With the aim of presenting different opportunities for international collaboration offered by the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN), the largest support network for SMEs with international initiatives, the Eurochile Business Foundation carried out this Wednesday, October 19, the webinar ´Opportunities for collaboration with Europe in the framework of matchmaking events´.

It was a workshop that showed in detail the usefulness of this tool, its applications, and benefits done by its partner and colleague of this network: the Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Cantabria (CEOE-CEPYME of Spain).
In the beginning of the activity, Nina Morales, Director of Business Cooperation and Institutional Affairs of Eurochile, reviewed the role of the foundation in the internationalization process of SMEs within the framework of the EEN, to which it has belonged since 2008, being the only member in Chile of this network, which has the endorsement of the European Commission.

“Eurochile, as a business bridge between Chile and Europe through the Enterprise Europe Network, plays a very important role in activities and relevant information for Chilean SMEs. In these last two years, Eurochile has disseminated 43 matchmaking events that have contemplated the participation of more than 500 Chilean companies”, she detailed.

In this scenario, during the year 2022, she emphasized, “we want to continue with this work of identifying opportunities for all Chilean companies, which means that we are already co-organizers of 14 B2Bs within different sectors.”

Before concluding, she invited the companies to be part of the Eurochile Business Foundation that will support the connection with the European continent.

In the presence of 40 companies, mainly SMEs, Manuela Caruz, Director of International Networks at Eurochile, referred to the scope of the EEN that started in Europe and today is the largest support network for SMEs with international innovative potential, and with hubs all over the world.

“It is a giant network, which has more than 600 organizations with more than 4,000 experts in 60 countries. The Confederation of Employers of Cantabria is one of the hubs of the network. The hubs are our counterpart, they help us organize events, transfer information on new technologies, regulations. We do all the information that we require for SMEs through the contact with the hubs that help us in Europe”, she maintained.

She mentioned that the hubs are of a different nature, ranging from universities to companies and consortiums, located by regions and countries in Europe.

Giant Opportunity Service

Adela Sánchez, project manager of CEOE-CEPYME, continued, who before carrying out a practical navigation of the website, said that SMEs are the backbone of most economies, which is why they are the target audience of the network together with other entities, including universities and organizations that make use of the virtual platform.

Going into more detail on the network, she pointed out that there is a wide range of services for growth-oriented SMEs, grouped into three categories: international collaboration, advisory services and innovation support. Doing a double click, for the 2022-2025 period, sustainability, digitlization and scale-up services will be very important.

It was here that the expert stopped to explain that if an SME is interested in B2Bs and trade missions, the first thing is to create a profile to find the perfect partner. With the help of Eurochile, the idea is to write the main characteristics of the company, its product or service, leaving this profile on the network along with another 5,500 that are part of the base, which is visible and accessible to everyone, she said.

There are five cooperation profiles, and the contact information of the company will not appear because it seeks to provide certainty of the reliability of people abroad, she repaired.

Another of the interesting services, continued the advisor, are the ´brokerage events´ which are bilateral meetings, with high added value since they allow to complement unplanned visits to the different stands of a fair.

“From a technological device you can enter the page and register and from there you have access to thousands of potential partners in European projects. In addition, you can schedule interviews and go to the fair in person or virtually,” she described.

To choose the right event, since there are thousands of them, Sánchez said, it is essential to focus on what the company needs, the objective of attending, the country that will hold it, the language that will be used, analyze who the public is, what are the benefits, if it will be online, etc.

Sánchez also recommended arriving very informed at the meetings, knowing the name and what the people or companies interested in your profile are doing, taking notes, being concise with the messages since the appointments are only a few minutes, making it clear what future communication will be like and disseminate the activities on social networks and other information channels.

To attend a ‘brokerage event’ there is a prior registration on a platform by entering the email or through Google or LinkedIn, said the project manager of CEOE-CEPYME Cantabria. It is necessary to indicate the type of participation sought and then complete the company profile. In this part it is very important to fill in the fields with the areas of activity in which each organization would be interested, as well as to specify that the support office is Eurochile.

Other relevant data for the success of the cooperation experience is the Marketplace with the product, service, investment, or request to make your profile more attractive and that it can be activated and generate more meetings. The platform also allows planning participation in sessions, webinars and workshops.

To access the webinar click here: https://youtu.be/bRVBZoRxklI