COLOMBIA, SC (WIS) – As the coronavirus pandemic continues to increase, so do the financial difficulties of many small businesses.
This week, Google launched a free online training program in South Carolina to help provide black and Latino homeowners with the tools they need to succeed.
Google believes that such training is essential to help stimulate economic opportunities for small, minority businesses. At Americas Servicios in West Columbia, the pandemic affected revenue. CEO Ulises Chavez says he and his team spent three months without receiving any revenue. The office is still empty and most appointments are online.
The longtime entrepreneur considers himself lucky to still have a job and to know how to do his business online. “We are adapting to this new era,” said Chávez. “This is what keeps us afloat. Technology has been our best friend; We are doing a lot of things online, so this is our new recipe ”.
The CEO of Smart Cookie Coaching and Grow with Google digital coach, Shennice Cleckley, says small businesses owned by blacks and Latinos are behind the curve in the digital space. She is helping to launch Grow with Google in South Carolina. “In March, you know that everyone was panicking,” she explained. “Once they put a strategy into practice and learned some of the tools they needed to appear on social media and collaborate with others, they were able to increase their profits more than they thought they would need to do. “
Cleckley has helped small businesses, like Styles Confidential Hair Studio, create websites to expand their customer base.
“Online presence is everything in today’s society,” said owner Belinda Harmon. “I wasn’t working with online booking sites much before the pandemic, but I believe that the more people who come from certain salons, the more intrigued they will want to come.” Harmon is eager to start free training to learn how to better market his business and manage and update his website on his own.
Grow with Google has also garnered the support of South Carolina officials, such as Congressman James Clyburn and Senator Tim Scott, who say programs like this are needed to help owners of small colored businesses thrive.
“These small businesses are bringing jobs, they are bringing goods or services and you can see the contact points right there in your community,” said Cleckley. “You don’t have to go far, and it just makes me proud.”
More than 60 small business owners signed up for the virtual launch. Grow with Google plans to hold three to five virtual sessions per month. To register for the workshop click on here.
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