New guide to grow ICT businesses
New guide to grow ICT businesses
Aug 18, 2005: The Australian Information Industry Association has launched a new guide to help small-to-medium enterprises develop marketing strategies so that they will find it easier to grow their businesses.
The new SME Marketing Guide, launched this week at Parliament House, is aimed at addressing the lack of resources currently available to small-to-medium enterprises.
Rob Durie, the AIIA's chief executive officer, told an audience of ministers, shadow ministers and key members and senators from both major parties that many SME companies are challenged not by a lack of drive, talent, ideas or products, but by the daunting task of marketing their company, products and services in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
"Smaller companies rarely have the resources to engage in campaigns on a par with large multinational companies, and often struggle to find information and ideas on how to successfully market smaller organisations."
The guide aims to provide practical assistance on a range of marketing, public relations and communication issues; clear advice on marketing basics and it employs ICT-based case studies to highlight the practical issues involved in marketing smaller ICT firms.
Durie believes that the step-by-step suggestions and useful templates, such as developing a marketing plan, positioning products and assessing competitors, will assist local SMEs to unlock their sales and marketing potential.
"As more than 70 percent of AIIA's member companies are local SMEs, a significant proportion of AIIA's programmes and activities are directed towards growing local industry activity. THE SME Marketing Guide is another important contribution to the continual development of a vibrant, world-class local ICT sector."
This SME Marketing Guide has been developed in conjunction with marketing specialists, Porter Novelli and WebCentral and will be available for free to all local industry SMEs simply by visiting AIIA's website.
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