Michael Onwuka, Enugu
The Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has trained no fewer than 50 non-oil exporters in the South-East on digital marketing, Ikengaonline reports.
Mrs Salamatu Audi from the Policy and Strategy Department, NEPC, Abuja, said this on Friday in Enugu during the training of non-oil exporters in the zone on E-commerce.
Audi said that the training was to assist the exporters to effectively use the E-commerce platform of the council.
Audi said that the training was in collaboration with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).
She said that the high rate of insecurity and the dwindling economy had made it necessary for exporters to facilitate their activities through digital marketing.
According to her, digital marketing gives people the opportunity to access free online portal and provides exporters the platform to have a domain name to market their products.
“Before now, our exporters could not do much in marketing their products because of the distance and cost involved.
“To break barriers in business, you need to be technologically savvy and have online shops because the physical shops you have is no longer enough to participate in the global market.
“So, we are collaborating with NITDA to train Small and Medium Enterprises operators,” she said .
Audi said that the participants had already reasonably built their capacities in the global market, adding that they would be given free personal domain names where they would be selling their products for one year.
Also, the South-East Regional Coordinator, NEPC, Mr Arnold Jackson, said that the training was to help the participants market their products in the international market.
Jackson said that E-commerce had revolutionised global trade, adding that one needed not carry their products to anywhere before they could sell.
“We want to expose exporters in the zone to E-commerce platforms with a view to ensuring that they sell their products on internet.
“With the current reality in the country, the best thing to do is to go digital but certain parameters must be put in place to be able to sell on that platform,” Jackson said.
Also, a member of staff of NEPC Mr.Tony Olenloa, said that non-oil export had become the only means of survival for Nigeria.
Olenloa said that as part of its services, the NEPC had helped exporters to withstand global competition.
A representative of NITDA, Mr. Oguntade Adeseye, said that digital marketing had helped companies create value for their customers as well as build strong customer relationship.
