Designing a Marketplace Platform for MSMEs: A Strategic Approach to Digitalization Within the Smart City Concept in Pringsewu Regency

The digital era presents significant opportunities for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to adopt digital technologies, enhancing market access, business efficiency, and economic growth. The Indonesian government aims to integrate 30 million MSMEs into the digital ecosystem by 2024. However, many MSMEs in Pringsewu Regency face challenges, particularly due to the complexity of government-introduced platforms and difficulties in monitoring MSME data across fragmented systems. This research aims to design a user-centric marketplace platform for MSMEs using the design thinking approach, which is aligned with the smart city concept to support digitalization and facilitate effective government oversight. Through the five phases of Design Thinking-Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test (not yet conducted)-key solutions, such as a simplified user interface and government monitoring tools, were developed. The result of the high-fidelity prototype addresses MSME needs and enables efficient government monitoring. Strategic recommendations for integrating this marketplace into Pringsewu's smart city ecosystem emphasize resource allocation, collaboration, and comprehensive policy frameworks to foster a smart economy and ensure sustainable digital transformation of MSMEs. This study provides practical insights and best practices for MSME digitalization, supporting smart economy initiatives and guiding policymakers in sustainable digital transformation.