Students from Universitas Gadjah Mada mentored 30 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Jatimulyo Village, Bantul Regency, to brand their products on social media and enter the digital ecosystem.
These pupils are part of the Village Digitalization Movement (Gerakan Digitalisasi Desa or Gerdes) under the Capacity Strengthening Program of the Student Executive Board at the UGM Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.
Team leader Rizka Wulan Adisty stated that the Gerdes team conducted this activity to assist MSMEs in advancing their businesses. One of the ways is by introducing technology such as digital marketing and e-commerce to aid in product marketing.
“We hope MSMEs can develop their sales from conventional methods to more modern ones, such as utilizing the numerous emerging e-commerce platforms, to expand the market for their products,” Adisty explained.
She further explained the mentoring began with program introduction in June 2023.
During the early activities, MSMEs were provided with explanations on how to brand products on social media, including marketing strategies, attractive promotional content, collaboration with the Trade Office, and financial management.
In addition, MSMEs were also given instructions on how to use Facebook for product promotion. In the future, the Gerdes team will also facilitate training activities for business owners.
Mukidi, the village chief of Jatimulyo, expressed his appreciation for the UGM students’ program. He expects that by modernizing the village through digital technologies, business owners could effectively utilize this program and increase their market reach.
“Hopefully, with this program, the products of MSMEs in Jatimulyo can be marketed even more extensively, starting from just inter-district sales to inter-province or international sales, all through social media,” the village chief said.
“Although they may not immediately reap huge profits, this is a good step towards developing MSMEs.”
In measuring the achievement of the program’s implementation, the UGM Village Development Grant Program team conducted an assessment of the program in three empowerment locations, with a focus on Jatimulyo’s flagship products, such as taro chips, taro flour, traditional Indonesian snack kembang goyang, rice crackers, and furniture.
The results showed that the Gerdes program achieved its targets, with the digitalization going well, supported by a collaborative village apparatus open to cooperation to strengthen local MSMEs.
Author: Ika
Photo: Gerdes Team