FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – Directory Services
We receive many inquiries about the World SME Directory and Global Directory of SME Experts. The following information will answer our most frequently asked questions.
Why World SME Directory?
The World SME Directory is meant to promote international cooperation and information sharing in the SME sector among development organizations, academic, research institutions, banks & financial institutions, industry associations, governments, bilateral and multilateral agencies, enterprise incubators, private companies and small business development centres.
It is intended to provide a comprehensive source of reference for small business practitioners, stakeholders and policymakers who are committed to the sustainable development of SMEs.
Why Global Directory of SME Experts?
Global Directory of SME Experts provides a platform for subject matter experts like individuals, entrepreneurs, companies and organisations where they network efficiently, share knowledge and discuss opportunities in their country or region. We want to provide a high quality and extensive database of SME Experts who can easily find each other and hereby enhance project and business development across the globe.
With this directory you have great opportunities for meeting the people and companies you need and to network and find knowledge about business in a country or region.
Who can register themselves in the directory?
Anyone who falls under the respective categories of both the directories can register themselves in both the directories for free.
What are the entry requirements?
In order to register yourself or your business or organization, you need your own valid email address and should have all the information which you are willing to share with others about yourself or your business or organization in hand.
How up-to-date are the entries?
We will contact everyone who registers themselves over email regularly every 2-3 months and ask them to confirm and/or update their entry to guard against obsolete information.
If we cannot contact a member over email for a long period of time, we will unfortunately have to remove that member’s entry from the directory. After a new update of the entry by the member the entry will be automatically re-added to the directory.
How is our directory different from others like it?
Our directory is a worldwide international directory and is not limited to a specific country, region, industry, or professional group. We do not centrally maintain or update the data, but rather let each of our members maintain and update their own entry to ensure our directory is as accurate and up-to-date as possible.
Why should I register myself or my organisation in such a new directory?
At the beginning, you may not find too many organisations registered in our directory and ask yourself why it’s worth it to register at all. To begin with, your entry will assure you a high level of recognition as one of only a handful of entries. In due course, you will profit from the fact that this directory will become more popular and more organisations will register themselves and use the directory. In both cases, your entry is a free advertisement for you and your business.
How frequently is the directory updated?
The directories are updated as soon as sufficient data has been gathered or received from organizations that would justify an updated version of the directory files. On each download page, a reference is placed with regard to the last update of the directory. The directories are presented at least once a year with additional new and updated contact information of the development community, if available. Please note, the database is not exhaustive and there may be many other relevant organizations in each country.
Although every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, organizational contact details, internet addresses, and dialling systems frequently change. We would therefore be grateful for any information or comments that may bring this directory up to date or otherwise improve it. Please use the following e-mail address to communicate any comments or suggestions: directory@issmemail.org.
About the directory?
Both the directories depend on a large extent on contributions from organizations visiting the site. In addition, the directories gather its information from publicly available sources on the Internet, including the organizations’ websites and many other resources based on my experience and perspective as a development economist. Like with many directories, our main challenge is to keep these as up-to-date as possible.
May I link my site to www.localhost/issme?
A link to the ISSME web site must be used for information only, and not for the promotion of any organisation, product or service. A link to the ISSME web site does not, and should not, imply any association between ISSME and the owner of the linking site. Hyperlinks to the ISSME web site should direct to the ISSME homepage page or to complete pages that can be reached via navigation from the ISSME home page. Links should not be made to an individual constituent of a page, for example text, picture or graphic. Our preference is that links should not be made direct to files that are available for download, for example pdf files, but to the web page from where you are able to download the files. You may use the banners to link to the website available at:
Media Centre
Will you make the directory available on CD-Rom?
Both the directories are currently only available in hardcopies and .PDF format. At a later stage (to be defined), the directory will be made available again on CD-Rom containing exactly the same directory files.
Please note that we encourage people to get .PDF formats.