(From left) Vijayaratnam, Fung, Dason and Keshvinder during the panel session discussion during the MDeC Online Community Gathering here in Kuching.
KUCHING: The adoption of digital technology is crucial for businesses to grow and create connected communities especially in a terrane-covered state like Sarawak.
This was among the highlights of Multimedia Development Corporation’s (MDeC) first Online Community Gathering in Sarawak in its bid to engage with the online communities in the state.
During the event, MDeC vice president of corporate communications and marketing Vijayaratnam Tharumaratnam said there was a lot of potential for growth in terms of business connectivity in Sarawak.
“The one thing the Internet has done is that it has changed the balance of power. Everyone has the platform to reach out, to drive through to customers. Through our Digital Malaysia initiative, MDeC foresees that digital adoption can greatly benefit people in the state,” Vijayaratnam said.
MDeC is particularly targetting four key communities identified under Digital Malaysia which is youth, digital entrepreneurs, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and the bottom 40 per cent of the population with the lowest income.
“It is our hope that by becoming more connected, we can provide more opportunities for business growth to these communities and move holistically as a nation towards the Digital Economy,” he added.
A panel discussion was also held that night with industry specialists such as Chiiea Consultants eCommerce trainer Carol Fung, Sarawak Bloggers coodinator and founder Cyril Dason and pitchIN.my co-founder Kashminder Singh.
Fung spoke about her experiences with her eCommerce business, gaining success from selling products as simple as safety pins and ribbons to overseas customers such as in the UK. Fung gave advices on how to deal with an online business such as marketing, delivery and other aspects.
Dason spoke about Sarawak Bloggers and his experience in creating a blogging community in Sarawak. He commented that bloggers here are indeed keen and proud to help put Kuching on the map on an online platform.
As for pitchIN.my, Malaysia’s very own crowdfunding platform, Keshvinder spoke about how he and his partner came about starting pitchIN.my, the concept behind crowdfunding and what some of the challenges were.