Mastercard, Standard Bank & Google partner to help SMEs expedite digital transformation

By Pavithra R

Mastercard has announced a partnership with Standard Bank and Google to help Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) move their businesses online, accept digital payments and attract more customers.

Through the collaboration, SMEs can now get free access to Standard Bank’s SimplyBlu, an all-in-one e-commerce solution powered by Mastercard Payment Gateway Services, plus free Google Ads to the value of R500. These capabilities have been packaged as a bundled solution to help support business owners to tackle the economic challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“As one of South Africa’s leading financial service providers, Standard Bank is acutely aware that small businesses play an important role in driving economic growth and generating employment opportunities. Our strategic relationships with leading brands such as Mastercard and Google ensure that we are able to support small businesses and offer our clients tangible benefits that add real value,” said Nelisa Zulu from Standard Bank.

SimplyBlu, launched in 2019, enables SMEs to create an online presence through the plug-and-play e-commerce store builder, which is interfaced with instant online checkout. The platform, taking into consideration skill levels and resource constraints, is designed in such a way that users can set it up and start accepting payments quickly.

SMEs can make use of Google Ads to get access to a digital marketing channel that will further help them in driving increased website visits to grow online sales, bookings or mailing list signups; more phone calls and customer interest queries; as well as more in-store visits.

“We recognise the overwhelming pressure that small business owners are currently facing and are committed to supporting them through COVID-19 and beyond as they adapt to a new way of operating and evolved customer needs. Through this collaboration, our mission is to help as many SMEs with tools and support to expand their digital capabilities and take their operations to the next level,” said Suzanne Morel, Country Manager, Mastercard, South Africa.

“Small businesses have been hardest hit during this period. Many of them have had to figure out quickly how to pivot their operations to a ‘digital-first’ approach. Yet, there remains a gap between those who can access these online opportunities and those who can’t. That’s the gap we want to bridge with this collaboration,” said Google South Africa Country Director Alistair Mokoena.

Recently, Mastercard & Pick n Pay partnered to launch ‘Click to Feed’ initiative.

Established since 1862, Johannesburg based Standard Bank Group is the largest African bank by assets with a unique footprint across 20 African countries. The bank’s strategic position enables it to connect Africa to other selected emerging markets as well as pools of capital in developed markets, and its balanced portfolio of businesses provide significant opportunities for growth.