Akprind Trains Kroco Residents in Digital Marketing to Develop Edutourism Village
Universitas Akprind Indonesia is providing digital marketing training to the residents of Padukuhan Kroco, Sendangsari Village, Pengasih District, Kulon Progo Regency, to support the development of the SIKASPUK environment-based Edutourism Preneur Village. The training, held at Limasan Omah Dhuawar, was attended by approximately 40 residents. This activity is part of the 202ly Village Empowerment Programme (PDB), funded by the Directorate of Research and Community Service (DPPM) under the Directorate General of Research and Development, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology.
Participants received instruction on digital marketing strategies, social media utilisation, and the use of e-commerce platforms to expand the promotion of local products and village tourism potential. The sessions included practical training in creating promotional content, writing product descriptions, product photography, and managing social media as a marketing tool.
Windyaning Ustyannie, a lecturer from the Computer Systems Engineering Study Programme at Universitas Akprind Indonesia and the training resource person, stated that leveraging digital technology offers opportunities for village entrepreneurs to reach wider markets with more efficient promotional costs. “Digital technology provides opportunities for the community to reach a broader market with relatively affordable promotional costs,” said Windyaning.
Of the 40 participants, 18 are household entrepreneurs developing flagship products such as alang-alang syrup, butterfly pea syrup, banana flower chips, ecoprint, compost, kasgot, and maggot cultivation. However, only about 10 participants currently use social media for promotion, and most have not yet optimally utilised e-commerce platforms.
Ani Purwanti, Chairperson of the 2026 Village Empowerment Programme, noted that increasing the community’s ability to utilise digital technology is a crucial factor in the success of edutourism village development. “Village potential will gain added value if promoted widely through digital technology. Therefore, the community needs to possess the skills to utilise digital media as part of business development and village promotion,” she said.
Suparno, a local partner in Kroco Hamlet, expressed appreciation for the training, noting its ability to enhance the community’s capacity to market products and village tourism potential. “The community has various product and tourism potentials, but not all have been promoted optimally. This training serves as essential preparation so that these potentials can be more widely recognised and achieve better economic value,” he said.
As a follow-up, the community service team aims to ensure at least 15 local products have digital catalogues and are promoted through the SIKASPUK social media accounts. Further assistance will also be provided to improve the quality of promotional content, product photography, and digital marketing management. The programme was implemented by a team from Universitas Akprind Indonesia consisting of Ani Purwanti, Emy Setyaningsih, and Yuli Purwanto, in collaboration with Achmad Fauzi from Universitas Amikom Yogyakarta. The event was also attended by officials from Sendangsari Village and the Head of Kroco Hamlet to demonstrate support for local potential-based village development.