Abstract: This study aimed to examine the existence of startup users in the informal sector amid the digital economy era in Palembang City, Indonesia. The type of research is quantitative. This research method uses a survey approach to obtain data from a collection of panels or respondents. The sampling technique is proportional random area sampling. The population of the informal sector workforce was 329,392 respondents and the number of samples was 384. The research analysis used frequency distribution and cross-tabulation. The spatial analysis used geometric interval calculations. The results of this study found that product modification was the most widely used strategy, with 98 respondents or 25.5% of the total respondents. The high viral product category contained two products, namely food and beverage products, with a percentage of 87.2%, and clothing products, with a percentage of 4.4%. In products with a moderate viral category, several products included a percentage range of 1.3% - 1.6% of 384 respondents. The moderate viral product category included laundry service, printing service, gadget counter, skincare, and household appliances. The viral product promotion model's highest percentage results were advertising goods at 64.8 percent, which could be categorized through product advertising online, offline, and/or both. Spatial analysis revealed that the distribution of startups used varies across regions of Palembang City, with the highest concentration in areas with better infrastructure and business support.

Keywords: Digital Economy, Viral, Informal Sector, Startup, Spatial, Distribution, Product

Pages: 418-433