By Kabeer Jain
In today’s dynamic landscape, there are more than 63 million enterprises in the Indian MSME sector that contribute significantly to the nation’s economic landscape. Central to their journey of growth, modern technology has played a massive role. The tech-led transformative power has allowed even the smallest ventures, from your neighbourhood bakery to the local jeweller, grocery store, or pet shop, to deliver the same experience that your e-commerce and large organisations do, which has democratised the business arena. Today’s SMEs have easy access to technology, and no matter the scale of their business, they are leveraging technology to grow, overcome obstacles, and create their own success stories.
Tech-driven Merchant Experience
Long gone is the era when SMEs offered clunky customer experiences with zero marketing tools that could help them flourish. A 2023 survey by NASSCOM found that 62% of Indian MSMEs are using SaaS products to improve their business operations. Today, through the adoption of SaaS products powered by scalable, real-time architecture and personalisation engines, SMEs are creating better experiences that are building strong relationships with their customers and overcoming barriers. But, how?
Today, contemporary SMEs have access to real-time payment analytics and customer identification tools. They can create digital marketing campaigns, offers, promotions, and social creatives like any other giant and provide offers to their customers to drive loyalty and increase their sales through merchant apps. By focusing on building healthy customer relationships, SMEs can remain sustainable by keeping a steady flow of new customers through their business pipeline. Additionally, pre-approved loans and credit to SMEs are now available at their fingertips. A 2023 report by the Reserve Bank of India found that the share of pre-approved loans and credit in the total credit to MSMEs increased from 20% in 2021-22 to 25% in 2022-23, indicating further empowering SMEs and taking them a step closer to financial inclusion in the Indian economy.
In an age where technological prowess is within easy reach for SMEs across various sectors, they have levelled the playing field to a reasonable level – they can offer a digital experience on par with e-commerce and can compete with large-scale organisations. This shift in the landscape has put the power back in the hands of SMEs and enabled them to deliver customer experiences on par with their industry leaders.
Population Scale System and Global Expansion / Ready for the World
Today, SMEs aren’t limited by where they are—they can grow anywhere. A study by the World Bank found that small businesses in developing countries are using technology to grow and reach new customers. Technology helps them overcome challenges like not having a lot of resources or access to big markets and with India taking its tech around the globe through digital payments, the opportunities for SMEs are endless. Indian fintechs are building a platform that is equipped to handle and solve for different SMEs on scale. Given that our technology is built and tested in India based on multiple permutations and combinations, i.e., real-world scenarios across merchants of different categories and sizes, it is ready for the world because the scale on which we operate in India is far more complicated, which makes us ready for the world. This has acted as a catalyst for Indian fintechs to raise $5.65 billion in funding in 2022, making it the second most funded startup sector in India. As a result, Indian fintechs are expanding to new markets around the world, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Singapore.
Of course, this journey isn’t easy. Security and compliance are two of the most important factors and it’s important to stay safe and follow the rules, especially when we are entering the global market through payments and building beyond. We’re at the beginning of an exciting new time. The challenges that used to stop these businesses from growing are now being solved by fintechs and their modern technology. As we stride forward hand in hand with innovation, let us forge a future where the SME graph of success knows no bounds.
(The author is Kabeer Jain, Co-founder and Chief of Product Engineering, and the views expressed in this article are his own)
