise the level of brand awareness when people are searching online to discover a business’s services.
The Digital Service Squad training is, in part, a response to a need that was born out of many small businesses having to adapt during the initial shutdowns during the pandemic. Kate Ingram, operations administrator at Community Futures in Lethbridge said, “I think that was part of it,” and added a big focus of the program is helping business owners create an improved digital presence.
She said Community Futures is managing the digital service squad programming, and “through that, we have some contractors that will work one on one with businesses to support them,” as they implement different digital strategies.
Ingram explained the Digital Service Squad program can,
“help (businesses) set up a basic website, help them understand e-commerce, set up search engine optimization (SEO) for their website, set up, ‘Google My Business’, or teach them how to kind of manage Google suite,” as well as training to help them with their social media accounts, and how to develop a basic social media and an online strategy.
While small communities like Picture Butte, are often supported by locals already familiar with their business or service, digital strategy training can help business owners reach beyond the borders of the municipality.
Ingram said, “I think that setting up e-commerce is pretty key for helping small businesses expand,” and noted there are improved opportunities for small businesses with increased digital literacy. “For business owners in smaller communities, particularly, (provides) a way to get a broader audience and a broader customer base.”
Upon signing up for the program, business owners will go through a needs assessment which will help the digital squad determine, “what kind of time commitment (the business owner) would be looking at,” to improve upon digital skills. Ingram added, “so if you just wanted SEO on your website, that would be a little bit different than putting together a whole social media strategy.”
Interested applicants are encouraged to apply, and applications will be processed as long as the program is operating, until March 31, 2023. Visit lethbridgeregion. albertacf.com/services/ digital-service-squad for more information.