DIGI business helps boost small businesses

(L-R Business growth: KB Soon Huat has been able to upload its products on social media and expand its customer base since going digital.

THE beginning of a new decade spelled out much promise for all, but nobody could have anticipated a global pandemic and the resulting economic slowdown when making their resolutions for 2020.

With lockdowns being enforced, businesses that relied heavily on walk-ins and physical customer presence took a big hit.

As many customers stayed home to adhere to government-enforced standard operating procedures, brick-and-mortar establishments worried for the future of their businesses and soon realised that digitalisation was not only inevitable, but crucial for survival.

Khoo Chin Wei, the managing director of Penang-based KB Soon Huat, can attest to just that.

Like most small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the family-owned business specialising in the sales of motorcycles and automotive parts was impacted by the restrictions brought about by the pandemic. Having been in operation for 40 years, the traditionally run KB Soon Huat had to pivot to online means to reach out to more customers.

“Since going digital, we’ve managed to upload our products on social media and expand our customer base. People who could not come to our store could now purchase our products, ” Khoo explains.

Before embarking on their digital transformation journey, KB Soon Huat faced another problem in the form of overstocked products.

Expanding customer base: Khoo says going online helped the company sell it's overstocked proucts to a wider base of customers.

However, since adopting various digital business solutions from Digi Business, they have managed to clear more than half of their unsold and overstocked items.

He adds, “We managed to sell our overstocked products particularly to customers in rural areas, whom we would not have been able to reach out to if we had not taken our business online.”

A few Go Digital Business solutions adopted by KB Soon Huat include Avana Facebook Commerce, which enables businesses to run digital marketing campaigns and manage e-commerce sales, as well as Omni Hotline, which transforms smartphones into a business landline, so that businesses will never miss a business opportunity despite working remotely.

The result was an increase of 15% in their online sales and an outstanding 40% growth in overall sales, providing the much-needed assurance and business continuity to Khoo.

Beyond the boost in sales, KB Soon Huat has also seen an increase in employee productivity since adopting the digital tools.

Khoo can attest that reducing the need for face-to-face interaction and adopting digital transactions have definitely influenced overall efficiency, leading to a reduction in costs.

KB Soon Huat’s journey to digitalisation was born from a need to remain afloat and relevant.

Like many other SMEs, the first step may seem daunting, but this need not be the case when there is a digital partner to help them make the move to the digital sphere.

This is where Digi Business comes in. With its suite of digital solutions and tools, Digi Business helps simplify and streamline business operations so that SME owners and entrepreneurs can manage their day-to-day routines with greater convenience and ease.

Businesses looking to make the digital shift, upskill or digitalise like KB Soon Huat can get in touch with Digi Business at https://www.digi.com.my/business/digital-transformation/sme-grant to find out more.