By Olabisi Olaleye [email protected] 08094000013, 08111813040
Experts have named 2017 the year of artificial intelligence and this may positively or negatively impact on small and medium entreprises (SMEs), depending on their capacity.
While some of these ventures are not ready to leverage on technology by stamping their presence online, some others are struggling to stay afloat.
Nevertheless, industry watchers opine that the economy would fare better this year based on the capacity, technology, innovation and ingenuity of economy managers and business owners as they explore digital frontiers and global trends to drive economic activities.
Technology, has been hyped as the game-changer in the survival of any business in the coming months for Nigeria, other emerging markets and developing economies, where reaching a global market is possible through digital technology and hyper-connectivity.
Against this backdrop, CityNG, a software firm, has emerged to take businesses to the zenith by building SMEs on its website at a very reduced cost.
In view of the high cost of web design, dwindling fortunes and low technology capacity to respond to emerging digital trends, many business owners have literally become obsolete, unstable or stagnant in their operations, despite huge investments.
According to the Chief Executive Officer of CityNG, Mr. Emmanuel Onafowokan, the rationale for CityNG is to help businesess succeed and create innovative brand perspectives that deliver competitive advantage and inspire creative thinking.
“At CityNG, our goal is to support and promote successful entrepreneurship by introducing business owners and seasoned professionals to the world wide web (www) and technology innovation as a means of accessing user-friendly global networks to market faster and gain a wider customer base, hence higher revenues and stability.
“It is almost impossible to remain relevant in any business today without an online presence, which fosters human potential by creating helpful, meaningful services that fulfill human needs across an avalanche of digitised environments.
“We are passionate about inspiring and supporting the growth of business owners to utilise the world wide web to promote their business and take advantage of a global market as digital interfaces get faster and automated in a rapidly changing technology.”
He added that in a world that is changing through technology, it is crucial to make “business owners follow current trends and not get left behind; brick-and-mortar is rapidly being replaced by click-and-order.”
Onafowokan stressed that, at CityNG, they provide trend-setting insights into web designs for constructive, evolving technology based on three critical elements, speed, reach and affordability.
“ We provide websites for as little as $4. This is the total cost and includes hosting and setup as well. Our goal is to drive down prices as low as possible so as to encourage new and existing businesses to take their brands online,” he said.
On the security of CityNG, Technical Director of the organisation, Aderemi Odufuye, noted that the website is hosted in the United Kingdom and the backend has been tightened to prevent hacking.
He stated that CityNG has a target of 5,000 registered customers at the end of this year.
“We are constantly monitoring the sites to curb vices on the platform. We are also working on legal issues that could help SMEs to grow. Our main purpose is to get SMEs online and not just an online directory but a business online network with a quick link and search to Google,” Odufuye said.