Singapore – Short-video sharing platform TikTok and Singapore’s national confederation of trade unions, National Trades Union Congress LearningHub (NTUC LHUB), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), aimed at delivering quality training and resources in social media marketing and content creation for small businesses.
NTUC LHUB said that more small businesses turn to digital platforms to reach new audiences, and many are leveraging new age platforms such as TikTok which has exceeded 240 million users in SEA alone. From increasing brand awareness to extending their business reach, TikTok has played a key role in helping local micro-businesses to connect directly with their customers and grow their presence online.
The MOU will see NTUC LHUB leveraging its strong network within the Labour Movement and its associations such as the Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit (U FSE), Singapore National Co-Operative Federation (SNCF), and Young NTUC. In addition, NTUC LHUB will be working closely with TikTok to develop a suite of courses that empower content creators to grow their brand presence on social media platforms.
To kick off the partnership, NTUC LHUB will begin running the TikTok-endorsed ‘Design Thinking for Social Media’ course in March 2022. The two-day course leverages design thinking concepts for social media content creation. Furthermore, the collaboration will translate into training courses that are applicable to all workers in due course.
Anthony Chew, NTUC LearningHub’s director of Infocomm Technology, commented that they are thrilled to be partnering with TikTok to empower Self-Employed Persons (SEPs) to navigate and keep pace with the rapidly changing social media landscape in order to create new business and employment opportunities.
“Working closely with TikTok, NTUC LearningHub will be on the pulse of new trends and developments straight from the source, hence ensuring that our training in social media and digital marketing remains highly relevant, timely and spot-on for our learners. In addition, NTUC LearningHub is also uniquely placed within the Labour Movement ecosystem to support the outreach efforts to self-employed persons,” said Chew.
Meanwhile, David Jay Gomez, TikTok’s head of brand partnerships for SEA, noted that they are witnessing an increase in small businesses across SEA, leveraging their platform to drive tangible impact and they are deeply committed to using their platform to educate and equip their community with the relevant skills and training as they navigate the ever-evolving business landscape.
“Through our partnership with NTUC LearningHub, we look forward to empowering more micro-businesses and freelancers to drive their business and Singapore’s digital economy forward,” said Gomez.
Jean See, the director of NTUC Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit (U FSE), said, “With continual learning support as a cornerstone of NTUC’s membership proposition, we are excited that U FSE and NTUC LearningHub will be jointly rolling out a ‘Community of Practice’ series to bridge classroom training with expert insights to empower members to stand out from the competition.”
Singapore citizens and permanent residents can enjoy 50% off the course fees, and are eligible for the utilisation of SkillsFuture credit and Post-Secondary Education Account (PSEA). Interested individuals can register for the ‘Design Thinking for Social Media’ course at NTUC LHUB website.
