EMPOWERING COMMUNITY-BASED MSMEs THROUGH INCLUSIVE CONTENT CREATION AND DIGITAL MARKETING TRAINING
Abstract
This paper presents the community service program to develop the capacity of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the community through inclusive content development and digital marketing training. The program was implemented in South Tangerang and involved the vocational students with local MSMEs using a low barrier to access tools like Canva and WhatsApp to develop their digital skill heightening the actual technology potential of MSMEs. In the baseline reading, the MSME representatives expressed limited competencies in terms of digital marketing competencies and knowledge of inclusive communication. Participants engaged in participatory action research (PAR) for five subsequent workshops and a mentoring scheme to improve their skills and understandings of branding, visual storytelling, and the concepts of inclusive design. Based on various formative evaluations to capture audience feedback, a pre-post training evaluation demonstrated an increase of 72% on digital content-related skills, and 100% of participants incorporated inclusive elements, such as a variety of visual/image representation and captions that were accessible in their final projects. This initiative also supports the achievement of SDG 4, 8 and 9 by promoting quality education and lifelong learning with respect to economic empowerment for MSME enterprises, and innovation. Logistical barriers to digital content and sustained engagement continued to exist, but these findings can be leveraged to establish a viable, scalable model for digital transformation among grassroots entrepreneurs.
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