Tech giant Meta announced a collaboration with Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a government-backed e-commerce network, to enhance small business capabilities and utilize Meta's business and technical solution providers for smooth, conversational buyer and seller experiences on WhatsApp.

Businesses can become seller applications and join ONDC's network with their assistance.

For entrepreneurs and marketers looking to expand their digital marketing skills to leverage the growth of the Meta apps—which include Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp—the Meta Small Business Academy offers accreditation.

As part of the collaboration, Meta will also improve the services provided by Sahayak, the ONDC's Whatsapp chatbot for seller support.

"We are creating an ecosystem... Different enterprises may come with their expertise, but they should all talk and interact together with the same objective of creating an open network, ONDC MD and CEO T Koshy said.

“Wherever the technological powers can come and make the participants in the open network to have more and more equal opportunity, both as a seller as well as the seller platform, our interests align,” Koshy said.

Koshy continued, saying that big businesses can assist people develop their potential since they have the engineering know-how. Through this relationship, small firms will be able to take advantage of the robust technical tools that larger companies like Meta bring to the table in order to compete on an equal basis.

Digital commerce is not just about technology but about processes, he said. “That's why we are working together to see that we can give people good processes so that they can meet the expectation of the consumer.”