Grab has launched its Small Business Booster Programme in Singapore. Said programme will include tools and initiatives that will make it much easier for offline businesses to transform themselves and make the shift towards digitisation. The programme also aims to help those already on the Grab platform to expand their visibility and adapt their operations digitally.
Specifically, the programme claims to facilitate the digitalisation of small businesses either by giving them a digital storefront on the Grab platform or through e-payments integration.
Via the programme, food businesses are able to build an online store, set up cashless payment options, and operate on Grab in 24 hours. It also provides merchants the appropriate tools to view their sales, their operations, their customers’ purchasing habits, and the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns. The app has begun gradually rolling out throughout Singapore, which will be soon followed by a web portal from July onwards.
Meanwhile, Grab’s Offline to Online (O2O) Merchant Support Programme will allow offline businesses to go online via partnerships with e-commerce solution providers that allow for easy set up of online stores with GrabPay integration. This programme is schedules to begin in the coming weeks; first in Singapore, followed by Malaysia and the Philippines.
Another feature that will soon be introduced into the porgramme is Merchant Discovery, which is aimed at increasing discoverability for businesses and drive more foot traffic to their physical stores, as Singapore’s circuit breaker lockdown begins winding down. From early Q3, Grab users will be able to view merchants near them through the ‘Nearby Merchants’ widget on the Grab app.
Following this, Grab is also planning to roll out additional customer loyalty plans for merchant partners in Q3.
Finally, Grab’s Homegrown Heroes Initiative will see the company creating personalised ads for approximately 6,000 local businesses in 28 cities across 8 countries, and feature them on the most prominent spaces within the app for a five-week period starting in July. In addition to this, Grab has also pledged to cover all costs and resources required to produce these marketing materials across the SEA region. The initiative is estimated to hit S$48.69m (US$35m).
