3 Trends That Will Shape The Way Malaysians Do Business in 2019
“Ranked 24th by the World Bank for ease in doing business, Malaysia provides easy connectivity to a regional market of over 641 million people.” - Ashran Dato’ Ghazi, MaGIC CEO
Every year, newcomers in the Malaysian business landscape add up by the hundreds. Nay, the thousands.
With over 900,000 Malaysian establishments as of 2015, the competition to stand out from the rest is a ruthless one.
And as we approach the third month of 2019, SME’s and large enterprises alike are clamoring to identify the top business trends of 2019 that are proving to be the next big thing. After all, who doesn’t want to be one step ahead of the game?
But fret not! Kick up your feet and lay your head back as we at Mahzan Sulaiman have pinpointed 3 emerging business trends you’re probably going to want to play a role in this year.
A Cashless Malaysia In View
Wallets grow thinner, trips to the ATM dwindle and reliance on smartphones swell.
Be it e-wallets, Direct Debit or online payment providers like PayPal, electronic payments are revolutionizing what payments mean for businesses and consumers alike thanks to its many benefits such as reduced paperwork, transaction costs and labour costs. (And that’s barely scratching the surface!)
In fact, electronic payments for greater economic efficiency is one of the nine focus areas under the Financial Sector Blueprint 2011-2020, with Bank Negara aiming to accelerate e-payment transactions per capita from 44 to 200 transactions by 2020. Which is mind you, merely a year away.
Take Direct Debit for example, whose volume of transactions have risen from over 10,000 in 2016 to nearly 94,000 in 2018 and shows no signs of slowing down. As for the e-wallet ecosystem in Malaysia as of late, an astounding 40-over e-wallets are vying for the throne.
Want to get in on the action?
First, identify what e-payment system is most suitable for your business model. What kind of payments are your customers making? Recurring or one-off? Do you have a physical location?
2. Content Still Proves King
With all the hubbub on 2019 business trends in finance, it’s timely to remember that digital marketing still remains a driving force for businesses and that trends in the marketing sector are more than worth keeping an eye on.
Thus far, we’ve seen an influx of businesses realizing the importance of storytelling to earn their audience via data-driven content. Whether that be in the name of highly engaging formats like videos (whose inclusion in a post increases organic traffic by 157%!) or the implementation of articles. Gone were the days when articles were associated with blogs as a non-profitable hobby.
“You have to earn the right to be part of your audience’s conversation.” - Ben Lerer, CEO of Group Nine Media (Thrillist, NowThis, The Dodo).
These days, take a look around at the homepage of any business website and you’re bound to come across a “Resources” or “Blog” section where SEO-optimized articles are being churned out in the hopes of generating traffic to their site and ultimately, increasing conversion rates.
Want to get in on the action?
Don’t forget that data analysis and content creation go hand-in-hand and are the peanut to each others butter. Create quality articles that people will actually care about and is in line with your business’s products or services. Analyze what type of articles do best and focus on setting yourself apart in that niche.
3. Cloud Computing Drifts Higher Still
According to MDEC, the data industry in Malaysia is expected to more than double to RM2 billion by 2020. This is thanks in part to cloud computing, or in simplified layman terms - storing or outsourcing information over the Internet instead of on a device.
For something a little closer to home, take the launch of the Malaysia City Brain for example. A joint initiative by DBKL, MDEC and Alibaba Cloud earlier last year which utilizes big data, AI and cloud computing to streamline the urban transportation scene...something we all know KL could use help with.
These terms have been the hot topic for anyone and everyone for quite some time now, and for good reason. Safer data security and better cost efficiency ensure that even micro-enterprises will want to hop on to the Cloud to gain that competitive edge.
Want to get in on the action?
The easiest way to begin implementing usage of this technology, even if you’re not familiar with it is by outsourcing certain services such as accounting. Mahzan Sulaiman is one such company that can help you do this.
These trends can help unleash newfound potential, creativity and innovation in your business. But if you’d rather leave it in the hands of the professionals...get in touch with us here at Mahzan Sulaiman!
