Last week Claire Perry welcomed attendees at the first ever Google “Digital Garage” in Devizes organised by her Constituency team so that local small business leaders could receive free digital and social media training from Google experts. During the day attendees learnt digital skills and shortcuts to help them grow their business, career and confidence with the training tailored to market towns to help small businesses reach new customers.
Recent Federation of Small Business research found that over a quarter of small business lack confidence in their basic digital skills and this is holding them back from increasing their digital and online presence, a particular issue in market towns and rural areas.
Commenting, Claire said:
We have so many incredible local businesses out there but often people say they lack the digital skills and confidence to really build an online presence. That is why I arranged for the Google “Digital Garage” team to visit Devizes – their research has shown that small businesses with a strong web presence grow more than twice as quickly as competitors, create more than twice as many jobs, and are 50% more likely to sell outside of their local area.
It was a packed event and I am looking forward to seeing those businesses who attended really reap the benefits.
ENDS