Goldsmiths Social Enterprise Guest Lecture Series

Roslyn Scott, Founder, MobiCycle Ltd

social entrepreneurship

technology such as AI and IoT

recycling and waste management

The Magic Formula

       high profit margins needed to cover charitable aspects of your business model

        the desired social impact

      the innovation/disruption

Agenda

b.) How can we build an ethically responsible portfolio of products and services?

a.) How do we engage all stakeholders?

How can we maximise income while staying true to our core mission?

Photo by Fares Nimri 

Approach
Design
Build

social

ENTERPRISE

Only two functions of a business?

phones + lightbulbs

marketing + innovation

Marketing

Innovation

How do we engage our customers?

How can we build a better, faster or cheaper portfolio of products and services?

A Typical Business

Marketing

Innovation

How might we engage

all shareholders?

How can we build an ethically & socially responsible portfolio of products and services?

A social ENTERPRISE

'scorched earth syndrome'

What does my business model look like under either scenario?

A Marketing Example

Photo Credits : Daniel Hansen

Photo Credits: Jeremy Bishop

• public - recycle their abandoned electronics into the right bin
• local authorities -  innovate to go beyond leaflets
• central government - adopt LPWAN to drive smart cities
• marginalised - donate profits to impacted by mining & ewaste

Innovation Example

Photo by Ray Hennessy

MobiCycle faster, better, cheaper

• programme in C++
• use the least expensive IoT hardware
• focus on financial incentives over convenience
• prioritise door to door takeback schemes
• not consider what charities do with donated electronics (landfill)

MobiCycle as a social innovator

• build solutions with JavaScript
• give a voice to the neglected
• address the entire supply chain

• expand into areas such as flytipping; i.e., a 'wicked problem'

Where Marketing Meets Innovation

Approach
Design
Build

Ask (observe) your potential customers:

1. How do you currently solve Problem X?

2. What happens next...(repeat)

3. What keeps you up at night?

Establish Pain Points

Customer Journey Mapping

1. re-present the process they go through
2. map your alternative
3. avoid generalisations
4. incorporate the 'other';e.g, differently abled

Approach
Design
Build

Who will even pay for the build?

If

I build it

will they come?

The Valley of Death

The place where startups with the right approach + design go to DIE

90% of new ventures that don't attract investors fail within the first 3 years

Photo by Nicolas Cool 

"embrace the reality of your situation"

"remember that challenges are part of the journey"

"don't overreact"

Not convinced?

1. Form a joint venture with a distributor or beneficiary
2. Find a customer who would be willing to advance you the cost of development
3. Leverage the big tech companies to build for you
4. Become a subcontractor with bigger suppliers
5. Consult

Further Tips for

Escaping Death Valley

Sounds better, but building those relationships could take a lot of time...

The current wisdom leaves founders

wanting and contributes to startup crises

VOD Solutions

aka truths

a solution

• set up your business to run for little (< £200 annually); and avoid high monthly burn rates
• learn how to convince shareholders of all stripes*

truths 

• it takes time to form relationships & refine your business model
• a founder's first goal is not to sell products, but to become known*

• content that establishes credibility
• spaces for potential customers to answer their questions about you
• services that address customer pain points
• products derived from your customer journey map

What to Build?

Build a Website

Photo by Michail Sapiton

 The Lean Startup Website

avoid high transfer fees (GoDaddy)

use companies like Google Domains

use short, catchy domain names

avoid ~£200 per yr for a shared server

rent your own server for £36 annually

don't pay a developer £10K to build it

pay £10 annually for  a domain name

HTML,CSS, JS

• ThemeForest for templates ~£20
• Paypal, Google Wallet to accept payments (free)
• Whiteboard.js for explainer videos ~£15

Linux, Ubuntu

• cloud server, £36 per yr
• access from anywhere
• store customer data
• possible email server

Website Fundamentals

Build a Network

recall that joint ventures, customer advances, contracts - rely on your network

Photo by Sebastian Pichler

Don't just attend networking events

make an impression

Photo by Andrew Wulf

Have something to say/argue for

Don't be a one trick pony!

Promote a range of positions

technical, environmental, social, etc

Photo by Annie Spratt

In sum, 80% of your energy will be spent convincing people (via networking, becoming known, etc)

Now you have content + spaces (websites, networks)

build your products + services (prototype)

Innovation requires money, time and a bit of luck

Build a Prototype

Funding Applications

*for technical innovation

Hints for a successful application

*requires a for profit legal status

• TBAT Innovation 
• Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN)
• Grant Tree
• Upwork (freelancers)

• revenue models
• define and quantify benefits
• risk registers, gantt charts

WHO?

WHAT?

Build a Sales Pipeline

• initial contact with a potential customer
• qualify that prospect into a lead
• validate that lead into a sales opportunity
• follow through stages until closing

Tools

• Hubspot Sales CRM
• LinkedIn
• Twitter
• Slack
• MailChimp

And if I can't network in person?

• caring responsibilities
• access issues
• lack of funds
• geography

Photo credits: 张 学欢

How can we maximise our income

while staying true to our core mission?

Wrapping UP

Conclusion

 meet the needs of a diverse set of stakeholders in innovative ways and access the necessary funding to achieve it

  “Sometimes I only find out where I should be going by going somewhere I don’t want to be."

- Buckminster Fuller

Happy & Safe Travels