Last August 8, 2017, our company, CoffeeBot celebrated its third year anniversary as an office-based company in Davao City. Since opening our doors in our Buhangin office, both the company, the city, and it’s relationship with social media has grown by leaps and bounds.

Being in the tech industry, we were expecting change as a constant, however, technological advancements has brought cultural and market changes faster than before. At the same time, political shifts in the country has also placed Davao City in the limelight, which has brought in more businesses, infrastructure and people at an accelerated level.

How fast are the changes? Here are a few that made the headlines:

24.5 Billion Davao-wide Express way Project

Mindanao Railway Project

Mapua to Open Davao City Campus

Condominiums on the Rise in Davao City

Davao City Investments Grow by 300% in 2016

Investments in Davao City surge to P230 B in Q1

Six foreign investors eye investing in Davao

Reaching the Local Market

Coffeebot started as an outsourcing virtual assistant company. Our market were small to medium enterprises in Europe, America, and Australia because that was where our current clients came from.

I wrote the article, What Makes Davao City the Best Place to Outsource in Linkedin back in 2016 with the same market in mind. It wasn’t because we didn’t want local clients, we really wanted to help local businesses. But at the time, our efforts were spent on trainings and seminars, educating the local businesses on the importance of digital marketing and why they needed a Facebook page. Back then, they didn’t see any value in it, but it has completely changed.

Today, we have a healthy amount of local clients, old and new businesses in Davao who want to invest on their digital marketing. They’re willing to spend for photos, videos and ads on Facebook. They see the value of having someone manage their Facebook pages for them. They acknowledge the fact that while they were hesitant to do any social media marketing in the previous years, it has become vital not only for business growth but also for survival.

What Does This Mean For Us?

As much as I would love to celebrate and lounge in the nostalgia of our three years in the business, I can’t. The thing is, as a company, we can’t just observe how the market has changed from afar. We needed to evolve with the demands of our city and our clients. We weren’t just an outsourcing team anymore. For the local market, we have also evolved into a Digital Marketing Firm. It meant growth and it meant huge changes. And like all changes, we silently resisted but it was evident it was the wrong way to go.

So we rolled with the times and implemented these changes through the years:

1. Hired more talents – We have been hiring and are still hiring right now. However, it’s not just about quantity. We have also continued to modify our process in order to ensure we get the best people that fit our business model, and company values.
2. Invested on people – This isn’t just about hiring, it’s also about ensuring that the people we hire stay. We have created incentive programs, company gatherings, and office entertainment to ensure a non-toxic atmosphere. If the Coffeebot staff should worry, they should only worry about giving their best, and not because they are unhappy with their workplace.
3. Held more trainings – We have been conducting in-house trainings and also avail of outside training where our team can learn more. It may be an existing skill, or an interest they have. We removed the barrier of the job description. They may have applied for a different position, but they’re always welcome to move to something else they are more interested in.
4. Maintained a good relationship with old clients and staff – We do not believe in burning bridges. If it didn’t work out this time, there may be a different situation where we can work together. There is no need to antagonize any party when we’re doing business.
5. Elevated our goals – We’ve reached certain goals we’ve made in the past, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to rest. Because we don’t just work, we also educate our clients on the services they get from us, whether it’s social media, lead generation or search engine optimization, their demands grow with their knowledge. Sure, new goals mean new stresses, for both the company and the team, but we compete with ourselves and it’s the best competition.

In other words, we’ve invested in the company, just like Davao city has been invested on. Yes, we still offer services to our clients abroad, and it’s still the bigger part of our business. However, we believe that investing in one’s city and the businesses around us will contribute to our growth as well.

We move forward the changing times. We appreciate that restaurants, bars, salons, and other businesses in Davao are now looking for more social media visibility. They are finally reaching out to us and asking to be seen on Facebook and Instagram.

Our parents finally understand that we have a real business, and real jobs, and not just playing around on Facebook the entire day.

With the rising demand, we are investing more on our people, our tools and our knowledge in social media more than our clients do. And while I’m happy with what we’ve achieved in the past 3 years, we are on the verge of achieving more, just like our City.