How SMBs are Adapting to Create a Tech-Enabled Business Ecosystem
Prabhakar has built localized go-to-market strategies to increase user base and drive revenue growth in India
The pandemic has created a revamped technological ecosystem that has seen small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) find new ways to adapt and innovate, putting in motion a ‘digital first’ approach to engaging with customers. Small businesses everywhere have been challenged to accelerate digital transformation in their organizations and adopt new tech-led solutions to solve long-standing problems.
In India, too, the SMB sector is the backbone of the economy and creates employment opportunities for millions. The flexibility and resilience displayed by Indian SMBs during the multiple lockdowns highlighted their untapped potential that could aid in the economy’s post-pandemic recovery.
While at the start of the pandemic, SMBs may have been overwhelmed by the idea of having to deploy digital tools to ride out the crisis, they also realized there is a silver lining to being a small operation. In a sense, COVID-19 prompted the sector to rethink processes and explore swathes of new opportunities that would enable them to stay afloat. Currently, SMBs are at an inflection point, having created an altered business environment driven by robust digital systems.
Let us examine significant technological shifts seen in the SMB segment that reinforce the belief that digital is here to stay:
Cloud as a Catalyst
Even before the pandemic struck, one of the trends shaping the value chain for most SMBs was the adoption of cloud technology.
During the past decade, the rapid migration to the cloud by even non tech-savvy small businesses has proved that a cloud environment streamlines antiquated operational processes and empowers startups to focus on product and service innovation.
The pandemic further accelerated the need for SMBs to remain nimble and agile to cope with longstanding technical challenges and constraints. According to a recent survey we conducted of 500 founders at SMBs, 80 percent of respondents in India indicated they have plans to increase their cloud investment. They indicated business continuity, cost optimization, automation of manual tasks, quality control of data and business transformation in real-time as some of the reasons that are accelerating this trend. Undoubtedly, the cloud has emerged as a gamechanger for startups as it helps them be agile and also accelerates faster go-to-market.
Harnessing data in a meaningful way
In 2020, customer retention has become a priority for small businesses and many of them are spending on cloud-based prescriptive analytics to make informed decisions.
Valuable customer and market insights can be uncovered from hidden data and help small businesses enhance their digital capabilities. As SMBs look to the future, they are turning to AI and data analytics to connect with customers and scale their business.
Robust security will future proof businesses
SMBs often lack resources to tackle breaches in security protocols, making them vulnerable to malware and ransomware attacks. Several also lack sophisticated IT infrastructure to adapt to improved security compliance controls. In the transformed business landscape during the pandemic when work-from-home became the new normal, SMB security teams were compelled to prioritize spend on IT security by deploying cloud-based infrastructure. According to our survey, one of the top concerns of SMBs was to ensure a robust IT security that will protect their organizations against network security and antivirus/anti-malware attacks. The more forward-looking and innovative SMBs are implementing best practices to respond to new threats and secure their networks. Small businesses are focusing on end-to-end security by ensuring VPN security, cloud security and providing the right set of tools to employees and customers to thrive in today’s business landscape.
Digital gateways to transform payments
One of the trends that emerged amid the pandemic was the adoption of a digital payment infrastructure in the SMB segment. Small businesses realized the utility of shifting to digital payments to enable a more effective and convenient way to navigate the current financial landscape.
With consumer behaviour shifting online, the SMB ecosystem rapidly leveraged contactless digital solutions in lieu of traditional payment processes. Some of the popular digital payment gateways that emerged were credit/debit cards and app-enabled payment systems such as Paytm, Google Pay and Phone Pe, among others.
Going forward, small businesses need to partner with reliable digital payments players that will help them succeed in the new normal. They should also expand on the innovation that occurred during the pandemic to modernize the way they accept payments from their customers.
Preparing for a digital future
As SMBs venture into new and innovative ways of leveraging technologies to ensure business continuity, they are preparing the ground to bounce back once the dust settles on the pandemic. It’s heartening that several startups and small businesses have remained focused on ensuring customer satisfaction despite the new challenges that abound.
The effective use of technology and relying on more digital tools will help SMBs to pivot and survive in the long term. They are seizing new opportunities caused by the paradigm shift in how people will live and work in the post-pandemic world. Moreover, SMBs are also ensuring employees and customers remain connected by facilitating remote work collaboration and setting up digital touchpoints for payments.
By embarking on such digital transformation initiatives, SMBs are driving impact at scale to help shape the revamped post-COVID world. By doing so, they are truly forming the backbone of the modern economy.
The pandemic has created a revamped technological ecosystem that has seen small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) find new ways to adapt and innovate, putting in motion a ‘digital first’ approach to engaging with customers. Small businesses everywhere have been challenged to accelerate digital transformation in their organizations and adopt new tech-led solutions to solve long-standing problems.
In India, too, the SMB sector is the backbone of the economy and creates employment opportunities for millions. The flexibility and resilience displayed by Indian SMBs during the multiple lockdowns highlighted their untapped potential that could aid in the economy’s post-pandemic recovery.
While at the start of the pandemic, SMBs may have been overwhelmed by the idea of having to deploy digital tools to ride out the crisis, they also realized there is a silver lining to being a small operation. In a sense, COVID-19 prompted the sector to rethink processes and explore swathes of new opportunities that would enable them to stay afloat. Currently, SMBs are at an inflection point, having created an altered business environment driven by robust digital systems.
Let us examine significant technological shifts seen in the SMB segment that reinforce the belief that digital is here to stay:
Cloud as a Catalyst
Even before the pandemic struck, one of the trends shaping the value chain for most SMBs was the adoption of cloud technology.
During the past decade, the rapid migration to the cloud by even non tech-savvy small businesses has proved that a cloud environment streamlines antiquated operational processes and empowers startups to focus on product and service innovation.
The pandemic further accelerated the need for SMBs to remain nimble and agile to cope with longstanding technical challenges and constraints. According to a recent survey we conducted of 500 founders at SMBs, 80 percent of respondents in India indicated they have plans to increase their cloud investment. They indicated business continuity, cost optimization, automation of manual tasks, quality control of data and business transformation in real-time as some of the reasons that are accelerating this trend. Undoubtedly, the cloud has emerged as a gamechanger for startups as it helps them be agile and also accelerates faster go-to-market.
During the past decade, the rapid migration to the cloud by even non tech-savvy small businesses has proved that a cloud environment streamlines antiquated operational processes and empowers startups to focus on product and service innovation
Harnessing data in a meaningful way
In 2020, customer retention has become a priority for small businesses and many of them are spending on cloud-based prescriptive analytics to make informed decisions.
Valuable customer and market insights can be uncovered from hidden data and help small businesses enhance their digital capabilities. As SMBs look to the future, they are turning to AI and data analytics to connect with customers and scale their business.
Robust security will future proof businesses
SMBs often lack resources to tackle breaches in security protocols, making them vulnerable to malware and ransomware attacks. Several also lack sophisticated IT infrastructure to adapt to improved security compliance controls. In the transformed business landscape during the pandemic when work-from-home became the new normal, SMB security teams were compelled to prioritize spend on IT security by deploying cloud-based infrastructure. According to our survey, one of the top concerns of SMBs was to ensure a robust IT security that will protect their organizations against network security and antivirus/anti-malware attacks. The more forward-looking and innovative SMBs are implementing best practices to respond to new threats and secure their networks. Small businesses are focusing on end-to-end security by ensuring VPN security, cloud security and providing the right set of tools to employees and customers to thrive in today’s business landscape.
Digital gateways to transform payments
One of the trends that emerged amid the pandemic was the adoption of a digital payment infrastructure in the SMB segment. Small businesses realized the utility of shifting to digital payments to enable a more effective and convenient way to navigate the current financial landscape.
With consumer behaviour shifting online, the SMB ecosystem rapidly leveraged contactless digital solutions in lieu of traditional payment processes. Some of the popular digital payment gateways that emerged were credit/debit cards and app-enabled payment systems such as Paytm, Google Pay and Phone Pe, among others.
Going forward, small businesses need to partner with reliable digital payments players that will help them succeed in the new normal. They should also expand on the innovation that occurred during the pandemic to modernize the way they accept payments from their customers.
Preparing for a digital future
As SMBs venture into new and innovative ways of leveraging technologies to ensure business continuity, they are preparing the ground to bounce back once the dust settles on the pandemic. It’s heartening that several startups and small businesses have remained focused on ensuring customer satisfaction despite the new challenges that abound.
The effective use of technology and relying on more digital tools will help SMBs to pivot and survive in the long term. They are seizing new opportunities caused by the paradigm shift in how people will live and work in the post-pandemic world. Moreover, SMBs are also ensuring employees and customers remain connected by facilitating remote work collaboration and setting up digital touchpoints for payments.
By embarking on such digital transformation initiatives, SMBs are driving impact at scale to help shape the revamped post-COVID world. By doing so, they are truly forming the backbone of the modern economy.
