The Hong Kong government has long encouraged young people to start businesses, and there are many funds supporting SME development. By September 2020, Hong Kong had more than 340,000 SMEs, providing over 1.2 million jobs and accounting for 44.5% of total employment. Competition among SMEs is intense, and government funding alone cannot support all development and operating costs.
In recent years, the pandemic added pressure through weaker performance, operating costs, and manpower expenses. How can SMEs find opportunities under these conditions? One low-cost method is to move toward digital platforms. This does not only mean social media such as Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, but also shared platforms designed for SME use.
Using Shared Platforms for Mutual Benefit
Digital transformation has become a repeated topic across industries. The pandemic became a turning point for many business models, moving promotion budgets and product marketing online. Online advertising has a low entry barrier, which also makes competition intense. When advertising spend does not capture enough attention, SMEs can consider joining shared platforms.
An SME shared platform allows businesses to create company profiles and promote their areas of expertise. Users may be enterprises or end customers. The goal is to encourage more B2B and even B2C communication, creating a digital platform for mutual benefit, collaboration, and business opportunities. Many of these platforms are free to register, reducing budget pressure.
Examples in Hong Kong include BIZHUB, HelloToby, 2Easy, and 88DB. Some platforms focus on company profiles, while others also support article publishing. Their positioning and target audiences may differ, but they share one direction: helping SMEs increase online exposure.
HSBC also followed this trend by establishing HSBC VisionGo, a B2B digital shared platform for SMEs, startups, and aspiring entrepreneurs. It provides digital support for Hong Kong businesses. The platform uses machine learning to recommend personalized professional knowledge and networking opportunities. It also includes interactive functions to promote conversations and collaboration between companies.
HSBC VisionGo includes an article publishing function, allowing companies and SMEs from different industries to write about business topics such as finance, marketing, law, and technology. This increases exposure and deepens knowledge sharing among businesses. The article function is free, as long as the company first registers as a VisionGo member.
Businesses can also set special offers on the platform to attract potential customers. Offers can be sent to members by email, increasing campaign exposure and helping customers remember the brand. Another notable feature is support for online events. As many large events moved online during the pandemic, the platform developed live streaming functions to make business exchange more engaging.
As the saying goes, knowing yourself and your competitors helps you win. Industry exchange allows entrepreneurs to share knowledge and learn from others, making it easier to identify weaknesses and improve. Many SMEs have now realized that digital transformation is necessary. If your business has not started yet, it is not too late to plan for the future and adapt to the wider market direction.
Translation supported by AI.