South Africa`s SME sector strongly supports Inzuzo

South Africa`s SME community has put its vote behind Intekom`s Inzuzo portal with over 10 000 companies having registered their companies on the site within six weeks.

This follows the initial launch by local ISP, Intekom, of South Africa`s definitive small business portal developed specifically to promote the business interests and growth of this burgeoning market sector.

Branded `Inzuzo`, the Zulu word for `gain`, the content-rich portal at www.inzuzo.co.za has been designed to empower small, medium and micro enterprises by providing a free interactive Web presence and by facilitating the free flow of business-related development information and advice.

According to Intekom`s Deputy Managing Director, Ashiek Manie, the portal creates an important interface between SMEs, the corporate and the public sector, and is expected to become the main entry and access point to local SME businesses, products, services and suppliers.

According to recent research published by BMI TechKnowledge, there are more than 600 000 registered SME businesses locally whose combined IT spend rose to more than R11-billion last year. This is expected to rise significantly more again this year - as companies move to take advantage of the massive opportunities presented by the Internet and e-commerce. Many, however, are unsure of how to set up a Web site and need assistance in developing an effective and coherent e-commerce strategy.

"We recognise that we need to open up the market to SME`s by providing support to emerging businesses. I believe that the launch Inzuzo will highlight the South African government`s emphasis on growing the SME sector. We understand and actively support that imperative through the various services offered on the Inzuzo portal, " Manie explained.

Inzuzo will offer virtual communities where small and medium business can share ideas, exchange value and establish partnerships that will enhance their business leverage," he added.

According to Intekom`s Marketing Manager, Salma Kidd, the SME portal is gaining in status as the premium place to go for information on South Africa`s small to medium enterprises. "The idea of Inzuzo is for the SME sector to take ownership of the site and to drive the content and its derivatives so that it better serves the unique needs of this sector," she said.

"The idea is to ensure a better success rate of start-up and small businesses and to help entrench this vital sector within the economy," says Kidd. "Companies will be able to list or edit their product and service details online at no cost in order to increase their exposure to corporate and international markets, as well as within the SME sector generally.

Designed as an online information directory of where to go for what, Inzuzo`s main lever is through its targeted, value-added content and services.

The portal is a source of information for businesses, including daily updated financial and investment news and advice on starting, running and marketing a small business. It will also cover aspects such as raising capital for a growing business, management and e-commerce strategies, finance, accounting and tax related issues, expanding internationally, and government regulations, labour and legal issues.

Information will be published on tenders and tendering assistance, affirmative procurement assistance, company registrations and SME forums, whilst database features include sophisticated product and service cataloguing of all SME businesses plus regional and sector indexing and search capabilities.

In addition, it also incorporates a variety of business tools such as financial calculators, tools for share movement analysis, and access to a range of national and international trading opportunities.

Going hand in hand with the launch of the portal, Intekom has also introduced an innovative range of bundled solutions similarly designed to meet the Internet needs of developing businesses and help them compete with the corporate sector.