A 23-year-old marketing management student has created what can be described as the Amazon of Guyana; not the rainforest, but a website similar to the online e-commerce giant founded by Jeff Bezos, as it connects consumers and producers and the public at large to any product or service listed on the website; in this case, it is strictly about Guyana.
Juliana Lopes is the Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Marketing & Advertisements for Developing Enterprises (MADE), an online-based business listing service originating in Guyana. On this website, businesses and entrepreneurs of any size may create a listing for their business and be able to manage their own advertising, events, and other promotions.
“The great thing about the platform is that you can manage your own business; usually, people have to send the information to the business and the business have [sic] to upload, but the fact that you can create your listing and enter and manage your own information and everything, that makes us different,” Lopes told the Sunday Chronicle.
“When persons list their businesses, they would also be able to access data where they can actually see how many people searched for their listing and they can also see how many people would have [sic] left reviews. So, it provides data that is necessary for any type of business that wants to be online,” she added.
Lopes indicated that getting into business was always her desire. She is currently awaiting the results of her Association of Business Executives (ABE) Level Six qualification in marketing management. The website MADE was founded in collaboration with her sister Maria Lopes, the chief creative officer.
The sisters founded the website after reflecting on the Google search engine and other similar sites; their idea was bolstered after their dog became ill and they could not source a local vet to treat him.
Lopes explained that the platform is an excellent utility for businesses as it provides a space for them to become discoverable. The website features a search bar, much like Google search, where anyone can find any listed product or service. It is also categorised on the basis of location, business nature, products and services, to name a few.
“For example, let’s say you would like catering and you don’t really know a business that does catering, you can just go on the search bar, type ‘catering’ and find a business that does catering. The website is to allow clients and customers to just go on the website and search for businesses nationwide,” she said.
“It’s very important to stress that this is a nationwide platform, because many businesses tend to focus a lot of their ventures in the capital city; meanwhile, we’re trying to have businesses and entrepreneurs to register on the platform to be found,” she added.
To encourage nationwide coverage, there is a designated part of the website called ‘Businesses Around Guyana,’ where businesses are categorised on the basis of their locality in the country. Persons are able to choose from businesses in Georgetown, Berbice, Linden and Lethem, to name a few. It is also categorised according to the nature of the business and the products they provide.
Since their launch in April, 2021, there are now 20 business enterprises listed on the platform, and the number is rapidly increasing. There are 19 Guyanese small businesses and one international financial service which extends across 187 countries.
MADE has three packages, which offers different services at commensurate costs. There is a Free Tier, a Basic Tier which costs US$30 and a Premium Tier which costs US$100. Listers will also enjoy a three-month free-trial period with exclusive access to the services provided.
The services offered include, but are not limited to, content creation; calendar layout; publishing; market research; communications strategy; product package designing; proofreading; social media management; brochures, flyers and posters design. There is also a blog and many articles listed on the website which provides a wide range of information.
Lopes told this publication that feedback from the listings have been amazing so far, with many persons registering how much they enjoy the format of the website, highlighting that is it “cohesive” and “straightforward.”
MADE can be accessed by typing the website’s address, madeforguyana.com, into any search engine. The business can also be contacted at email address info@madeforguyana.com or telephone number +592 639 3846.
