Great news! You can get an e-commerce website for almost free in Singapore. The website can let your customers know your business location, regular hours of operation, check out your products and services while combining an inventory management or a POS system.
A website or even a landing page with all these features may cost you anywhere between S$2,000 and S$150,000 in Singapore. Can you expect someone to do it for almost free? Well, you don’t necessarily want it for “free”, do you?
How about a fraction of the cost? Say, the estimated budget of your website is S$3,000. You happened to find an award-winning web design company that can develop an-ecommerce website for you at only 20% of the cost? Sounds unbelievable, right? Here you go.
The Government of Singapore offers Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) to companies seeking ways to supercharge their technological initiatives to automate regular processes and boost overall productivity.
Upon meeting certain eligibility criteria, you can contact a Pre-Approved SMEs Go Digital Vendor like Orfeostory and get a full-featured e-commerce website while receiving up to 50% funding for your SME. Taking the activities of your business to the next level is just a few steps away.
So apart from the different criteria to fulfil, you need to focus on these three particular things as you move to apply for PSG and avail your business of this exciting opportunity –
- Industries and solutions covered by PSG
- Information about a Pre-Approved SMEs Go Digital Vendor
- Factors to consider as you want a vendor to develop e-commerce website for almost free in Singapore
In this article, you’ll know about the above points and kick-start your journey toward smart operations and long-term growth as a customer-centric enterprise.
Business Sectors and Industries Supported by PSG
Within the grant are various sector-specific solutions which include the construction, landscaping, precision engineering, food, retail, and logistics industries. In addition, the grant includes support for solutions that can be adopted by industries where financial management, data analytics, inventory tracking, and customer management are among the integral parts of day-to-day processes.
What to Know About a Pre-Approved SMEs Go Digital Vendor?
The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) accepts applications for the pre-approval of digital solutions developed by Infocomm Media (ICM) vendors and assesses them thoroughly before considering them cost-effective, standard, and useful enough to qualify for incentive support from the Government.
The programme involves a pre-approval system that evaluates ICM vendors on their capability to provide solutions that meet the demands or requirements of various target industries. It means a Pre-Approved Vendor is the trusted digital partner you want to connect with.
Factors to Consider for an E-Commerce Website
Without some understanding of what a good e-commerce website looks like, it can be difficult for SMEs to address their actual needs. These are the areas you should think about.
Branded Design
Since your ecommerce website works as an in-store display, it should enable you to stay relevant in the fast-changing ecommerce landscape. The website should be designed to encapsulate the core qualities and characteristics of your brand.
Website design has been a non-negotiable asset to any ecommerce business, which means that it showcases the brand identity in the most appropriate and attractive way possible.
Easy Navigation
For web design to be strong and engaging, the navigation doesn’t have to be complex or overly creative. Easier navigation is critical to the success of an ecommerce website because you don’t want customers to spend moments trying to figure out how to browse through the products.
An advanced search function combining the power of artificial intelligence makes your website more suitable for visitors who always want to find their desired products quickly. As long as you can bring users a streamlined shopping experience, you can expect to maximize conversions.
By easy navigation, we mean a uniform approach that translates easily to any device or screen size. With 47 percent of all ecommerce transactions in Singapore being completed on mobile devices, your business shouldn’t risk building a website that loads properly on desktop devices but not on smartphones.
So, you need to make sure your ecommerce website has the features to seamlessly scale the online store to all screen sizes as well as devices.
User-Friendly Order Functionality
The order functionality of an ecommerce website is closely associated with how you let customers experience your store. The website needs to have the required tools to collect and provide you relevant customer data so that you can personalize their shopping experiences, thereby enhancing their individual shopping journeys.
AI plays a significant role in presenting product recommendations and readjusting them based on users’ interactions in real time. Wish lists should be well-designed and fully functional for users to save their favorite items for purchase at a later time.
In brief, the entire procedure, from the signup process to checkout, order, payment and return, should be hassle-free, transparent, speedy, and convenient.
Integration with the Physical Retail Stores
Don’t you want your customers to know if they are able to find a desired product at the nearest physical store? We know you do, and a find-in-store CTA button that is linked to your inventory and geolocation is a smart way to help customers.
Multiple Payment Methods and Robust Security Features
Don’t expect every user to have access to the same payment gateway. They should be allowed to shop and pay as comfortably as possible. A good e-commerce website integrates the most popular and reliable payment methods.
With this comes the concerns for security as ecommerce transactions always involve exchange of financial information which is sensitive. This means a website must adopt the best-in-class security solutions and services to bring users peace of mind.
While the above factors are essential, an e-commerce website should include customer loyalty management, CRM features, newsletter, coupon management, and many other features. For additional information, please visit our PSG Grants page.
To wrap up, PSG supports enterprises that want to use IT equipment and solutions to enhance their existing operations. So, it makes sense for you to go for it and let a vendor like us develop an e-commerce website for almost free.
