Vodacom launches V-Hub for SMEs in South Africa, for SMEs - IT

On Tuesday, the enterprise IT branch of major South African telecom Vodacom, Vodacom Business, launched a new online portal to support and advise small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa.  

Nearly a third of South Africa’s SMEs find digitization a challenge, with many uncertain about prioritizing or feeling overwhelmed by the volume V-Hub is a friendly user platform that brings CIO digital-advisory services to the table, a statement from the company noted.  

CIO digital-advisory services are found to help businesses evolve quickly to take advantage of the right opportunities to use them in their digital transformation journey. 

“Nearly third of South Africa’s SMEs see digitization as a challenge; while many are unsure about what to prioritize because they feel overwhelmed by the volume of technology decisions to make, often without the support of IT departments,” said a press release from the Pan-African Information, Systems, Technology, and Communications service provider.  

Implementing the right digital solutions will help SMEs become nimbler and more flexible, allowing them to rapidly adjust to customers’ evolving needs, according to Vodacom Business Executive Head for SME and SOHO Nastassha Dooks.  

“With a wealth of knowledge and expertise with us, Vodacom Business is composed to support SMEs on their digital transformation journey, which can seem daunting to tackle without the right partner by your side,” the company said.  

As such, Vodacom Business Customers who own an SME can request one-on-one advice from a local specialist regarding anything from IT decision-making to tech set-up and troubleshooting.  

Also, any SME owner can access the digital Knowledge Center is for free through Vodacom.  

The digital center is the study of production conditions, consumption, circulation, appropriation, storage, and re-usage of various forms of knowledge 

Therefore, users can look for a curated selection of webinars, videos, and articles regarding topics like learning how to grow your online business or saving time and effort when implementing digital tools.  

With nearly 60 percent of SMEs saying inadequate support from banks is a problem, the Knowledge Centre covers information on the ways to access funding and apply for tenders under the Business Opportunities and Support category, the company said.  

Last but not least, essential digital-advice services are categorized under five topic categories on the Knowledge Centre. Fifty-five percent of SMEs are reportedly shrinking customer demand as a challenge while searching for those customers and keeping them is one of the categories SMEs can browse.