Google announced that as part of its celebration of International Women’s Month in March, it is launching a new integrated campaign titled, #LookMeUp, to show its support for Africa women entrepreneurs during International Women’s Month.
According to Google in a blogpost, “Africa is a hotbed of female entrepreneurship. Women make up 58% of small and medium-sized business (SMB) entrepreneurs on the continent. Despite those high rates of entrepreneurship, women-run businesses have, on average, 34% lower profits than those run by their male counterparts. They’re also less likely to receive funding and investment, to say nothing of the digital gender divide in access to internet connectivity, and a lack of financial security.”
Google believes that many African women lack the financial stability to start and sustain a successful business. It also believes that many SMEs do not have the skills to adequately pitch their businesses for financing or to discover potential sources of financial help.
Hence Google will featuring a women-only cohort in its Google Hustle Academy bootcamp series throughout March to support women-owned small businesses grow by increasing revenue, positioning for investment, and building a sustainable business for the future.
Google will also be introducing new Primer mini-courses for women-led small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
In addition to the skills development initiatives mentioned above, Google will also be helping to improve the visibility of women-led African businesses through the #LookMeUp campaign. As part of this, it will be launching a drive for women to register their businesses on Google Business Profile. With consumers now also able to specifically search for women-led businesses around them, using the women-led attribute (for example, “women-led restaurants near me”), these businesses should be in a better place than ever when it comes to being found.
