Auckland school offers virtual classes to local business owners

Selwyn College, a well known Auckland school and a stronghold in community education, is helping small business owners with its new online education offering.

The course will be delivered online through Zoom and can be accessed by Kiwis across the country looking to upskill. 

With bleak forecasts by Treasury and a tough past few months for business owners feeling the effects of COVID-19, the school believes its course will be in high demand.

Course teacher Clark Valmont says: “The challenge for many businesses is that marketing is changing at a rapid pace. Going online for many is not just a maybe, but is turning into a necessity”.

“You could expect a greater number of people make their decisions behind a computer or mobile phone screen, rather than physically shopping.”

“But it’s not just about marketing. Products and services may need to be adapted or changed. This poses major challenges for small business owners”, Valmont adds.

The course aims to help business owners think about new products and services they can market, as well as develop new opportunities and strategies. It also looks at the importance of marketing online and how this may evolve in the coming months.

Valmont is considering keeping the course online even beyond Alert Level 2 so that they remain “accessible to all geographically” and “low effort”.