The biggest opportunity for SMEs in the next decade - A thread

For the past ~3 years, a revolution has been unfolding, creating new digital solutions. Unlike previous generations, these solutions are not made from scratch by developers, but instead, they are pieces of software stitched together by combining 3P cloud-based SaaS tools.

The No-Code/low-code movement has taken the world by storm. SaaS tools such as Airtable, Notion, Webflow, and Bubble are becoming the first line of defense to new problems/opportunities for many businesses, organizations, and individuals.

Recently minted founders use them to create MVPs quicker than ever, Startups use them to validate ideas and laser-focus software development, influencers create services for their followers' specific needs, and teams are using them to organize better and automate processes.

Although now common in our startup/software world, No-Code is still making its way to its most promising market, and arguably where it will make its biggest impact: The SME sector.

Plagued with low productivity, poorly differentiated products, and lack of specialization, SMEs are at constant threat of being displaced by larger firms, economies of scale, and startups upending their market.

Take LatAm, ~99.5% of its business universe are SMEs, and while heterogeneous, this sector is far from beneficial to its players, generally generating a low rate of returns. Entrepreneurs and employees rarely create wealth.

No-Code has the opportunity to change all of it by:

i) Allowing entrepreneurs to participate in higher barrier to entry markets instead of the usual crowded ones (i.e., Retail trade),

ii) Make it easier to integrate into value chains,

iii) Reach larger consumer pools,

iv) Provide specialized goods and services,

v) Provide intermediate goods and services to larger firms, and

vi) Easily measure and develop insights to continuously iterate.

Also, for SME entrepreneurs, the low learning curve for No-code tools makes it more accessible than their programming counterparts. This is especially important as limited capital makes it essential to drive results quickly.

All this will move forward the entire sector's spectrum, from one-person initiatives to highly specialized companies, bridging the productivity gap with their bigger counterparts. Economies will benefit.

I'm excited to discover and invest in No-Code startups, as it will power the age of the Online SME - the true digitization of the business world.

PS. If you are new to No-code, I strongly recommend following @bentossell who has been taking about this for a long time via his twitter feed and more importantly through @makerpad.