OneKampung User Guide
Everything you can do on OneKampung — explained simply, step by step
Welcome! This guide explains how to use OneKampung whether you're here to find local businesses or to list your own. You don't need to read it all — use the contents below to jump to what you need. We explain every technical word in plain English as we go, and there's a full glossary at the end.
For visitors & customers
Anyone can browse OneKampung. You only need a free account for three things: leaving a review, saving favourites, and listing your own business. Everything else is open to all.
A1. Browsing the directory
The Directory is the main list of businesses. Each business appears as a card — a small box showing its photo, name, category, area (town), and star rating. Click any card to open that business's full page.
At the top you'll see a toggle to switch between Business and Products:
- Business — shows whole businesses (e.g. "Aunty Siti's Kitchen").
- Products — shows individual items (e.g. "Kueh Lapis — 20 pieces").
A2. Searching & filtering
The search bar lets you narrow things down. You can combine any of these:
| Filter | What it does |
|---|---|
| Keyword | Type any word — a business name, a dish, a service (e.g. "brownie", "tuition"). |
| Category | Pick the type of business, e.g. Food & Beverage, Beauty, Crafts, Services. |
| Region | A big part of Singapore: Central, East, North, North-East, or West. |
| Town | A specific area (e.g. Tampines, Bedok). Choosing a Region first narrows the town list. |
| Muslim-owned | For Food & Beverage only — show just businesses that have declared they are Muslim-owned. |
Press Search to see the results. On the Categories and Locations pages you can also just start typing to instantly filter the tiles shown — no button needed.
A3. Understanding a business page
When you open a business, you'll typically see:
- Photos of the business and its products.
- Description — what they do, in their own words.
- Category & area — the type of business and its town.
- Badges — such as Verified (we've checked this business) or Muslim-owned (self-declared, F&B only).
- Contact details — how to reach them (see below).
- Reviews & star rating — what other customers said.
- Products — the specific items they offer.
A4. Looking at products
Products are the individual things a business sells. Each product has its own page with a photo, price, description, and its own reviews and star rating (kept separate from the business's overall rating). Remember: OneKampung is a directory, so you can't add a product to a cart — instead you contact the business to order it.
A5. Contacting a business
Every listing shows the ways that business wants to be reached — usually WhatsApp, phone, or email, and often their social media. You deal with them directly to ask questions, order, and arrange payment and collection or delivery. OneKampung simply introduces you; the rest is between you and the business.
A6. Creating a free account
You'll need a free account to review or save businesses. Here's how:
- Go to the Register page.
- Choose a username, enter your email address and a password, and agree to the terms. Your username is your public name on OneKampung (it shows on your reviews and listings) and can't be changed later.
- We email you a verification link — open your inbox and click it. (Check spam if you don't see it. The link lasts 24 hours.)
- You're in! Log in any time at the Login page.
A7. Leaving a review
- Log in with your verified account.
- Open the business or product you want to review.
- Choose a star rating from 1 to 5 and write a few honest words.
- Submit. Your review may be checked briefly before it appears, to keep out spam.
A few fair-play rules: one review per business (and one per product) per person, you can't review your own business, and the business owner may post a single reply to your review.
A8. Saving your favourites
See a business you like? While logged in, click the Save (bookmark) icon on its card or page. Find everything you've saved later under Saved in My Dashboard.
A9. Reading Stories
Stories are short featured articles our team writes about the people behind the businesses. They're a lovely way to learn a business's background before you buy. Find them on the Stories page; some link straight to the business they're about.
For business owners
This part walks you through everything from creating your account to growing your listing. Follow it in order the first time; after that, jump to whatever you need.
B1. What you get as an owner
- A public storefront page for your home-based business, found through search and by category/area.
- Product listings to show exactly what you offer.
- Reviews from customers, which you can reply to.
- A better chance of being found on Google (we build in basic search-engine friendliness).
- A dashboard to manage it all yourself.
- Optional paid upgrades for more products, photos, featuring, and other perks.
B2. Step 1 — Register & verify your email
- Visit the Register page and create your account (name, email, password, agree to terms).
- Open the verification email we send and click the link inside. This proves the email is yours and activates your account.
- Didn't get it? Check spam. You can resend it (up to 3 times an hour), and the link is valid for 24 hours. Still stuck — contact us.
- Once verified, you're automatically placed on the Free plan — no payment, no pressure.
B3. Step 2 — Your dashboard, explained
After logging in, go to My Dashboard. This is your control panel. It opens on My Profile and has these sections:
| Section | What it's for |
|---|---|
| My Profile | Your username (your public name, fixed), email, password, and profile picture. |
| Business Listings | Create, edit, and manage your business storefront(s). |
| Product Listings | Add and manage the individual products under your business. |
| Reviews | See reviews left for you and post your replies. |
| Saved | Businesses you've bookmarked as a customer. |
| Subscribed Plans | See your current plan, upgrade, and manage payment. |
B4. Step 3 — Create your business listing
Go to Business Listings → Add Listing and fill in the form. Here's every field explained:
| Field | What to put |
|---|---|
| Business name | The name customers know you by. Keep it clear and real. |
| Description | Tell your story — what you make/do, what's special, how long you've been going. Warm and honest works best. |
| Category | The type of business (e.g. Food & Beverage). Pick the closest one — it decides where you appear. |
| Location (Town) | Your town/area. The list is grouped by region to make it easy. This powers the area filter, so choose accurately. |
| Contact details | How customers reach you — WhatsApp, phone, email, and your social links. Use ones you actually check. |
| Photos | Add clear, bright photos (see the photo rules below). Your main photo is what shows on your card. |
| Muslim-owned | Food & Beverage only. Tick this if your business is Muslim-owned (see B8). |
When you're happy, click Submit. Don't worry about perfection — you can edit later.
B5. Step 4 — Approval: what happens next
Your first business listing is checked by our team before it goes live — this is exactly what makes OneKampung trustworthy to customers, and it's why approved businesses earn the Verified badge. Here's the flow for that first listing:
- You submit → your listing is marked Pending (waiting for review).
- We check it (usually within 1 to 2 working days).
- If all's well, it's Approved and appears in the directory — you get an email.
- If something needs fixing, we'll let you know what to change.
B6. Photos: rules & tips
- Each photo can be up to 5 MB (megabytes — a measure of file size). Most phone photos are well under this.
- If a photo is very large, we automatically shrink it to a web-friendly size — you don't have to resize it yourself.
- Use good lighting and show the real thing. Your first/main photo is your shopfront window — make it count.
- The number of photos allowed depends on your plan.
B7. Step 5 — Add your products
Products are the specific items you sell, shown under your business. To add one, go to Product Listings → Add Product:
| Field | What to put |
|---|---|
| Product name | The item's name, e.g. "Pandan Chiffon Cake (8 inch)". |
| Price | What it costs. Be clear about units (per box, per set, etc.). |
| Description | Ingredients, sizes, options, lead time — whatever helps a customer decide. |
| Photo | A clear photo of the item. Same 5 MB rule as above. |
Like businesses, a new product may be checked first — but once you're an established owner it usually goes live right away.
B8. The Muslim-owned indicator
If your business is in Food & Beverage, you'll see a Muslim-owned option. Tick it if it applies. Approved F&B businesses that tick it show a green Muslim-owned badge, and customers can filter to find them.
B9. Editing & deleting
From Business Listings (or Product Listings), each item has Edit and Delete buttons.
- Edit — change any detail. Your edits usually appear right away; occasionally a change is held for a quick check if something looks unusual.
- Delete — removes the listing (and its photos). This can't be undone, so be sure.
B10. Reviews: getting & replying to them
Customers with a verified account can leave you a star rating and review. You'll find them under Reviews in your dashboard.
- You can post one reply per review. A warm, professional reply — even to criticism — impresses future customers.
- You can't review your own business, and each customer can only review you once (this keeps ratings fair).
- Think a review is fake, abusive, or breaks the rules? Don't argue publicly — tell us and we'll look into it. We don't remove reviews just for being negative.
B11. Plans, upgrading & payment
Every owner starts free. When you want more, you can upgrade. There are three plans:
| Plan | Roughly who it's for |
|---|---|
| Free | Just getting started; one listing with the basics. |
| Basic | Growing businesses wanting more products, more photos, and better visibility. |
| Premium | Serious sellers wanting the most products/photos, featured placement, and extra perks. |
The current price, exact limits, and perks for each plan are shown on the plan page in your dashboard, so they're always up to date. To upgrade:
- Go to My Dashboard → Subscribed Plans.
- Choose your plan and whether to pay monthly or yearly (yearly gives you two months free).
- You're taken to a secure checkout (run by Stripe) to enter your card. OneKampung never sees your full card number.
- Once payment succeeds, your new benefits apply immediately, and Stripe emails you a receipt.
B12. Managing your subscription
Under Subscribed Plans you can see your current plan and your next renewal date, and cancel if you wish.
| Term | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Renewal date | The day your plan automatically renews and you're charged again. |
| Cancel | Stops future charges. You keep your paid benefits until the end of the period you've already paid for — nothing is cut off early. After that you return to Free. |
| Yearly = 2 months free | Paying for a year costs the same as ten months, not twelve. |
| Failed payment | If a card fails, we email you and give a short grace period. If it isn't fixed, your listing simply moves to the Free plan — it stays live and you never lose your content. Fixing the payment restores your plan. |
| Paused products | On a plan with fewer product slots than you have products (after a cancel, failed payment or downgrade), the extra products are paused — hidden from the directory but fully kept. Your earliest products stay live by default, and you can swap which ones are live anytime from My Dashboard → Product Listings. Upgrading un-pauses everything. |
B13. Getting featured in a Story
Stories are short featured articles written by the OneKampung team — not by owners. A featured story is a Premium plan perk. Here's how it works:
- Shortly after your listing goes Premium, we email you an invitation with a link to a short form (15–20 minutes — answer in your own words; point form and Singlish are fine).
- You fill it in and upload a few photos of yourself, your workspace or your process.
- Our editor crafts your answers into a polished article.
- You review the draft — nothing is published until you're happy with it.
Stories are published in the order forms come in, so the sooner you send yours, the sooner you're featured. It's editorial — our team shapes the final piece — but it only ever uses what you've shared with us.
B14. Your profile & account
Under My Profile you can update your email, password, and profile picture (same 5 MB photo rule). Your username is your public name and can't be changed. This account is separate from your public business listing.
B15. Tips to get found & get customers
- Fill everything in. Complete listings with photos and a real description get more clicks.
- Pick the right category and town. That's how people filter to find you.
- Add your products. Customers search for things, not just businesses.
- Collect reviews. Ask happy customers; reply graciously to all.
- Keep it fresh. Update photos and products so your listing always reflects what you sell now.
- Share your listing link on your own WhatsApp and socials — it all helps you get found.
Glossary
Every slightly-technical word used on OneKampung, explained simply.
| Word | What it means |
|---|---|
| Directory | A searchable list of businesses — like a phone book. It lets you find businesses; it doesn't sell things for them. |
| Listing | A business's page/profile on OneKampung. |
| Product | A single item a business offers, shown under its listing. |
| Card | The small box (photo + name + a few details) that represents a business or product in a list. |
| Category | The type of business (Food & Beverage, Beauty, Services, etc.). |
| Region | A large part of Singapore: Central, East, North, North-East, West. |
| Town | A specific area within a region (e.g. Tampines). Used to filter by location. |
| Filter | A way to narrow a list down to what you want (by category, town, etc.). |
| Account | Your personal login on OneKampung (free). |
| Verify (email) | Proving an email is really yours by clicking a link we send you. Required before reviewing or listing. |
| Dashboard | Your private control panel after logging in, where you manage everything. |
| Profile | Your personal account details (name, contact, picture) — separate from your public business listing. |
| Pending | Submitted but not yet checked by our team, so not visible to the public yet. |
| Approved | Checked and made live — visible to everyone. |
| Moderation / review (of listings) | Our team checking a submission before it goes live. |
| Review (customer) | A star rating and comment a customer leaves about a business or product. |
| Rating | The star score (1–5). Businesses and products each have their own. |
| Verified badge | A mark showing our team has checked and approved that business. |
| Featured | Given extra visibility (e.g. shown higher or highlighted). Part of paid plans. |
| Founding Seller | The bronze ★ badge on the very first businesses that joined OneKampung. Permanent, limited to the earliest sellers, and can't be bought. |
| Paused (product) | A product temporarily hidden from the directory because your current plan has fewer product slots than you have products. Kept safe, never deleted; you pick which products stay live from your dashboard. |
| Muslim-owned | A self-declared label for Food & Beverage businesses that are Muslim-owned. Not a formal halal certification. |
| Plan / tier | Your membership level (Free, Basic, Premium) — decides how much you can add and which perks you get. |
| Subscription | A paid plan that renews automatically (monthly or yearly) until you cancel. |
| Billing cycle | How often you're charged — every month or every year. |
| Renewal date | The next day your subscription renews and charges your card. |
| Grace period | A short window to fix a failed payment before your listing moves back to the Free plan (it stays live either way). |
| Checkout | The secure page where you enter card details to pay. |
| Stripe | The trusted company that securely handles card payments for us. |
| Inherit | When a product automatically copies details (category, town, Muslim-owned) from its business, so you don't enter them twice. |
| Saved / bookmark | Marking a business to easily find again later, from your dashboard. |
| Story | A short featured article our team writes about a business. |
| MB (megabyte) | A measure of a file's size. Photos must be 5 MB or smaller each. |
| PDPA | Singapore's Personal Data Protection Act — the law about handling your personal data. We ask your consent under it when you sign up. |
Getting more help
Still stuck, or something not covered here?
- Check the FAQ for quick answers to common questions.
- Contact us — we're a small local team and read every message (please allow 2 to 3 working days).
