SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of the West, a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, today launched Digital Doors™, a new small business offering in collaboration with Mastercard®. Digital Doors offers resources and interactive tools to help small business owners establish, grow, and protect their online presence.

Impacts of COVID-19 and recent shifts in consumer behavior have prompted business owners to accelerate their move to online platforms. According to Mastercard research, 76% of small business owners across North America suggest the pandemic prompted them to make their businesses more digital and 64% say digitally managing their business is a challenge.

"Now more than ever, having the right digital presence is an essential part of a business's strategy and success," said Michelle Di Gangi, Executive Vice President, Head of Small & Medium Enterprise Banking at Bank of the West. "Bank of the West and Mastercard launched Digital Doors to help small businesses deliver superior customer experiences, stay competitive, and thrive online."

The new Digital Doors platform helps small business owners understand how to digitally ready their businesses, move their storefronts online, and accept digital payments. It also provides cybersecurity guidance to help protect businesses and their customers. Each section within the platform contains educational resources, Bank of the West solutions, Mastercard tools, and collaborator offers, enabling businesses to seize their online opportunity.

"When the pandemic hit in 2020, I wasn't set up to handle online orders. I had to teach myself how to quickly set up an entire online store to serve my customers and stay in business," said Hannalee Pervan, Owner and Head Chef of One House Bakery. "Tools like Digital Doors™ are so important for entrepreneurs. I'm always looking for digital tools that help me save time, make life easier for my employees, and improve my customers' experience."

"As the shift to digital continues, it is imperative we provide the tools and resources to help small businesses get online, grow their operations and secure the right tools to digitally transform," said Ginger Siegel, North America Small Business Lead at Mastercard. "Together with Bank of the West, we are thrilled to expand our Digital Doors initiative and further our joint mission in helping the small business community better understand and expand their digital capabilities."

Business owners can begin the digitization process by completing the Mastercard Small Business Digital Readiness Diagnostic to assess their business with custom recommendations and benchmark their existing capabilities, or by exploring the Digital Doors content.

Mastercard Digital Doors is just the latest offering from Bank of the West's targeted support of small businesses, and more specifically, women- and minority-owned businesses. Additional programs include the Bank's "WE" Source Program dedicated to helping women entrepreneurs establish and grow their businesses and the recently launched Means & Matters podcast highlighting women changing the status quo in business.

Digital Doors is available for small business owners here. 

About Bank of the West
At Bank of the West, we know money deposited in a bank has the power to finance positive change. So we are taking action to ensure our activities help protect the planet, improve people's lives, and strengthen communities. We are redefining banking for a better future by focusing on areas where we believe we can have a real impact: supporting energy transition, helping enable women entrepreneurs, and financing innovative start-ups. As the bank for a changing world, Bank of the West is committed to sustainable finance along with our parent company BNP Paribas. Through Digital Channels and offices across the U.S., Bank of the West provides financial tools and resources to more than 2 million individuals, families and businesses.

© 2022 Bank of the West. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. Doing business in South Dakota as Bank of the West California.

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About Mastercard (NYSE: MA)
Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart and accessible. Using secure data and networks, partnerships and passion, our innovations and solutions help individuals, financial institutions, governments and businesses realize their greatest potential. Our decency quotient, or DQ, drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our company. With connections across more than 210 countries and territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks priceless possibilities for all. www.mastercard.com

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SOURCE Bank of the West