Why SME Digitisation Needs a Different Product Mindset
It looks simple when it comes to building a Digital Product for a Small Business. The common misconception is that you create a website builder, add your products to the site, offer some templates and have the business owners put up their pages. However, when you study the product related problems in depth from the offline-first Indian SMEs, it seems to be more profound. A small business owner doesn't generally consider software by software categories. They don't have any segregation in their needs between website, SEO, catalogue, CRM, payment flow and marketing automation. They think in a more straight-forward manner. Will they find me to be a customer? Will they trust me? Are they going to know what it is that I sell? Will they call me? Will this assist my business to grow? That differentiates the whole product attitude. With developer builds, you can discuss integrations, APIs, dashboards, customization and performance, as well as workflow automation. However, as a business owner who isn't technical, all of the features must be reflected in a tangible business outcome.
First of the product lessons to learn is that the digital identity layer is relevant in advance of the e-commerce layer. Numerous small businesses don't have a structured digital footprint. They could have the WhatsApp number, Google page, a couple of posts on Instagram or even product images saved in their phone. However, when a customer asks, “Where can I see your products?” and/or “Do you have a website?” the response is generally disorganized. This creates friction. The business could be legitimate, but it doesn't appear to be online safe. Though the product could be good, the customer is not able to browse it adequately. While the service could be useful, all the information is in messages, calls and social media posts. A good digital identity enables offline credence to turn to online trust.
The second lesson is that e-commerce for Bharat SMEs can't be a carbon copy of the way that large online brands work. For a large brand, they might be interested in the issues of cart abandonment, optimizing checkout, paid ads, and advanced analytics. Before a small local business can be marketed to people, they need to know what to name their business, where it is located, the list of products they offer, the services they offer, photos of their products and services, contact flow, etc. To them, simplicity is the first step towards online selling. This is why it's important to have multiple layers of connectivity in SME digitization. A business must have an online presence, product/service promotion, local presence, customer building and a streamlined customer contact process. This is NOT a merchants separate issue. The customer finds the business, reviews what they are offering, determines if the business is honest and then whether or not to call, message, visit or purchase.
The third principle is that trust is one of the features of the product. It can be more important to have a positive reputation than to have a pretty exterior in the world of local business. The layout, business information, photos, service descriptions, contacts and location signals can directly impact the customer's decision to take action or not when using the website. Trust is NOT just a “branding layer.” It's a part of change.
The fourth lesson is that WhatsApp is not a solution that is a mere “workaround”. It's a part of the commerce behaviour. There are a large number of Indian SMEs who already do business and communicate via conversations. Through the chat, customers request pictures, prices, availability, delivery details and options of payments. Many of the products fail to cater to these users due to hastening them into a completely new workflow. A more effective method is to professionalize their behavior and make it more orderly, more visible and easily accessible.
The fifth lesson is that there are varying degrees of flexibility required with different types of business. A small business like a boutique, a pandit, a dental clinic, coaching class, a restaurant, an electronics shop, a salon, a dry fruit shop, a cycle shop and an event decorator do not portray their business in similar ways. Some need products. Some need services. Some need galleries. There is a need for location trust for some. There are some which require vivid descriptions. Certain require quick enquiry processes. The challenge lies in providing for all these categories is to ensure that the product does not appear complex. If they're over customized they may get overwhelmed by the initial use. If the product is not customized enough, it may be perceived as a generic product. It's important to have the right product design that provides for an element of flexibility.
The sixth rule is that small businesses don't purchase features. They buy outcomes. While a merchant might not want to be concerned with "local discoverability", they are certainly concerned with whether or not people in their vicinity can discover them. They might not be concerned with the "structure" of the catalogue or brochure, but they are concerned that customers can view their products without having to request pictures over and over again. While they may not have a care in the world of “digital trust signals”, they do have a care as new customers. This places a demand on product language to be able to convey technical characteristics in a business context. Web page turns into an online store. Catalogue turns into selling of goods. SEO becomes discoverability. If you select "Contact form" it will be converted to "Enquiry". The trustworthiness of a business is built upon business profile. This is the essence of efforts to make the digital experience of offline-first businesses easier, for example, with products such as Vyaparify.
The wider take-home message from this is that there is no place for cutting-edge technology when it comes to any team building for SMEs – in fact, the initial step of digitization is actually not advanced technology. It is confidence. The entrepreneur must feel good about going online, believe that there is a need for it, and that it is feasible. They do not want it to be a matter of pride for big brands or technical guys to have to have digital growth. Indian trade is not going to be solely based on the market. It will be local, relationship-based, searchable and it will be digital-first. Trust is already established on small businesses' markets. The opportunity is to assist that trust to get out there on the web. Featuring the most features will not be the best products for this market. They will be the ones that minimize most of the confusion, tie right into to the enterprise development and assist offline first businesses attain visibility, understanding, and trust online.
