HÀ NỘI  — Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief operating officer, met with small business owners who are using the social network to grow their business in Việt Nam and internationally on the sidelines of APEC Summit 2017 in the central city of Đà Nẵng on Thursday.

“Small businesses are at the heart of our economies – and create the majority of new jobs all around the world. We recently teamed up with MorningConsult for an Economic Impact Survey to understand how small business owners are growing their companies, hiring more employees, and contributing to their communities,” Sandberg said.

“In Asia and the Pacific region, 74 per cent of small businesses report that being on Facebook helped them increase sales and nearly 70 per cent of small businesses that use Facebook began hiring more employees,” Sandberg added.

“I met with businesses in Việt Nam -- and these numbers came to life. Nguyễn Thị Hương Liên founded the I Love Vietnam Tour, a company that organises motorbike tours in four cities. Her mission is to empower women, and all 75 of her drivers are women. Liên started her business in 2014 with just $100. Now she uses Facebook and Messenger to book tours and runs a group to keep in touch with customers. She’s even found most of her employees through Facebook," Sandberg said.

As part of the small business roundtable, Vietnamese entrepreneurs shared stories on setting up their businesses and recounted the challenges they faced and the digital tools they used to grow their business locally and internationally.

“The roundtable was an opportunity for entrepreneurs like me to connect with and learn from others who are expanding the digital economy in Việt Nam. I was inspired by businesses such as Topica Edtech and iMedia that are harnessing technology and Facebook to build their businesses and are supporting economic growth of the country,” Phạm Ngọc Cảnh, founder of Độc Mộc, said.

“I look forward to continuing to build my business on Facebook, promote Vietnamese traditional products, reach out to more potential customers in other countries and help inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs in Việt Nam,” Cảnh added.

There are 70 million small businesses on Facebook. One of those is run by Cảnh, a homegrown entrepreneur, who is creating opportunities in rural communities that struggle to create stable jobs. His business – Độc Mộc – is a company that sells traditional salt minerals that help in the treatment of arthritis. It is based in a small village of only 5,000 people in Ninh Bình Province in northern Việt Nam. He has employed 100 people from his village, 60 per cent of whom are women.

Facebook’s Boost Your Business and SheMeansBusiness programmes provide digital skills training to entrepreneurs who are looking to start and grow businesses. Facebook has committed to expanding both programmes to more provinces in Việt Nam next year. — VNS