Social Streets has been commissioned by London Borough of Tower Hamlets to run a pilot digital training camp for high street businesses on Roman Road in Bow, East London.
Social Streets’ POW Digital Camp provided one-to-one training and mentoring sessions to nearly 100 shops and market traders and provided four hours of free mentoring to fifteen local businesses via our Digital Mentoring Programme. The aim of the camp is to help small businesses on the high street get more out of digital marketing.
Social Streets recruited local digital professionals to mentor local businesses on a voluntary basis. The local mentors bring a love and knowledge of the neighbourhood that inspires the confidence of local businesses. It also provides local businesses with a network of local digital experts to consult or commission when they are ready to do so.
Fifteen local digital professionals took part in the POW digital camp. Between them they visited 58 local businesses in their shops; gave 48 Social Media MOTS, and led workshops for 20 businesses.
Thirteen high street businesses attended our ‘meet the mentor’ evening at a local restaurant resulting in over 52 hours of free mentoring being offered to local businesses by local digital experts, a value of over £2000.
A huge thank you to the pioneering Fiona Crehan, High Street and Town Centre Manager for London Borough of Tower Hamlets, who understood the value of a community-led digital camp and had the courage to fund this pilot.
About Social Streets
Social Streets is a digital media company with a social mission. We use technology and hyperlocal journalism to help increase participation in high streets and local communities, particularly those in disadvantaged or marginalised areas. Our Social Scheme for High Streets provides free online promotion and digital training to local high streets and their businesses by embedding community service in education and primary employment, allowing it to deliver positive socio-economic impact to poor communities.