Endah Ratna Arumi, Ahmad Fauzi, Fani Chairul Handoko, Kevin Syahidan Ananda, Talitha Ayu Pramudyanti, Intan Meganingrum
Universitas Muhammadiyah Magelang, Magelang, Indonesia
arumi@ummgl.ac.id https://doi.org/10.31603/ce.4332
Abstract
This community service activity focuses on the use of information technology to do business and market products belonging to the residents of Sugihmas village. Activities are carried out through training and mentoring. The result of this activity is the utilization of e-commerce and social media applications for marketing activities that can cover a wider market. With this information technology use training program, it is hoped that it will be able to improve the economic quality of the Sugihmas villagers through product innovation from plastic waste recycling and strengthening digital marketing.
Keywords: Information technology; Training; Recycled product
1. Introduction
According to the Indonesian Dictionary (KBBI), a village is defined as a territorial unit inhabited by a number of families that have their own governance system (led by a village head). The word “desa” (village) originates from the Sanskrit language, meaning “important.” A village is a legal entity where a community resides and has the authority to establish its own government. A village has three characteristics: (a) it has a close-knit social interaction among thousands of individuals, (b) there is a shared sense of preference for customs, and (c) the predominant economic activity is agriculture, heavily influenced by the surrounding environment such as climate, natural conditions, and natural resources, while non-agricultural occupations are considered secondary.
Desa Sugihmas itself is one of the villages located in the Grabag District, consisting of 12 hamlets with a total population of 4,287 individuals. One of these hamlets is Garongan Hamlet, with a population of 500 individuals. The majority of the residents in Desa Sugihmas are engaged in agriculture, while some are involved in crafts such as bamboo baskets, plastic bags, and others. In addition to agriculture and crafts, there are also several micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) directly managed by community groups in the vicinity. Garongan Hamlet also has a waste bank where various plastic waste materials are recycled into crafts. However, the main challenge lies in marketing the products, as there is a lack of demand. Especially in the current digital era, utilizing technology such as the internet or social media would provide more effective opportunities for marketing.
A waste bank itself serves a social function and responsibility towards the community, educating about waste management and community empowerment activities. The waste bank activities can be directed towards social entrepreneurship. Given the existing conditions in Desa Sugihmas, the idea of improving the community’s ability to use information technology in their daily work and fostering their creativity arises, enabling them to compete in the current digital era. This includes the processing of plastic or bamboo waste into crafts that can be marketed using social media. Therefore, this community engagement aims to provide understanding of information technology, specifically e-business, in marketing value-added products made from unused waste materials in Desa Sugihmas, Garongan Hamlet, Grabag District, Magelang Regency.
2. Methodology
Community empowerment is a development process in which the community takes the initiative to initiate social activities to improve their own situation and conditions. Community empowerment can only occur when the community itself actively participates. This approach consists of several stages, including observation, planning, implementation, application, and evaluation. The activities begin with observing and assessing the needs of the community through ongoing communication, followed by jointly scheduling activities with the local youth organization (karang taruna) to be extended to other community members. Subsequently, gradual and continuous training and mentoring are provided, with the aim of enabling the community to understand the optimal and effective utilization of information technology.
These activities took place from September to November 2020 in Garongan Hamlet, Sugihmas Village, Grabag District, Magelang Regency. The target beneficiaries of this community engagement were the residents of Garongan Hamlet, Sugihmas Village, Grabag District. The activities conducted included (a) socialization and training on the use of social media for business purposes, (b) the development of craft products by the residents of Sugihmas Village, and (c) the design of the Sugihmas Village website.
3. Results and Discussion
The implementation of community engagement activities in the development of marketing for processed products from the waste bank through social media platforms such as websites, Instagram, and others in Garongan Hamlet received positive responses from the village residents. With an understanding of digital marketing, the partners are expected to continue improving themselves to utilize it as a strategy to enhance the economic quality of the community. Thus, marketing products using digital platforms can be conducted sustainably and independently.
3.1. Socialization
This activity was carried out on September 25, 2020, at the Sugihmas Village Hall, Grabag, Magelang Regency (Figure 1). The activity was attended by the community and several representatives from the village administration. The event was successfully conducted and well-received by the residents of Sugihmas Village regarding the E-Business marketing program through social media. The purpose of this socialization was to ensure that the surrounding community could accept and have knowledge about marketing through social media or digital platforms so as not to be left behind in this modern era.
Figure 1. Socialization of activities.
The training began with an introduction to social media platforms that can be used to market products and the development of existing products in Sugihmas Village. Through this training, it is expected that the residents will understand the importance of using social media to market their developed products, thereby improving the economic quality of the community. The activity started with discussions and introductions to innovative products derived from waste processing, particularly non-organic waste recycling.
Subsequently, training on the utilization of information technology in online marketing was conducted, introducing several social media platforms that can be used as marketing tools (Figure 2). Some of them include Instagram and Facebook. In addition, the community engagement team also developed the Sugihmas Village website as a digital promotional platform for the innovative products created by the residents (Figure 3).
Figure 2. Training on the use of digital media for product marketing.
Figure 3. Website page display.
Mentoring activities have been conducted continuously since the initial training. The purpose of mentoring is to enhance the quality of products developed by the participants after the training, enabling them to continue product development without being dependent on the training period. One of the key focuses of mentoring is the creation of recycled products from plastic waste (Figure 4). After the training and mentoring, the expectation is that the participants will be able to market these products using social media or digital platforms as their medium.
Figure 4. Training and mentoring on plastic waste processing.
4. Conclusion
The success of these community engagement programs is expected to bring benefits to all parties involved. The integrated community engagement activities related to the utilization of information technology as a business medium in Sugihmas Village have been highly successful, with consistent community participation in every event. The outcomes achieved in these community engagement activities include an increased understanding of digital marketing among the community, the effective utilization of social media, and the presence of the village website as a promotional platform for innovative products created by the community.
Thank You Note
We would like to express our gratitude to the Sugihmas Village government for their support in conducting this community engagement activity.