SMEs get Google’s help in marketing

New Delhi, Jan. 4: To further tap into the 51million strong small and medium businesses (SMBs) market in the country, Google’s Indiaborn chief Sundar Pichai on Wednesday announced a number of initiatives to help these enterprises go digital.

Mr Pichai, who is scheduled to visit his alma mater IIT Kharagpur on Thursday, said the company is working on products for India that can be expanded globally.

“When we solve for a place like India, we solve for everyone around the world. That has led us to grow our team here and spend more time and ensure the products are useful for everyone,” he said at a Google event.

He added that SMBs are a growth driver for the Indian economy. “It is important that they have the right tools and skills to digitise. We believe it is important for us to invest in training and equipping these individuals and small businesses to accelerate their journey of growth,” he said.

Over 80 lakh Indian SMBs are already using Google's platforms. A joint research study by Google-KPMG estimates that 68 per cent of the 51 million Indian SMBs are offline.

It also states rising Internet penetration and greater uptake for digital by SMBs could help increase their contribution to India’s GDP by 10 percentage points, taking it up to 46-48 per cent by 2020.

Profits of digitally engaged SMBs grow twice as fast (compared to their offline peers) and they are also able to grow their customer base significantly, it added. — PTI