WEB USE BY RURAL WOMEN INNOVATORS

Insights from FLIARA’s case study comparative analysis show that women entrepreneurs living and working in rural areas use the web to sell their products to a significant extent. Online shops are particularly popular among women producing and selling handicrafts such as jewelry, pottery, clothes, or bags.

Aside from selling their handicrafts at local markets and shops or at their artisan workshop, online shops allow women to reach international clients and, at times, build partnerships with distributors in other countries. Moreover, customers can get in touch with the craftswoman directly (e.g. through online messages, emails or calls), asking her to produce tailor-made items according to their taste and needs.

The use of social media also appears to be very important in increasing the visibility of the business, as well as the support of social media managers. In addition, podcasts and short films about the business can be spread via social media and the company’s website.

From these results, the following practical recommendations for enabling the spread of online shops are derived.

• Broadband connection should be enhanced in all rural areas, especially the most remote.
• Women entrepreneurs in rural areas could benefit from targeted courses about online sales and digital communication strategies to improve and expand their marketing skills.
• Opening an online shop also requires learning new techniques and creating new mindsets around cyber security thereby reducing vulnerability to cyber-attack.