E-commerce adoption among SMEs remains low

Source From (The Star Online): http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/4/18/business/11123341&sec=business

Published: on 18 April 2012

KUALA LUMPUR: E-commerce adoption among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is still low, a Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) official said.
Datuk Dzulkifli Mahmud, Matrade senior director at the exporters development division, said according to Google Malaysia, only 20% out of 700,000 SMEs in the country had websites while the remaining 80% did not.

“This means they are invisible to two-thirds of the Malaysian population as well as the rest of global online market,” he said at a seminar on Get Malaysian Business Online here yesterday.

Moreover, he said, a survey conducted by the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) had found that local SMEs were still depending on conventional business approach with only 28% of the 965 respondents being involved in business online. He attributed the low adoption of business online and e-commerce by SMEs to lack of awareness of its benefits, continued preference of traditional methods and a perception that e-commerce tools and technology were expensive.

He said that with registered internet users in the country numbering 17.5 million last year, “SMEs should not overlook the huge potential of this market segment since there are huge opportunities for the e-commerce industry in Malaysia”.

“Consumers nowadays would expect a company to have their own website.
“Whatever the nature and size of your business, a website is probably beneficial. Having a quality and professionally designed website is a measure of how successful your business is and how likely your are to remain in business,” he said.

The Get Malaysian Business Online seminar is an initiative by Google Malaysia, the Communications and Multimedia Commission, My Domain Registry and iTrain to help at least 50,000 Malaysian businesses set up websites and be active online to widen their market and increase sales. — Bernama