The following is an article “The Many Benefits of Social Entrepreneurship” by Marc Primo
Many businesses recognize their role in social development as the world is ever-changing. With the rapid progress of technology and industry, more people place their loyalty in companies that engage in various programs that help mitigate adverse effects of such global problems as poverty, gender equality, lack of potable water, and many others.
As today’s social conversations are now steering to what companies can do in terms of social entrepreneurship, it’s high time you familiarize yourself with how it can work for your company rather than stay on traditional business paths.
Social entrepreneurship should always be a ‘win-win’ concept. Read on below to find out the many benefits it can do not only for particular advocacies but for your business as well.
It creates brand recall
Today’s consumers are mostly comprised of the younger generation who are more aligned with what’s happening around them than their older counterparts. The speed with which social media relays information has stirred the social awareness of Millennials who are expected to make up almost half of the online consumer population by 2025. Add to this how Generation Zers are on track to making up one-third of the U.S. population by next year.
Perhaps the most rewarding thing for companies that practice social advocacies is the recall they have on these younger generation consumers from simply creating an impact in society. There are hundreds of influencers on social media who come from these age groups as well and a good endorsement from them will certainly go a long way for your company in this age of the internet.
You get to inspire others and solve problems
Engaging in social entrepreneurship also opens up a number of opportunities to create useful solutions that can help others. Just the mere practice of brainstorming and unleashing your team’s creativity can give you that freedom to innovate and inspire your employees and customers into doing something relevant for others.
Try to invite experts to talk to your employees or join roundtable discussions on how your advocacy can create an impact and noteworthy solutions. Don’t be too confined to think by the book and take calculated risks in coming up with innovations. One of the most rewarding things of social entrepreneurship is coming up with a unique strategy that you can pioneer and others will eventually emulate.
It creates opportunities and profit
Most social entrepreneurs also create opportunities to generate income and employment. Think about the waste you generate from your business operations and how you can turn that into cash by simply recycling used paper, or electronics via a third-party contractor. You get to enjoy returns for your business while donating recyclables to your contractor.
Another smart thing to do is to take a portion of your profits from your projects to fund other programs that can benefit the whole community. For example, you can take a slice of your profit from recycling and hire garbage collectors to go around the community to pick up more recyclables for donation. Good business acumen and worthwhile community advocacies definitely go hand-in-hand in keeping your brand inside your target market’s consciousness.
You get to raise awareness on things that really matter
There are many social problems all over the world today and most social entrepreneurs do more by addressing them at scale rather than creating publicity stunts that really don’t even crack the surface. Venturing into social entrepreneurship allows you to be more aware of what’s really going on around you— and by that, meaning the closest problem around you which you can help solve.
Start by asking around the community what problem they think needs the most urgency in solving and focus on that. Is there a pollution problem? Is there a need for members of your community to be educated on the importance of waste segregation? Creating an impact on the most pressing matters around you and sustaining programs that help alleviate the problem will make your company an important part of the community that people can rely on. Making them listen to what you have to say soon follows if you are able to win their trust.