“The Application of Digital Marketing and Personal Finance to Improve Marketing and Financial Management in the Honje Juice Business in Mangunjaya Village, Pangandaran Regency”
An internal grant awarded by the Universitas Widyatama Institute for Research and Community Service (LP2M) to the Faculty of Business Management Lecturer Team, Keni Kaniawati SE.Msi as PKM Chair and Andhi Sukma S.Si.SE.MM. as Member. PKM activities were carried out from June 27th – June 29th, 2018, the Internal Grant Team collaborated with P2M Utama and Dekopin, represented by Executive Chairman Dr. Agung Sudjatmoko, who has expertise in the field of MSMEs and Cooperatives, the Main Marketing Bureau and the Main Facilities Bureau, to implement PKM for honje juice SMEs in Mangunjaya Village/District, Pangandaran Regency. The PKM activity, which was attended by Mr. Karli as Head of the Pangandaran Regency Cooperative Empowerment and Protection Unit, village and sub-district officials and their staff, as well as 53 members of the Kuntum Mekar Multi-Business Cooperative (KSU), went well and resulted in the development of business owners’ knowledge to further develop their businesses.
In general, SMEs, including the honje juice business operators in Mangunjaya Village/District, face challenges in developing their businesses, particularly in understanding how to market their products. Moreover, the use of digital marketing for promotion is still very limited. Currently, honje juice is still marketed traditionally, with limited reach, using word of mouth (WOM) and direct marketing through exhibitions, consignment to restaurants, and other simple marketing methods that require transportation by car, making distribution difficult.
So far, this product has only been distributed by the Kuntum Mekar Multi-Business Cooperative (KSU). The impact of this marketing system is that the market reach of honje juice is still very limited. In addition, there is still a lack of understanding of personal finance, so they are unable to develop their business with the limited capital they have. These are the challenges faced by KSU Kutum Mekar members in developing their honje juice business and the various weaknesses in their business development.
Based on the above issues, the Internal Grant Team of FBM Main Lecturers Keni Kaniawati and Andhi Sukma were interested in conducting research in the form of community service in Mangunjaya Village, Pangandaran Regency, to provide solutions to the problems faced by PKM partners. The PKM program for honje juice entrepreneurs, led by Mrs. Hj. Ooh Darhayati as the PKM partner, was carried out through an integrated approach, namely through training in digital marketing and personal finance, as well as experience sharing by MSME and cooperative experts on the development of MSMEs and cooperatives, Dr. Agung Sudjatmoko, MM.
Digital marketing can be done by SME actors, utilizing information technology in a simple way with the help of existing Android gadgets. This PKM activity provided an explanation of digital marketing and its benefits in the business world, especially micro businesses. Marketing through social media is a simple example of digital marketing that can be done by SME actors. The expected outcome is that business actors, especially honje juice, understand and are skilled in using digital marketing as a marketing medium for honje juice.
During the second visit by the Grant Team, Jus Honje had already expanded its marketing network and packaging, as Jus Honje orders now use their own distinctive cardboard packaging. This PKM activity also included simple training that provided insight into micro financial management, emphasizing the importance of financial recording and management in their business.
According to Dr. Agung Sudjatmoko, MM, an expert in MSMEs and Cooperatives, developing business products for SMEs is easier than marketing them. Marketing for SMEs amid the current business dynamics can use many media. However, SMEs do not have much knowledge about marketing through these various media. For this reason, guidance on developing marketing strategies for SMEs is very much needed.
It was also added that small businesses typically have a) limited capital, b) local and handmade products that are easily imitated by others, c) a limited marketing scope, d) very simple production technology, and e) no good business plan. These various weaknesses of SMEs are compounded by the limited capacity of SME actors. Therefore, SME coaching will be successful if there is a good institution to facilitate business development and coaching to increase capacity and develop businesses.
In this Community Service program, the Main FBM Internal Grant Team provided assistance in the form of a freezer to help develop their business in terms of the honje juice production process. In the future, the next program will involve collaboration to develop the honje juice business into more creative and innovative products, as well as guidance and monitoring of the implementation of digital marketing and personal finance.
