We recently asked more than 150 small business owners in Launceston whether they thought the Internet would be important to their future growth - and 100% said yes. However, around one third of those business owners also said they didn’t know how to take advantage of this.
So we were delighted to visit Launceston today as the fourth stop on a nationwide roadshow (and that’s not just because of Tasmania’s delicious cheese!). The roadshow, in partnership with the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is part of our efforts to help small business around Australia make the most of the web.
Our guest Eric Hutchinson MP opened the event for around 120 Launceston small business owners, who then heard how the web could help them find new customers and grow their business. We heard from Lisa Tedeschi, the owner of fashion store Sebachi, who has used AdWords to market her clothes store not just to people in Launceston, but all over Australia. She told us how the Internet had helped her start exporting clothes overseas, to locations as far afield (and fashion-forward!) as Sweden and Belgium.
Lisa’s success is also Australia’s success. Research shows that businesses that are online are twice as likely to be growing and four times as likely to be hiring staff. So it’s vital for Australia that we support small businesses as they look to get online. The good news is that it only takes a few minutes, and you don’t even need a website to start off. To find out more about our free tools, have a look at Google My Business.
Posted by Richard Flanagan, Head of Small Business Marketing, Google Australia