StarHub Offers Free Digital Marketing for Small Businesses

StarHub marked 10 August as Small Business Day, a newly-minted, annual initiative to rally Singapore to support small businesses with fewer than 20 employees, that typically fly under the radar and may not be familiar with the support measures available to them.

Shining the spotlight on small businesses, StarHub is providing over $6 million worth of marketing support free-of-charge for over a year, to help owners drive sales and advertise their services to a wider, stay-at-home audience. Though mini in size, these small firms are not to be overlooked; they pack a punch in driving Singapore’s economy.

Leveraging its omnichannel marketing expertise, StarHub’s support for owners of small businesses comprises creative online video production, advertisement airtime on StarHub TV, promotions through StarHub Rewards, and heavily discounted enterprise-grade mobile subscriptions. These businesses will be able to raise their profile and amplify their products and services to millions of StarHub customers.

“COVID-19 has been a challenge unlike any other, but we will overcome this, together. We may be distanced, but not apart. We would like to urge everyone to patronise heartland mom-and-pop stores whenever possible – visit your friendly neighbourhood hawker stall for takeaway food; get fresh bakes for breakfast from the bakery downstairs; head over to the nearby barber shop or salon for a haircut. Support from the public is paramount; cheer them on as they weather these unprecedented times," said Johan Buse, Chief, Consumer Business Group, StarHub.

To kick off this annual initiative, StarHub has produced three short films centred around three longstanding small businesses – Bugis Street Chuen Chuen Chicken Rice, a 42-year-old family chicken rice business at Jalan Besar; Lucky Star Hair Dressing Salon, a third-generation barber shop located in Upper Bukit Timah; and Lian Hin Tailor, manned by 82-year-old veteran Cha Ah Kau, in Upper Serangoon. Featuring their day-to-day experiences, struggles during the pandemic and stories of hope, the short films are available now for viewing at www.starhub.com/smallbusinessday, and will be shared on StarHub’s social media channels over the coming week.

With the aim of rousing support and driving sales for these small businesses, StarHub is carrying these three video stories on StarHub TV with free media airtime, through StarHub’s social media pages, and amplified via out-of-home billboards at bus stops and HDB void decks. StarHub will also be listing these businesses as partners on the rewards page of the My StarHub app – offering instant, attractive promotions and benefits to StarHub customers. More details will be shared at a later date.

“These past two years have been exceedingly tough for the F&B sector. With everyone staying home and the multiple rounds of dine-in restrictions, business has been sluggish. These days, having a strong online presence is key, but with so many F&B places on food delivery platforms, the online space has become extremely saturated and competitive,” said Charles Oh, co-owner of Bugis Street Chuen Chuen Chicken Rice. “We are grateful for the opportunity to promote ourselves to a wider audience; hopefully this will send some business our way, and help in building up our online customer base slowly, but surely. In the meantime, we will take any support we can get.”

Every month, StarHub aims to provide support to 10 to 20 other small businesses. From 23 August, they can participate by registering their interest online at www.starhub.com/smallbusinessday. On 9 August 2022 – the eve of next year’s Small Business Day – StarHub will be sharing a consolidated list of small businesses which the company has supported, on the same webpage.

With StarHub, owners of small businesses will gain access to an exclusive suite of mobile services at up to 30% off usual rates, to help them stay connected with their customers. The most affordable solution is called StarHub SmartUC Mobile. For $10 monthly (Usual: $11.50), small business owners will be able to make calls using their business phone number, on their mobile phones or laptops, without worrying that their personal numbers will be disclosed to customers.

For an upsized subscription with data bundles, StarHub has the Biz+ Lite SIM Only one-year plan at $21 monthly (Usual: $30) with 28GB of data and 1200 talktime minutes, and as a sign-on bonus, $30 shopping vouchers and $30 Grab vouchers. For those requiring more data, they can sign up for the Biz+ Value two-year plan at $81 monthly (Usual: $90), with a generous 55GB of data and 1000 minutes of talk time; upon signing up, they will receive $180 shopping vouchers and $100 Grab vouchers, and can defray up to $500 off 5G devices.