Tag: Digital business

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – In line with the celebration of Ramadan, IKHLAS, airasia.com’s digital business arm that caters to Muslim communities, will be launching its ‘Road To Ramadan’ campaign in an aim to continuously provide services during the holy month.

The campaign features two new services, namely Fidyah, the obligatory payment on Muslims who are unable to fast during Ramadan; and Zakat Fitrah, the charity donation compulsory on every Muslim leading up to Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

The Fidyah service starts today 25 March 2021, while the Zakat services including Zakat Fitrah, Zakat on earnings, and Zakat on EPF, as well as Zakat on Gold and Silver, and Zakat on Business, will be available in 12 different cities in Malaysia starting on 30 March 2021.

Aside from the two new services, IKHLAS will also continue its Sadaqah charity service ‘Give with IKHLAS’ as part of the ‘Road to Ramadan’ campaign. Furthermore, IKHLAS also announced that more products are now available at its e-commerce function ‘Shop with IKHLAS’ with new merchants on board, including food mart Dubai Markets, and wood engraving shop Rinacraft, as well as retail shop The Sajadah KL, among others.

Ikhlas Kamarudin, the head of IKHLAS, commented that they are humbled to see how IKHLAS has grown as an Islamic lifestyle brand in just a year, saying that starting off with Sadaqah service, they have grown with a whole range of innovative services including an e-commerce platform. 

“We would like to thank all our donors and contributors who have been very generous with their support towards IKHLAS, and as the holy month of Ramadan is just around the corner, we are truly honored to share this ‘Road to Ramadan’ campaign to continue offering better online services for the Muslim community and at the same time extend a helping hand to those in need,” said Kamarudin.

IKHLAS aims to raise over RM1million through the campaign this year. Donations can be made on their website and on the airasia super app.

Singapore—Small-medium enterprises (SME) in Asia Pacific are slowly making their way into being adoptive to today’s business changes across the digital transformation sphere, according to a report from IT and networking company Cisco and market intelligence firm IDC.

With more than 1,400 respondents across APAC SMEs, the report found out that there is a significant increase for digital adoption, showing a 16% growth for SMEs willing to integrate more digital transformation strategies, compared to the 11% growth last year.

On the other hand, 53% of SMEs showed initial willingness to be ‘observant’ at first for their small modern digital changes, while 31% of SMEs showed reactiveness to move into the digital market and are slow in their own transition.

The current COVID-19 pandemic proved to be one of the major reasons for digital transition of SMEs, as statistics showed that 94% of SMEs showed reliance on technological measures for their businesses. In regards to using digital business measures as a way to make roundabout on disruptive events i.e. the pandemic, 55% percent said that such measures are important and are crucial for the business framework.

Some of the leading goals for digitalization of SMEs include market expansion, improved customer experience (CX), prototype kickstart/startup, supply chain, among others.

Cisco estimates that with willingness from SMEs to conduct business presence online, such enterprises are forecasted to   bring $2.6–$3.1 trillion in GDP across Asia Pacific, suggesting faster economic recovery by 2024.

United States – As more businesses in the APAC region turn to eCommerce amid the pandemic, Google has decided to make it free for merchants to list their products on the Google Shopping tab, which takes effect in mid-October.

The free listing has been available in India and Indonesia since 2019 and was earlier introduced to the United States in April as part of its COVID support to retailers.

“For retailers, this change means free exposure to millions of people who come to Google every day for their shopping needs, regardless of whether they advertise on Google. For shoppers, it means more products from more stores, discoverable through the Google Shopping tab. For advertisers, it means paid campaigns can now be augmented with free listings,” said President of Google for APAC Scott Beaumont on a product update.

Google said the time of the pandemic changed the way people shop and sell in the region. According to Google analysis, 53% of online shoppers in APAC stated that they’ll choose to buy online more frequently after the pandemic, while almost 40% who weren’t online shoppers before said they intend to continue buying online.

To help retailers adjust to the changes, Google will be offering skills training through its dedicated learning resource Grow with Google. Google will also be sharing research and insights on its market research platform Think with Google to inform retailers’ business decisions.

In addition, Google has launched a playbook and webinar series on how to better manage digital storefronts. It will also be working closely with a number of partners to help merchants manage their products and inventory; this includes global partners like eCommerce platform Shopify, and those across the region such as Vietnam-based SEO website design platform Haravan, eCommerce Shopline in Taiwan and Hong Kong, and Thailand’s eCommerce business provider LnwShop.  

The free listings will be automatically applied to retailers already registered on its Merchant Center and those currently using Shopping Ads, while for new registrants, Google will continue working to streamline the onboarding process over the coming weeks.

Singapore – Local retailers selling on Amazon.sg can receive the Digital Resilience Bonus (DRB) administered by Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), reminds the company in a press release.

DRB is one of the efforts by the Singapore government amid the pandemic to uplift the digital capabilities of businesses across their different points of operations. Initially, DRB is offered to F&B and retail enterprises. 

IMDA has listed the different solutions that enterprises can apply for a subsidy, which includes eCommerce. Sellers, if eligible, can receive a one-time S$2,500 automatic cash payout.

According to IMDA, in order to qualify, the enterprise must be incorporated on or before 26 May 2020 with a Food Service or Retail SSIC code, and has been using the digital solutions on IMDA’s list between 1 June 2020 and 30 June 2021.

Bernard Tay, the country leader for Amazon.sg seller services said, “As local retailers continue to adapt to the new normal, digitalisation is key to enabling them to build resilience and tap into new revenue streams domestically and internationally.”

He added, “Small and medium businesses are a part of Amazon’s DNA and we remain committed to their success. The new initiatives will provide the necessary push in encouraging local retailers to step up digitalisation efforts and we’re happy to work with IMDA on the Digital Resilience Bonus to offer additional support to them during this time of need.”

Just recently, Amazon has pledged to invest US$18 billion in 2020 to support small and medium businesses globally and an additional US$100 million assistance to be given out during its annual deal event Prime Day and throughout the holiday season.

The Singaporean unit of the company is also in an ongoing collaboration with Enterprise Singapore on the eCommerce Booster Package which will offer local retailers a one-time grant of up to S$9,000 when they register to sell with Amazon.sg.