Blog post

Funding programs for digital products

Budgeting
Whether booking systems, online stores or product configurators - the essential digital solutions for a successful business are usually associated with major financial investments. However, small and medium-sized enterprises do not have to tackle this challenge alone. There are funding programs at both federal and state level where SMEs can apply for grants to invest in digital products.

The nationwide funding program "go-digital" 

go-digital is a nationwide funding program of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection. It is aimed at SMEs and craft businesses that want to optimize their business processes with digital solutions. Funding is provided for projects that can be assigned to the modules of digitalization strategy, IT security, digital business processes, data competence or digital market development. In practice, this means that a software-based measurement and evaluation system for the production of baked goods adapted to the daily situation for a bakery can be funded, as can, for example, a web application for booking and coordinating customer appointments or software for digital safety instructions. 

A collection of practical examples that have been funded with go-digital can be found at 
https://www.innovation-beratung-foerderung.de/INNO/Navigation/DE/go-digital/Praxisbeispiele/praxisbeispiele.html 

Go-digital is aimed at companies with a maximum of 100 employees that do not exceed a previous year's turnover or balance sheet total of 20 million euros at the time of application. Funding is provided for up to 30 consultant days over a period of 6 months, which includes an analysis of potential and the implementation period. The funding rate is 50 percent of a consultant's daily rate of a maximum of 1,100 euros. 

All important details on this funding program can be found at
https://www.innovation-beratung-foerderung.de/INNO/Navigation/DE/go-digital/go-digital.html

We are accredited as a consulting company for go-digital

We are accredited as a consulting company for the modules "Digitalized Business Processes" and "Digital Market Development". This enables us to offer customized consulting services and product development for a variety of solutions that are eligible for funding as part of a go-digital project. These include, for example, booking systems, product configurators, PIM/DAM systems and much more.

Funding programs in Schleswig-Holstein 

There are two funding models for digitization projects for small and medium-sized companies from Schleswig-Holstein, which are managed by Wirtschaftsförderung und Technologietransfer GmbH (WTSH). 

Funding for operational innovations 

A wide range of investments are funded under the BIF Guideline Module 1 - Process and Organizational Innovations: On the one hand, organizational innovations, by which are meant organizational methods in a company's business practices, work processes or business relationships. The second is process innovation, which refers to the use of a new or significantly improved method for production or the provision of services. In practice, this means that if a small or medium-sized company based in Schleswig-Holstein wants to optimize its business processes, e.g. through a PIM system, a product configurator or a booking system, it can receive a subsidy for the financial outlay through this funding model. The eligible costs must amount to at least 60,000 euros. For small and medium-sized enterprises, this funding amounts to up to 40 percent of the eligible costs. The innovation must also make a contribution to climate protection, whereby this can also consist of the implemented digitalization measure helping to save resources in the future. 

All further information on this funding model can be found here:
https://wtsh.de/de/bif-modul-1-prozess-und-organisationsinnovationen

Funding for low-threshold innovative digitalization measures in small companies

Schleswig-Holstein companies with fewer than 50 employees have the opportunity to receive funding for low-threshold digitalization measures. The funding consists of the consulting and implementation modules and must be applied for together with a go-digital consulting company. In the consulting module, funding is provided for projects aimed at comprehensively analysing existing operational procedures and processes for innovation potential through digitalization. The solutions that are developed in the process should either optimize IT security or digital business processes or serve the digitalization of processes, products and procedures. The implementation module supports the implementation of these solutions. It can either be used immediately after the consulting module or applied for if the company has already received funding for consulting services in the federal go-digital program in the 18 months prior to submitting the application and the implementation is now to take place.

Detailed information on the funding model and how to apply can be found here:
https://wtsh.de/de/foerderung-niedrigschwelliger-innovativer-digitalisierungsmassnahmen-in-kleinen-unternehmen) ### Funding for low-threshold innovative digitalization measures in small companies Schleswig-Holstein companies with fewer than 50 employees have the opportunity to receive funding for low-threshold digitalization measures. The funding consists of the consulting and implementation modules and must be applied for together with a go-digital consulting company. In the consulting module, funding is provided for projects aimed at comprehensively analysing existing operational procedures and processes for innovation potential through digitalization. The solutions that are developed in the process should either optimize IT security or digital business processes or serve the digitalization of processes, products and procedures. The implementation module supports the implementation of these solutions. It can either be used immediately after the consulting module or applied for if the company has already received funding for consulting services in the federal go-digital program in the 18 months prior to submitting the application and the implementation is now to take place. Detailed information on the funding model and how to apply can be found here:
[https://wtsh.de/de/foerderung-niedrigschwelliger-innovativer-digitalisierungsmassnahmen-in-kleinen-unternehmen]()

No suitable funding or not from Schleswig-Holstein?

The BMWK funding database lists all public funding programs at state, federal and EU level

ERP digitization and innovation loan from KfW 

For digitization measures with a larger financial scope, it is possible to use the ERP Digitization and Innovation Loan from KfW Bank. The loan amount for this program is between 25,000 and 25 million euros. This can be used to fund digital platforms, apps and digital sales channels for the development of digital platform concepts and e-commerce, for example. In this case, not only small and medium-sized companies are eligible to apply, but also freelancers and young companies. 

All further information can be found at
https://www.kfw.de/inlandsfoerderung/Unternehmen/Innovation/F%C3%B6rderprodukte/ERP-Digitalisierungs-und-Innovationskredit-(380-390-391))