In Southeast Asia, E-marketplaces grow: small firms in Cambodia, Laos and Viet Nam are sharing online costs to widen visibility to foreign buyers and increase exports.

• Author: Cordiner, Len

For most SMEs, the prohibitive cost of getting online, creating web sites and promotional materials and maintaining individual back office procedures can be overwhelming.

The Mekong Private Sector Development Facility (MPDF--managed by the International Finance Corporation) helps small firms by creating locally developed and managed e-marketplaces. They share costs of going online, building a web site, hosting, web marketing and a professional back office.

Hotels improve service with e-presence

Pilot projects targeted the tourism sector in Cambodia, Laos and Viet Nam. MPDF selected local hotel associations in Cambodia and Laos, for which adding an Internet dimension could boost exports. In Viet Nam, MPDF worked with a local tour company with offices across the country. Most participating firms, from guest houses to three star hotels, are locally owned and are experiencing the Internet for the first time. The back office operators for the common web site answer customer inquiries, liaise with hotels in local languages and collect payments.

The online "e-clusters" help build association memberships and revenue--from member dues and commissions--which is fed back to improve the quality of the service provided to online customers.

Applying the model to other sectors

Using PEOPLink's CatGen software, MPDF is contributing to building e-trade capacities among small exporters in the region.

E-marketplace templates

Working through national contractors, MPDF builds industry portal templates using CatGen online catalogue-generating software, which handle bookings, order management, web marketing and tracking, account management and, ultimately, online payment.

Back office support

With different languages, national economic systems and ways of doing business in the region, it's especially...