With the trend ever increasing towards online spending it is estimated that only 23% of small Irish businesses are engaged in any meaningful way in eCommerce sales. For businesses employing less than ten people this percentage could be even lower. It is now believed that of online purchases made in Ireland that up to 70% of these are done in overseas markets.
There is now an urgency to ensure that businesses recognise that this is happening and that they are encouraged and supported to correctly respond to this digital reality.
In order to support this goal, the National Digital Strategy aims to get a further 2,000 businesses trading online by the end of 2015. To this end, the Department of Communications, Energy & Natural Resources (DCENR) has launched a Trading Online Voucher Scheme and has teamed up with the Local Enterprise Offices to deliver this to Irish business.
What is the Trading Online Voucher?
The voucher is a financial incentive to small businesses to develop or enhance their ability to trade online. Under the scheme a qualifying business may apply for matched funding to a maximum value of €2,500 or 50% of eligible expenditure (exclusive of VAT), whichever is the lesser. Following approval of their application, a successful applicant can engage suppliers and upon completion of the work, submit a request for payment to the LEO in line with the terms and conditions of their voucher.
Information seminars will be available to prospective applicants to support them in their application process and it will be a condition of applying for the vouchers that applicants attend one of these seminars. At each seminar attendees will be informed of the purpose of the scheme and how best to use and get value from the application of the voucher.
The application process for the vouchers will be a competitive process.
What can the vouchers be used for?
- IT consultation
- Development or upgrade of an e-commerce website
- Implementing Online payments or booking systems
- Purchase of Internet related software
- Purchase of online advertising (this purchase cannot make up any more than 30% of approved Voucher costs and can only be drawn down in one payment phase)
- Developing an app (or multiplatform webpages)
- Development of a digital marketing strategy
- Implementing a digital marketing strategy
- Training/skills development specifically to establish and manage an on-line trading activity.
What are the things the vouchers cannot be used for?
- Development of brochure websites
- Purchase of non-internet related software
- Anything other than online trading related activity.
What else do I need to know about vouchers?
- Voucher approval must be gained prior to incurring any expense
- Own labour is not an eligible expense
- Third party costs only will be considered
- All third party/supplier invoices must contain proper business details (e.g. tax or business registration details or proof that the supplier is a registered business in the territory in which the supplier is located).
What is the voucher application and drawdown process?
Application:
- Read the terms & conditions
- If satisfied you are eligible and wish to apply register and attend an information event
- Submit completed online application form
Evaluation:
- Evaluation of applications will be conducted by each LEO who will make recommendations for approval
- An evaluation committee will assess the applications and make recommendations for approval
- A competitive process will be put in place to assist with selection process. Selection of successful applicant will be based on the following criteria:
- Eligibility for the scheme
- Value added potential
- Export potential
- Job creation potential
- Financial Sustainability
- Record decisions and report to the Local Enterprise Office approvals committee
- As part of the application process applicants will be required to attend a training session on how to use and get the best value for money from the voucher.
Voucher administration
- If your application is successful, a letter of offer will be sent to you for you to forward to your preferred supplier.
- The voucher is a letter of offer which is sent to the successful applicant
- Letter of offer signed, accepted and returned
- Successful applicant has four months to complete the work as per their application.
What are the eligibility criteria?
The vouchers are targeted at businesses with the following profile:
- Limited Online Trading presence
- Less than 10 employees
- Turnover less than €2m
- Applicant business must be trading for at least 6 months
- Business must be located in the area covered by this phase of the scheme i.e. within the remit of the participating LEOs. Note that businesses within the Gaeltacht should contact Údarás na Gaeltachta as Údarás for their range of supports and not apply for this scheme via the LEO
What are ineligible projects for this scheme?
Companies with charitable status, commercial semi-state companies, trade associations and company representation bodies such as Chambers of Commerce are not eligible to participate in the scheme
- “Not for profit” and social entrepreneurship applicants unless they operate in a commercial domain
- Professional services specialising in IT type services who are already capable of trading online using existing in-house systems
- Conferences and Seminars
- Projects which are contrary to public policy
- Duplication of support for projects which would be eligible for assistance from other State Agencies of EU funded Operational Programmes
- Projects with employees in excess of 10 people
- Projects deemed to be capable of proceeding in any event without scheme assistance i.e. deadweight
- Projects essentially comprising importation and distribution.