Enhancements made to Department for Enterprise's Business Improvement Scheme

The Department for Enterprise has announced several changes to its Business Improvement Scheme (‘BIS’) in a bid to help Isle of Man businesses become more digitally enabled.

Supported by the Isle of Man Government’s £100m Economic Recovery Fund, the updated Scheme will provide enhanced support and increased funding for Website and Social Media projects to encourage local businesses to adapt to ongoing changes in the current economic environment.

Formerly the Business Support Scheme, the BIS aims to help local businesses become more effective and efficient, offering financial assistance of 50% towards the cost of consultancy projects in a wide range of business disciplines, to a maximum value of £5,000 per project.

Business improvement projects can vary from environmental efficiency and legislation compliance to marketing and website development, with more business consultancy disciplines available. The new changes add flexibility to the Scheme, making it more relevant to a local audience and allowing more on-Island businesses to apply. These enhancements will build on the continued success of the Scheme, which has seen 101 improvement projects completed by local businesses in the last five years.

The changes to the BIS include:

• Additional funding for Digital Marketing, Social Media and Website Development consultancy projects, with the maximum support available for these project disciplines increasing from £5,000 to £10,000 until the 31^st March 2021;
• Both transactional and non-transactional websites are now eligible for support;
• Website upgrade and improvement projects are now eligible consultancy disciplines; and
• The requirement for businesses to be exporting to receive assistance has been removed from the Social Media, Digital Marketing and Website Development project disciplines.

Laurence Skelly MHK, Minister for Enterprise, commented:

‘As a Government we stand ready to invest in our Island, our businesses and our future. Following a review of the Business Improvement Scheme, we have put changes in place to support and protect even more businesses, particularly as we navigate the challenges of COVID-19. The additional funding for digital-focused disciplines, along with the removal of certain eligibility requirements, will hopefully help more individuals and businesses adapt to current economic conditions and reach their potential here in the Isle of Man.’

For more information about the scheme, please visit: www.iomdfenterprise.im/bis