Fancy yourself a bit of online presence for your business? Here is an affordable option you can try.

From my experience using the internet it has come to light that quite a healthy number of small scale businesses either lack online presence or they have an outdated version of it.

We understand how being online is of paramount importance to a business and acknowledge the promotion that Esaja is offering. They are offering their services for $2.17 for the year 2017 with the promotion ending on the 31st of January 2017.

Esaja is here to bring you affordable online platform to get your business connected to the rest of the world. Here is why.

What is the offer that you are giving to your customers?

Basically the offer is to give small businesses a chance to have an online presence that otherwise they would not have before. As the the largest b2b marketplace for cross border trade in Africa ,our vision is to leverage on the power of technology to foster intra Africa trade and we consider ourselves as the 55th state.  The offer means we have removed a massive 98% from our initial pricing model. The offer is a comprehensive website profiling and a first considering that the only comparable examples are website builders that are often difficult to navigate and without any human support on free plans.

What has made you select this option as a means of pushing your agenda?

The reason why we chose this option really is to give every deserving small business a chance at making themselves visible and generating more sales. It goes without saying that the power of the internet is such that it gives any willing business a platform to market our goods and services at a lower cost. Furthermore, we feel that since January is usually a month filled with promise and resolutions, we would want small businesses who deem marketing as an expensive tool to maximize on this opportunity. These are the real champions of any economy.

Who is your target market for this promotion?

Our target market is everyone who has never had the chance to have an online presence. This ranges from informal traders, retailers and artisanal manufacturers. Our observation across multiple geographies has been that they deem the internet has a very sophisticated and exclusive medium. We seek to lay such perceptions to rest. The internet is a meritocracy, open to all.

How have you previously assisted SME’s in getting their businesses online?

Esaja.com went live in 2013 to tackle the intra African trade complexity. Only 12% of trade in Africa is done between nations on the continent. This according to the UN Economic Commission for Africa, is a major stumbling block preventing the continent’s development. Having invested a significant amount of time and resources, we’ve physically engaged hundreds of thousands of businesses in many nations. The first step in assisting them has been to sign them up to our marketplace, connecting businesses as distant as Burundi to peers in the region. In this regard, our Esaja business directory now has over 200 000 business listings from all over Africa and other helpful channels such as business events, quotation request functions and a business opportunities section.

What are your expectations from this promotion?

Our expectations are to link up and enable as many of the small guys as possible. There’s nothing more challenging than starting a business and running it, especially in troubled economies such as is the case in Zimbabwe. Through Boom 2017, we aim to play our part in enabling such small business champions to do what they do best with technology as their ally.

Ideally, what would you forecast for local businesses in 2017?

1. 2017 is going to be a tough year. The headwinds Zimbabwean business face are significant and beyond their control. Already, as others embrace a connected future, we’re disappointed to see costs of mobile internet access going up. This is unfortunate as the internet economy has the ability to add significantly to national development. We spend significant time in East Africa where very low data costs have added to local economies significantly. Having said this, technology will become increasingly important if businesses are to overcome many other existential challenges. For examples, reducing road times for company sales calls will avoid the nasty potholes that now dominate the country’s roads. Reliance on more e-payment methods and emerging disruptors like bitcoin can also avoid the cash crunch tragedy that has seen many innocent and productive people waste a great deal of time standing in long lines at banks.

What are your plans as a business for 2017?

2017 is going to be a tough year. The headwinds Zimbabwean business face are significant and beyond their control. Already, as others embrace a connected future, we’re disappointed to see costs of mobile internet access going up. This is unfortunate as the internet economy has the ability to add significantly to national development. We spend significant time in East Africa where very low data costs have added to local economies significantly. Having said this, technology will become increasingly important if businesses are to overcome many other existential challenges. For examples, reducing road times for company sales calls will avoid the nasty potholes that now dominate the country’s roads. Reliance on more e-payment methods and emerging disruptors like bitcoin can also avoid the cash crunch tragedy that has seen many innocent and productive people waste a great deal of time standing in long lines at banks.

As Esaja we’re driven by growth. Having Zimbabwean foundations enabled us to weather many storms. In 2017 we are looking forward to opening up more markets for businesses, especially across the region.

Disclosure: Techzim is an investor in Esaja and also have worked with Clinton Mutambo on other projects outside Esaja and continue to maintain a relationship with him.