Support measures for the digital transformation of commerce and commercial associations

Barcelona City Council’s Department of Commerce has implemented support measures for shops and commercial associations to promote digital transformations. These initiatives are part of a strategy for enabling the steady development of the current commercial model towards an omni-channel environment.

A digital-transformation process involves reaching various levels of digital maturity, from a stage without any online presence to other stages where presence steadily increases: basic, extensive and active presence for achieving a digital-commerce status.

The resources on offer are listed in a transformation itinerary for each shop and association, that includes activities and a continual support system, which enables participants to progress step by step along the various levels of digital maturity with an evaluation of results and follow-up proposals. The proposed itinerary is based on five cornerstones: training, advice and accompaniment, economic support with grants and subsidies, knowledge and new solutions.

Training

Under the “Open to the Future” training programme and the offers it  Barcelona Activa provides Growing Business Network, initiatives have been planned through training courses appropriate to the digital maturity of the shops and associations concerned.

These training initiatives not only involves learning about tools, but also digital technology and management strategies. This includes deploying and managing social networks and websites, creating content, digital communication and marketing, digital advertising, online sales platforms and strategic planning and funding.

These courses can be taken in person, at Barcelona Activa and various points in the city, or online, under MOOC training activities (Massive On line Open Course), for example.  

Advice and support

A specific team of professionals has been set up in the Business Care Office (OAE) to deal with the needs raised by individual shops and associations. The OAE will be the Information and advice point. The starting point will be carrying out an analysis of the participants'  digital-maturity and, depending on their level, they will be recommended an action plan with a training itinerary, and provided with information on the available financial and technical resources. The value of this service is that while advice is being given, support can also be offered throughout the transformation process. The advice is individual, although depending on the features of the shop; group sessions, or even specific sessions for a single business, can be held.

In the initial phase, the advice service  covers shops at a more basic level of digital maturity and later introduces more specific services in strategic and digital fields, such as preparing digital marketing plans or digital business plans. The underlying idea is for shops to have the necessary tools for progressing towards their digital transformation. For example, the OAE monitors the initiatives carried out by shops and helps them with submitting grant and subsidy applications.

Grants and subsidies

In order to encourage digital transformation, the Department of Commerce is now operating a subsidy-application campaign, so that shops can have a basic or extensive active online presence and associations can extend their portfolio of services (see further information on the subsidies envisaged for digital transformations in 2018) . Subsidy applications can be submitted until 2 July.

Knowledge

In addition to organising events and activities for informing shops and the organisations representing the sector, the creation of information systems will provide data, as a result of the various processes set in motion. A database will compile the information generated from current lines of action and a website will be put up to share information and convert it into knowledge concerning the transformation process. An online site that will have digital tools and apps for shops and which aims to become a benchmark in the sector,providing knowledge on trends, the success stories of city shops and a directory that raises the profiles of shops which combine physical establishments with online sales channels.

Pilot schemes

Pilot schemes are also planned, with initiatives aimed at digitising shops, such as employing new technologies to support establishments and respond to new forms of consumerism. These are initiatives planned for application around the city and which also concern online sales and customer-loyalty platforms.

Contact with technological experiences and solutions

Meanwhile, the Department of Commerce is also encouraging commercial associations and retailers to take part in activities such as those held in the Saló Biz Barcelona, where participants were recently able to gain first-hand knowledge about solutions and experiences provided by companies, such as SportMas, for introduction to shops, ranging from RFID (data storage and recovery systems) labels, real-time stock monitoring, hardware for finding information about client profiles and achieving conversions with digital product or content purchasing, to creating photographic contents for product catalogues on shop websites, as well as other options.

In addition, meetings and conferences are being organised, such as the one held at the Business Care Office (OAE) headquarters in Barcelona Activa's facilities in the Mediatic Building, where, in addition to support measures,representatives from shopping districts were able to explore the experiences of retailers, like the case of Ferreteria.es, a business that has been growing by opening new shops, one of which is online. Or the “Enfilats”, an initiative from the Gràcia Crafts Association to take the technological leap and show the creativity of Gràcia's crafts people online, through a crowd-funding project in Verkami. The project involves the creation of an online site covering activities, events, training and online sales.