The Employers Confederation of Thailand (ECOT) and the ILO jointly organized the final training session for the ILO’s Rebuilding Better Project, enabling small business owners to develop strategies that would enable them to leverage digital marketing channels and tools to thrive online.

On September the 8th, the Employers Confederation of Thailand (ECOT) and the ILO's Rebuilding Better Project hosted the one-day training program "Preparing your marketing plan 101" for small business owners in Thailand. The training was attended by 35 entrepreneurs of which 60 percent were women. 

The training was a culmination of a series of workshops organized jointly by ECOT and the ILO’s Rebuilding Better Project with the aim of collaborating to organize online and in-person training sessions to support women entrepreneurs impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. The sessions looked at digital marketing and generating sales online and included training on business continuity planning and returning safely to work post COVID-19.

The programme provided participants with insights on preparing marketing plans and utilizing different online channels and tools available to them to further their business activities. Participants also learnt about budgetary implications and factors to consider when allocating resources. Small business owners who attended the training expressed that the “session was useful as it built on real-life situations” and that it provided “feedback for ideas, problems and solutions at hand”.

Kornchai Kaewmahawong, Council Member, ECOT shared his thoughts on the partnership. “Together with the ILO Rebuilding Better Project, we have assisted women entrepreneurs in Thailand impacted by COVID-19 and expanded our service offering to this particular group during a difficult time”.

“We are very grateful for our strong partnership with ECOT, which has enabled us in the past year to support women entrepreneurs impacted by COVID-19 in Thailand to stay resilient during the crisis. We hope that our joint efforts will contribute to their full recovery and future ability to further grow their business” said Sara Anderson, Project Technical Officer, ILO Rebuilding Better Project.