Free support programme for rural businesses

Rural businesses can create tenfold increases in their audience size, with digital marketing technologies like virtual reality and 360° video.

That’s according to Digi2Market, an EU programme which launched a new campaign offering free marketing and networking support to rural and small-scale businesses.

The campaign is also staging a #ruralbusiness day on social media on Wednesday, January 19 which was recently launched in Northern Ireland by media research expert, Dr Helen Jackson, Ulster University.

The university is one of two NI agencies involved in the EU project, working alongside cross-border agency, ICBAN. Other partners are based in Finland, Iceland and the Republic of Ireland.

Dr Jackson explained: “The #ruralbusiness day aims to highlight the role small businesses play in regional economies. They provide employment and support sporting and community bodies. So, #ruralbusiness day gives everyone a chance to show their appreciation for these rural entrepreneurs.”

Dr Jackson outlined that rural businesses can feel “isolated and find it hard to reach bigger markets. Digi2Market helps them use immersive technologies like VR and Augmented Reality to boost their marketing efforts and reach bigger audiences. It also offers them a way to connect and network online with businesses across Europe.”

Andy Hallewell, innovation officer at ICBAN, the Irish Central Border Area Network highlighted that any EU or NI business is eligible to sign up to the programme: “However, our focus is on rural and small-scale businesses. We help them identify the latest technologies to market their business and put them into practice effectively.”

Dr Jackson continued: “Mobile phone apps and immersive technologies can transform the way people engage with tourist attractions like Mussenden Temple and Downhill Demesne. By linking physical and virtual spaces, visitors can explore the majestic clifftop location and discover the music, art, legends and stories of the people who lived there hundreds of years ago. And they do this with their phone in one hand and their feet firmly on the ground.”

Digi2Market helped Finnish wellness service company Rantakylän Fysikaalinen Hoitolaitos (RFH) reach new audiences with a 360° tour of their facilities. They also assisted them with the creation of an online store, which made it easier for customers to book and buy their services.

In Iceland, the Digi2Market partner is development agency SSNV. They collaborated with food processing company, Vörusmiðja Biopol, in a 360 virtual tour.

Sveinbjörg Rut Pétursdóttir of SSNV explained: “It gave potential customers a realistic visual idea on what to expect when they book food processing services.”

Digi2Market is also about helping small businesses to connect with other businesses across Europe. Another key function of the campaign is to encourage small businesses to use more sustainable business practices.

European expert, Dr Lasse Okkonen, principal lecturer at Karelia University in Finland – another Digi2Market partner - believes using a Green Business Model is not just about helping the environment: “Companies who apply environmental management systems and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) succeed better in public procurements of products and services. This is because they can better meet tightening environmental and responsibility criteria. In addition, enterprises applying green business models can better meet the expectations of stakeholders like industrial partners. They offer transparency on the environmental impact of everything they do to create a product or service.”

Small and rural businesses who want to sign up for free to the Digi2Market programme can do so directly from their website https://digi2market.eu/.

Digi2Market is an EU funded project under the Interreg Northern Periphery and Artic Programme. The partners in the project are Údarás na Gaeltachta & WestBIC from Ireland, ICBAN and Ulster University from Northern Ireland, Karelia University of Applied Sciences from Finland and SSNV (Business Development Agency) from Iceland.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper whenever you are able to do so.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper when you can safely.

You can also enjoy unlimited access to the best news from across Northern Ireland and the UK by subscribing to newsletter.co.uk

With a digital subscription, you can read more than five articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Thank you