New Zealand Post plans for online market
New Zealand Post plans to develop an online marketplace to help small and medium-sized enterprises export goods and services online, with possible financial backing from the Government.
It intends to set up a website to let businesses deal directly with overseas consumers, while handling shipping, logistics and the processing of international payments for them. Spokeswoman Fiona Mayo says a decision on whether the proposal will go ahead could be made next month, after which NZ Post may approach the Government for help.
However, the service is unlikely to be available for about a year. ''It will be a public-private partnership, but it needs to be approved from our end before any government funding comes our way.''
Ms Mayo says the cost has not yet been worked out, but NZ Post has already invested a lot of time in the plan. ''We have designed what we want to do, but we haven't taken it beyond that at this stage. It certainly would be a first for New Zealand.''
NZ Post's proposal was outlined in a report commissioned by the Government into the results of an e-commerce trial that ended last year. It says NZ Post's ''online export-focused e-tail initiative'' is designed to increase the number of parcels NZ Post carries by giving overseas consumers access to Kiwi products through a ''one stop shop''.
''This would potentially take the form of a web-based marketplace that was used as a forum to showcase New Zealand businesses and products directly to defined groups of international customers.''
Revenues from parcel deliveries generated by domestic online auction house Trade Me and other websites have been critical in helping NZ Post compensate for a drop in letter volumes caused by the increase in e-mailing. Ms Mayo says NZ Post began a trial with Singapore Post in September. Singapore Post runs an online catalogue frequented by 300,000 consumers who have been able to buy from 14 New Zealand firms, with fulfilment handled by NZ Post. Discussions have taken place with postal services in Korea, Hong Kong and Japan, which are also potential partners.
The initiative is being touted as the natural successor to the Comet project, part-funded by the Economic Development Ministry, which aimed to provide assistance to SMEs to get involved in e-commerce.
Between June 2005 and March 2006, 30 SMEs were given hands-on help trading online by Dunedin software developer e-Media, at a cost to the Government of $500,000.
Most of them had not previously dipped their toes in the water because of lack of information and uncertainty about the costs involved. Another 566 small businesses enrolled to receive free e-commerce software from e-Media, six month's free web-hosting from Telecom, discounted training from UCOL and other assistance. Of those, 156 went on to set up shopping websites.
The review of the Comet project, just issued by Small Business Minister Lianne Dalziel, says the scheme showed SMEs need a lot of assistance -including advice on marketing and copy-writing -to entice them to set up export-oriented shopping websites. It says NZ Post's plan could be the best way to go.
Those businesses that enrolled in the Comet programme and were well-motivated tended to be successful, but the ''BMW, boat and bach'' mentality is deep-rooted, the study suggests.
Many of the SME owners told Otago University, which helped with the study, that they were more interested in preserving the quality of their lifestyles than positioning their businesses for rapid and substantial growth. ''It seems that the single biggest barrier to most SMEs becoming e-commerce-enabled for export is a lack of commitment and effort,'' the report says.
Charitable trust E-Regions, which wrote the report, says the Economic Development Ministry and other organisations that supported the Comet initiative should develop ''a pilot, aligned to NZ Post's proposed Aggregate Demand initiative''.
This would help provide a onestop- shop for information to help SMEs overcome the hurdles to exporting online, it says.
