Cisco embarks on heightened support for small businesses in Egypt

The program will launch, during the week of 13th October 2009 with an on-line, six-week contest entitled 'Small is Big'. The winning business will be entitled to receive Cisco small business products comprising routing/switching, wireless, security and voice solutions.

This program builds on the $100m global strategic initiative launched earlier this year which focuses on small business networking and communications solutions for companies with fewer than 250 employees.

"Small businesses are the lifeblood of the economy in Egypt today and in today's environment, it's critical that small-business owners have a technology partner they can trust to help them find and deploy the right solutions to grow their businesses. With the widest range of solutions, from value-driven point products to expandable and upgradeable solutions to grow on, Cisco can meet any small business' communications needs,"

said Hanan Kamal, Cisco Regional Marketing Manager Africa Levant.

"The number one priority for small-business owners in Egypt is to grow their companies, not become technology experts. Small businesses learn about and implement technology in a very different way to large enterprises. Recognising this, Cisco has transformed the way we communicate with small-business customers with a customized SMB-specific website and marketing campaigns that focus increasingly on business capabilities and benefits of complete solutions rather than on products and technologies." Added Kamal.

Highlights / Key Facts:

• The 'Small is Big' contest kicks-off during the week of 13th October 2009 and will run for 6 weeks. It is open to all Small businesses in Egypt with between 10 and 250 employees.

The contest will also be promoted on Nogoom FM 100.6 radio station and online on facebook and AMEinfo.com. Two businesses selected at random after the closing date will be entitled to receive Cisco small business products comprising routing/switching, wireless, security and voice solutions.

• Cisco's dedicated Small Business Technology Group (SBTG) develops technologies focused on six areas consistently highlighted as top priorities by small businesses for enabling business growth: connectivity, security, remote access, productivity, customer interaction and customer support. The SBTG is part of a companywide initiative composed of sales, marketing, services and technology groups that will focus solely on the small-business segment.