By Inside Biz
The Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA) has once again joined hands with the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) to provide free online training to businesses and professionals interested in gaining knowledge on PR and social media marketing.
The training has been funded by TAITRA and will take place on Wednesday, 31 May 2023. It will comprise virtual facilitators who have been provided by TAITRA.
EIPA Head of Trade Bongani Ntshangase gives his view of the impact of social media on business and why each entity in the country needs to have a solid PR program.
“Business finds itself at an interesting point in PR and marketing as the world is now becoming more and more digitized on a daily basis. Social media marketing applies the concept of targeted marketing and advertising; therefore, it creates maximum brand awareness among the target audience at a lower cost. It also reduces operating costs and increases the profit margin of the businesses. With the advent of the 4th industrial revolution, it is unavoidable that enterprises need to acquire the skills or procure services that allow them to create a strong online presence. This online presence will assist them not only with engaging those in their immediate local client base, but it will also play a vital role in taking their products beyond our borders should they wish to join the export market.”
Ntshangase continues, “Research by Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA) has given a view of what cellphone penetration looks like in Sub-Saharan Africa. As we know, social media is consumed mostly on mobile devices. The survey by GSMA showed mobile phone subscribers stood at 46 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa. Smartphone adoption stood at 64 percent. By 2025, these figures would have grown to 50 percent and 75 percent respectively. The research also affirms that by the end of 2020, 495 million people had subscribed to mobile services in Sub-Saharan Africa. The popularity of social media has led to the opening of a new avenue – digital marketing, which uses different digital platforms to promote a product or service. Social media marketing is a part of the digital marketing umbrella that markets products and services on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. This presents an undeniable opportunity for local business going into the future.”
The training will take place on Microsoft Teams at 10 am on Wednesday 31 May 2023. Topics will include Public Relations Strategies, Social Media platforms, Online Marketing & e-commerce, B2B Technology, and how to fully leverage buyeswatini.com.
EIPA notes that interested candidates can also visit the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority Facebook page to get more info.
To join the training participants can visit the EIPA website, investeswatini.org.sz, or the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority Facebook page for the training link.