Sunday 26 May 2013

SOCIAL MEDIA FOR SMEs IN KENYA


 I think we have come into a time where there is an enormous amount of art where people go: “we need social media”. Now we are in a time where people say: “we have got to get social media measured”.
I think we are only seeing the beginning right now. We are also seeing a lot of copycatting, more than innovation.The other part is taking equity in businesses. It has now started already in various spaces around the world.I think it is a very, very tough game. It is going to take a while for people to feel safe. It has happened but it takes a while.In Kenya the only way it’s going to work is lower offers. You need a couple of success stories. You need to be sitting around the table saying: “I used this site and I just got a 5,000,000 KSH return on my 800,000 KSH.”Establishing an ecosystem and a track record is what is going to be necessary in that space.OpenWorld Ltd is working hand in hand with SMEs in Kenya to beat all odds and use these amazing platforms to make giant leaps in there businesses.
I also believe that the worst problem Kenya faces on the entrepreneurial ecosystem today is that the entrepreneurs who have made it are not helping the entrepreneurs who were there before or are aspiring to become.in that regard,OpenWorld Ltd developed OpenBusiness as a fast,easy,secure and reliable business management tool that entrepreneurial ecosystem needs to really flourish. 
All the guys who have had big exits… where are they?Our CEO's Directors,etc- They are not investing in already flourishing companies,most of them start investing in Small and Medium sized businesses because they make almost the biggest capital share in driving economy in regards to the types of businesses out there.
Entrepreneurs in Kenya need to make their time available even if its through social media because I think Clarity is the future. I’d say LinkedIn is the most amazing way to speak to people. Twitter is an unbelievable lead generation and Facebook gets word out there.Technology is a great connector and a great leveler.Anybody can lead, anybody can contribute but you have got to be real and you have got to be humble.When I look at our website(www.openbusiness.co.ke), I am utterly humbled, constantly, by the quality of work and drive put forward by our team to help and assist SMEs learn and keep that attitude at all stages in their day to day en devours while running their businesses.
Social community, interaction and feedback are what is going to allow us to grow the platform that the SMEs of Kenya deserve to get to where their ambitions,dreams and will would want to take them