Introduction:
Mme Re Ka Thusa Trust Fund (MRKTTF) has partnered with Digify GP and Precy SEO Marketing to create an exciting initiative to support and empower women entrepreneurs in Kimberley, Northern Cape province.
This collaboration brings digital marketing and local SEO support to women-owned businesses, helping women in business increase their online presence, attract more customers, and be competitive.
Table of Content
About the Trust (How the Trust helps women in business)
Mme Re Ka Thusa Trust Fund (MRKTTF) was established by the Northern Cape Government to assist women in starting and growing businesses. It is one strategy for addressing women’s unemployment, which can be achieved through the provision of credit and equipping women with appropriate skills to creatively engage in economically viable activities.
The overall objective of MRKTTF is to promote entrepreneurship among women as a link to sustainable livelihood.
The mission of Mme Re Ka Thusa Trust Fund is to offer accessible, affordable financial, and innovative business support services to Northern Ca[pe women for transformed livelihoods through resource mobilization, collaborations, and partnerships.
The services the Trust offers are:
- Skills
Practical skills development through training and workshops in several essential subject areas required to run a strong and successful business.
- Support
Provides business development services to women entrepreneurs. Facilitate marketing of products and services to women entrepreneurship. Support women-oriented micro, small, and medium entrepreneurs to develop linkages with large enterprises.
- Profession Advice
The professional advice and guidance are to help women in business with the challenges and growth strategies, as well as marketing and financial issues. Assist in the development of a business plan and assess the plan for financing.
- Networking
Events, workshops, and networking connections– To connect women to other business service providers throughout the province, as well as to networking and peer learning opportunities.
- Business funding
The trust provides business funding to women-owned businesses up to R50 000.
Why partner with Digify GP
As part of this partnership, Digify GP is placing its graduates with local women-owned businesses in Kimberley, providing a month-long digital marketing internship program. These interns bring fresh skills in digital marketing, assisting local businesses with tasks like setting up social media profiles, creating content, and implementing online marketing strategies. This on-the-ground support allows businesses to establish a digital presence and engage with customers online, all while empowering the interns with real-world experience in the field.
What is Digify Africa you may ask?
Digify Africa is a youth-led organization that is at the forefront of shaping Africa’s digital future. Their mission is to bring digital skills to young people across all communities through our various programs and training. Their programs are:
- DigifyPRO
DigifyPro is an immersive, award-winning 10-week Digital Marketing Bootcamp supported by Facebook. They source high-potential/low-opportunity youth in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. The program helps unemployed learners become competent digital marketing professionals with practical experience in social media, analytics, search, SEO, content, and UX.
- Digify bytes.
Digify Bytes is a new nationwide digital literacy program that has been commissioned by the British High Commission and aims to benefit youth, women, persons with disabilities, and the elderly across South Africa.
Through Digify Bytes, South Africans will discover how to use online technology to gain access to information, communicate with ease, and access services and opportunities online.
- Digify GP
Digify General Practitioners (GPs) aims to address the lack of access to digital education and skills in rural areas of the Northern Cape, particularly for individuals who hope to launch their ventures through freelancing or small businesses.
To read more about Digify Africa click here => https://digifyafrica.com/academy/
Why Precy SEO Marketing partnered with the trust
Mme Re Ka Thusa Trust Fund partnered with Precy SEO Marketing to help Kimberley’s women in business get their businesses listed on Google through the Google Business Profile optimization services they offer.
What is Precy SEO Marketing?
Precy SEO Marketing is a local SEO digital marketing agency in Kimberley dedicated to helping local businesses get found by potential customers who are searching for you online, they do that by increasing local businesses’ online visibility through local SEO and Google business profile optimization. It works with local micro, small, and medium businesses to ensure they’re easily found by people searching for their services nearby.
Let’s start by explaining what Local SEO is.
Local SEO makes it easy for people searching for you to find your business. Let’s make an example:
Chips in Kimberley
Nail salon in Kimberley
Cakes in Kimberley
Tailor in Kimberley
Biscuits in Kimberley
The list goes on and on as you can see when people are typing for your services or products in Kimberley they don’t necessarily have to know your business name in order to find you they are typing what they are looking for the service or product. The most important marking asset for local businesses is probably Google Business Profile but a lot of local businesses neglect it so don’t also make that mistake.
Need help adding your business found click here => https://precyseomarketing.co.za/
The “why” behind Precy SEO Marketing is simple: they believe that every great local business deserves to be seen. Many small, local businesses struggle not because they lack quality products or services but because potential customers can’t find them online. Their mission is to bridge that gap, using proven local SEO strategies to put these businesses in front of the right audience. The services offered include:
- Setting up or listing business in Google
- Optimizing Google Business Profiles
- Developing tailored local SEO strategies
- Managing local citations
- Creating local ad campaigns,
- Building or optimizing websites with effective local SEO tactics.
Precy SEO Marketing works with small businesses because they are passionate about helping the “hidden diamonds” in the community get the attention they deserve.
How this partnership empowers Kimberley women in business
The collaboration between Mme Re Ka Thusa Trust Fund, Digify GP, and Precy SEO Marketing is offering valuable benefits to Kimberley’s women in business. With hands-on support in digital marketing and local SEO, these business owners will have Digify Gp graduates from Digify Africa who will do digital marketing for them for a month and Precy SEO Marketing who will list their business on Google, Optimize their Google Business Profile and after a month show them how to look at their data or information.
Digital marketing giveaway
The digital marketing giveaway started with the partnership the trust did with Digify Africa and Precy SEO Marketing.
Digify Africa has graduates who did the Digify GP program and needed experience so they approached the Trust to place their learners. Looking at what the graduates were bringing we approached Precy SEO Marketing to be a part of this partnership by bringing in the local SEO aspect. As they only had a few graduates we could not have a lot of businesses to participate so we did a digital marketing giveaway competition.
We started by opening the competition on 11 October 2024 to offer women in business FREE digital marketing services for 1 month. All you had to do was enter for a chance to WIN!
How to enter:
1) Like and Follow our page
2) Fill in the Google form
Who can enter:
1) Women-owned businesses or female majority shareholder businesses.
2) Registered businesses.
3) Businesses operating in Sol. Plaatje Local Municipality
What will you win?
Digital marketing services
On 22 October we posted the 12 shortlisted businesses that stood a chance for the Digital Marketing Giveaway. After a thorough analysis of the entries and evaluations of different business needs, the following SMMEs were invited for a roundtable presentation. Those women-owned businesses were:
1. Lily’s Events & Clothing
2. Spear Communications
3. Motlakeeme Enterprise
4. Lunama Trading
5. Bake N Shine Solutions
6. Umar’s Innovations (Pty) Ltd
7. Jursilvano Enterprise
8. NT General Traders
9. M and T Food Hut
10. Trutu Eleonora (Pty) Ltd
11. Sis Kay’s Eateries
12. Egopotseng Trading
The business presentation day took place on the 24 October 2024 at Absa Regision Office Kimberley in their boardroom. The women in business delivered powerful presentations, showcasing their businesses. It was incredible to witness the confidence, passion, and vision these women have for their businesses.
The panel had the following people:
- Tefo Zitha a marketing and communication officer at the trust
- Neo the Frances baard district co-ordinator
- Sis Connie the Absa representative
- Precious from Precy SEO Marketing
- Thami is an IT Technician at the trust and was the cameraman for the day.
Digital Marketing Giveaway winners
On the 1st of November, we announced the winners based on a thorough evaluation of the presentations, instead of selecting (5) five SMMEs the panelists made provision for (6) six.
The businesses through our partnership walk away with:
- A dedicated content creator (at zero charges).
- Invite to a Digify Mixer (A networking event, where these SMMEs will meet their content creators).
- Digital Business Branding
- Have their businesses listed on Google
The businesses that made it are:
1. M and T Food Hut
2. Motlakeeme Enterprise
3. Bake N Shine Solutions
4. Trutu Eleonora (Pty) Ltd
5. Sis Kay’s Eateries
6. Spear Communications
Digify Mixer
The Digify Mixer took place today 04 November 2024 at the Kimberley Public Library. The Digify mixer was attended by:
- Kimberley local businesses
- Digify GP Graduates
- Mme Re Ka Thusa Trust Fund
- Department of Economic Development and Tourism
The event started welcome by the hosts Digify GP explaining the purpose of the event which is to network and get to know the people the women in businesses will be working with.
The Frances Baard district coordinator explained what the trust is about and how they help women in business. Followed the Department of Economic Development explaining the finacial and non-financial services they offer.
After the alumna talked about their experience in doing the Digify GP program and where they are now Edin explained what Digify GP is.
A 5-minute chair music started to network and check the chemistry test with the graduates presenting a pitch to the local businesses and also troubleshooting strategies for the unique businesses, while SMMEs were also afforded an opportunity to “chemistry test” for the graduates they will be working with.
Conclusion
The next step
- The Digify GP will sign an MOU with the business and place the graduates for 1 month with different businesses.
- Precy SEO Marketing will list the businesses on Google and optimize their Google business profile.
Together, we’re empowering local women in business to reach new heights in the digital space! We are doing this with the partnership and the help of our partners.
- Digify Africa is a youth-led organization that is at the forefront of shaping Africa’s digital future. Their mission is to bring digital skills to young people across all communities through our various programs and training.
- Precy SEO Marketing exists to empower local businesses by driving visibility and connecting them with the local community that’s already looking for their services.
It is time for your businesses to adopt such online strategies and reach their targeted audiences where they spend their time.
A huge thanks to the panel for their time and support and to our partners and stakeholders for making this program possible.