How To Market a Hong Kong SME

Various sector of SMEs sector in Hong Kong

SMEs are in various sectors as listed below. They can be divided into 2 separate subsections: industry and services.

Industry subsector

• manufacturing,
• mining & quarrying,
• electricity & gas supply,
• construction, and
• waste management.

Service subsector

• the import/export trade & wholesale,
• retail,
• transportation,
• storage, postal & courier services,
• accommodation & food services,
• information & communication,
• financing & insurance,
• real estate,
• professional business services, and
• social & personal services.

In terms of the number of SMEs and employees, the largest from each subsector is manufacturing and import/export trade & wholesale respectively.

Why SMEs fail?

Many SMEs fail because of the following reasons:

1. Lack of spending power required for useful research and development. Which in turn puts pressure on leaders to understand the trends of their market.
2. Significant sudden investments that bring unanticipated results.
3. Insufficient knowledge of data security and management. SMEs should know how to create, store, transfer, share, and dispose of their data. Not employing the right security frameworks to technology adoption puts the business at risk for a data breach.
4. Inefficient back-end operations. To achieve more streamlined operations, a manager should consider a higher level of integration, which in turn gives him/her more visibility and oversight across functions.
5. Insufficient risk analysis.
6. Lack of debt collection mechanisms. Late payments hinder SMEs from venturing into new investments.
7. Poor resource management
8. Misunderstood market demand.
9. Lack of knowledge of customer experience.
10. Inefficient monitoring of sale performance.
11. Limited access to finances.
12. Limited knowledge on accounting.
13. Civil unrests like continuous protests have a toll on business performances as consumption rates reduce due to fear of public places and large crowds.
14. Insufficient knowledge of sales and marketing of products and services.
15. High labor costs leading to underemployment.
16. Prohibitively high-interest rates that curb funding for expansion.

Fortunately, with our wealth of experience helping new businesses. We can help to mitigate many of these issues. By working with Paul Hype Page, we can share our knowledge and experience with various markets to help your business.

We also have experience in accountancy and can help you with your back-end administrative work. This frees up your time to focus on your business matters to ensure success.

Marketing an SME

Building a Global Brand

While your business might be based in Hong Kong, you must also be focused on building a regional presence. Being situated regional business hub such as Hong Kong, it is a waste to not take advantage of the many benefits of having a regional presence. Paul Hype Page is an example of such an international firm. We operate in many countries around the region and can testify to the many benefits of expansion.

A firm with a regional presence is seen as more reliable, and your clients will have greater trust in you. You will also be able to cater to a much larger market, by expanding overseas.

Fortunately, Hong Kong makes it easy for SMEs to expand, with funds such as the Export Marketing Fund (EMF) readily available to aid them. Paul Hype Page is here to help as well, we offer services to incorporate your company in various markets tailored to your business needs. We will also advise you on which market is best suited for you.

Embrace New Technology

Hong Kong has slightly more than half of its population online, and SMEs can enjoy being based in an internationally connected business hub as provided by internet penetration. Digital technology can help SMEs access a broader target audience. SMEs that leverage online marketing to create brand awareness and drive acquisitions are three times more likely to experience their desired level of growth. Digital technologies allow SMEs to gain market intelligence, scale, and tap into global markets at relatively low cost.

Listen and have insight
Offer a real incentive to the time-poor individuals who take the time to talk to you. You can start with industry organizations that have a useful online presence and run regional events that are worth attending. Be brief but full of information.

Use social media
Facebook advertising has attracted close to two million SMEs as it is an inexpensive and effective way to market products and services to just any audience. Statista reported that there are 6.5 million Facebook users in Hong Kong as of 2019 and it is expected to grow to 7.2 million by 2025. SMEs owners should leverage the power of social media to market their business in Hong Kong.

Next, make use of Google My Business (GMB). When a potential customer types a search, your products/services or company show as top results. GMB combines all your Google platforms into one central place. These include your Google+ profile, Google maps profile, your Google reviews, access to data on Google Analytics, and Google insights, thus immediately giving your business credibility and visibility.

Email marketing 

Email marketing is another area of social media to venture in. Most people who visit your site will not immediately buy from you, so capturing contact information for additional marketing is essential. Have a “lead magnet” for example something you offer them in exchange for their email address like a free service trial or download.

Use of direct mail marketing. You can employ creativity. For example, you can customize your envelopes to make them appealing and attractive through unusual shapes, sizes, or materials.

Webinar

Make use of a webinar. A webinar is simply a seminar that takes place online in the form of a presentation, demonstration, or discussion. And they are more engaging than simple videos.

Advertise in Niche Print Media.
As print media continues to decrease in overall popularity, the pricing or advertisement gets lower, so in the right niches, it is possible to run effective ads at affordable prices. To achieve a more effective outcome, combine it with social media.

Writing a column 
Where you get to share your expertise in the form of weekly or monthly write-ups. These columns allow you to make consistent contact with an audience, thus building an actual relationship with the publication’s readers.

Content marketing
This is the process of creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined target. You require quality content, related topics, consistent content creation that is optimized for readers. Content writing is not limited to blog posts. It includes videos, podcasts, and online courses. Ensure you have the time and capital needed to get started with no initial ROI.

Local business groups. 
Joining local business groups like The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and The Federation of Hong Kong Business Associations Worldwide. These business groups will allow you to meet up with other like-minded people who already share some common ground with you.

Partner with other businesses 
By combining resources to work out a complementary arrangement that provides mutual benefit to both companies. For example, a marketing company could partner with an accounting firm to recommend each other’s services during new client onboarding, a coffee shop could offer free vouchers to a snack place, and a counselor could refer a client to a lawyer or private hospital.

Offer Staff Incentives
Current staff is the best-suited way to get referrals because they know your product or service and your customer base, so they should be motivated to repeat the process each time they refer a customer/client.

Use Coupon Deal Sites
These sites amass massive audiences according to location, allowing local regional and even national businesses to offer limited-time discounts to their members. An example of such a website is Groupon. But coupon deal sites do not promote sales but rather promote deals, so unless you are making good deals, it is the last option.

The vitality and business performance of SMEs is very crucial to the development of Hong Kong’s economy. For economic growth to occur on a national level, there must be a partnership between the government and the private sector SMEs. The Trade and Industry Department provides service which aims to facilitate the development of SMEs and enhance competitiveness. The department strives to:

• Provide SMEs with a comprehensive range of free business information through the Support and Consultation Centre for SMEs:
• It administers funding schemes
• Provide secretariat support to the SME committee
• Participate in the SME-related activities of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and
• Promote the importance of brand building, provide useful information on brand development and market exploration.