As the tough economic environment continues to affect industries adversely, small businesses are hit the hardest. Luckily Telkom Business has some good news.

Helping the growth of small businesses in South Africa who have been severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, Telkom Business announces the launch of its latest innovation, Yep! on Google Play and Apple’s app store.

The company notes Yep! is a digital marketplace where customers can safely and confidently search and purchase from small, trusted businesses. The app is geared toward economic sustainability, creating a long-term future for small businesses.

“Think of Yep! as a ‘friend’ to small businesses, as it provides a scalable solution to help grow and enhance their reach,” says Lunga Siyo, CEO of Telkom Business. The COVID-19 pandemic has far-reaching effects, none of which paint a bright future for many businesses and even more so in South Africa where small to medium-sized enterprises form the backbone of the economy.”

Users can easily locate businesses or services they require in their area, request quotes, directly book appointments from the app, view the store online, and review its ratings. They can also create their own online store with their own unique branding, upload their list of services to find new customers.

In 2019, small businesses generated more than a quarter of total turnover in business services, trade, community, and both social and personal services, according to Stats SA.

With the current crisis, Treasury projects that more than seven million jobs could be lost as a result. “Yep! will play a critical role in ensuring the survival of the country’s small businesses that we’ve come so to rely on and help provide and grow the job sector,” Siyo adds.

Yep! will continuously evolve and will soon boast several feature upgrades that customers can look forward to, including:

• More service categories will be enabled on the platform
• Full fulfilment where customers can book appointment, service providers can complete invoicing and mark job completion
• Online delivery and payment integration

It will also include a bidding section where users can post a service requirement or bid for new business as per customers’ requirements and corporate partners. Telkom Business notes this is mutually beneficial as small businesses get exposure, customers get convenience, and large corporations can search for SME suppliers.

Try the Yep! app now by downloading the app from your app store to see how it works and get a better feel for it.