Why research in business should be a daily routine
One of the very first lessons I learnt about entrepreneurship, is that if I don’t do it, someone else will and that once you do it, everyone else will. Let me break it down. The first lesson is probably much easier —someone will, eventually, spot the gap in the market and attempt to fill it. The latter is the lesson a lot of start-up entrepreneurs don’t want to think about. That once you decide to fill that gap, soon everyone else (and trust me, some of them have been sitting on the idea waiting for someone to do it first) will. This is because you are their case study and now they know the idea does in fact work. A typical first response is usually, “that’s my idea!”, when in fact, we should be thinking about the opportunity that it presents. The good news is, if you’re already thinking ‘competition’ and ‘unique selling point’ then you are halfway there. The answer is research, constant research. From my early high school days, I was obsessed with research, particularly on the Internet. It started with me always wanting to have the answers, because I hate not knowing. Gradually, it became a very educational and growth-fuelling hobby. Research, although mostly associated with reading, isn’t limited to that. Depending on the industry and sector you want to operate in, it could include you physically getting out of bed and attending seminars or, chilling by the Mall of Africa, watching how people walk, talk, laugh or studying what they are wearing, which shops they visit first and how they arrived there or, stalking interesting people on Twitter. The business environment is ever-changing and to get with the times, you need to research. Whether you are an aspiring entrepreneur or an established one already, there is always room for growth and improvement. Research in theory You may not know it, but there are many forms in which research takes shape outside of Google and Yahoo, and these are three of the absolute favourites right now: Social media Yes, it’s not just about the number of likes on your latest pic. Facebook, Twitter and even Instagram can be a huge source of information. It allows you to tap into your (potential) ultimate client/customer’s mind. You will know what they are thinking and what they want —all of this is embedded in everything they complain about, decode it. It can also be a very good way to see how your closest competitors have positioned their products and services and learn from that. Trends grow on social media, if I see someone with a 10k followers wearing yellow jeans, I want to buy them. Keep an eye on people with huge followership and influence on societal behaviour, these are people commonly known as ‘twelebs’ and ‘felebs’. Blogs The beautiful thing about blogs is, the research is actually done for you (but be sure to verify, remember, if it’s my blog, I can put up anything I want). Bloggers usually bring the newest trends onto their blogs for their readers, if you comb through their content, you will find that they are communicating to you the gaps that are opening up in the market. Video driven sites like YouTube Although most people would instantly associate YouTube with music videos, there is a lot more to it. Tutorial videos and even more serious documentaries are put up there, it is a great source of information for when you’re looking to do something like write a book or even start a blog on a related subject. Research in practice Lerato wants to start an online channel but she doesn’t understand how it could be financially sustainable for her. Also, she has no idea what kind of content she wants to put up on her website/channel. What can Lerato do to help solve her dilemma? Correct, research! 1. Use the resources you have Lerato has a Facebook account, but now that she knows she has to research, she doesn’t know how Facebook can be used to do that. Easy, the answer is trends. First, she needs to zero in on a subject. Does she want it to be a health site, lifestyle, entertainment or news site for example? For that she can visit sites that already exist to see which she feels is more for her. Let’s say she chooses a self-help/DIY type of site. 2. Ask and answer the right questions That’s where social media comes in, what do people need help with? Lerato will now study the questions people post on Facebook or tweet on Twitter. She will also check how many of them get the answer they are looking for and how long it takes them to. Not only is this research in terms of content, but it also allows her to see if there really is a market for the site and if it will be more effective and efficient for the user to go to her site instead of asking for help from his/her friends on Facebook. Once she is done with her decision, she goes to Google and types in “start an online DIY site”. Voila, a link to an article about how to make money from such sites comes up. Of course she clicks on the link, now she knows where her revenues will come from. 3. Don’t stop researching A few months later, Lerato’s site, From Your Toolbox, is ready for action. It is an instant hit with her friends and followers, with amazing readership ratings. Soon she starts receiving requests for advertising space, nothing can stop Lerato now. One day, on her timeline however, she learns that her friend has started an entertainment news site and instantly she is shaken. What do you think Lerato does to deal with this development? Lerato doesn’t like fighting, so no. Instead, she uses the resources that are available at her disposal. And that is how she gets into the culture of research, following new trends and
Leslie Ossete: Improving lives through better transportation
If your mission is improving the lives of millions, you’ll find some similarity with Leslie Ossete. She is one of four co-founders of Magic Bus Ticketing, an offline SMS based ticketing system. Magic Bus Ticketing aims to improved lives by simplifying how they interact with transportation. It’s a student start-up that lets bus commuters know when the next bus arrives and how much it is charging. It also allows payment through mobile money. Recently, Magic Bus Ticketing won $1 million dollars from the Hult Prize. Pretty amazing, right? Let’s start with the Hult Prize. Congrats on winning the $1 million! How do you plan to use the money from the prize? Thank you! After a year long process, Magic Bus Ticketing has finally won the Hult Prize, which awards $1M in seed funding to the winning start-up. My team was among the 5 finalists out of 25,000 applicants worldwide to compete in what is now the largest student competition for social good. This September 20th at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, we pitched our innovation in front of notable judges such as Bob Collymore, CEO of Safaricom, and Akinwunmi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group. And, we won! The $1M prize is distributed to Magic Bus Ticketing through monthly instalments. Depending on how much is required to effectively run the business, the Hult foundation makes funds available to Magic Bus Ticketing. Magic Bus Ticketing will use the million to fully launch its operations in Kenya, and scale fast to other East African countries with similar market conditions, Tanzania and Uganda by the end of this year. You are from Congo Brazzaville and Madagascar, why set a company in Kenya? I grew up in Brazzaville, and my team-mate Wyclife is from Nairobi. Both of us as Africans had experienced similar challenges in public transportation; long wait times at the bus stop and inconsistent pricing when it comes to bus fares. We decided to focus our pilot in Kenya because first, Nairobi is one growing tech hub on the continent. Second, Nairobi has the fourth highest commuter pain point according to IBM. And third, there had already been a lot of research and initiatives done towards using technology to improve public bus transport. In fact, Nairobi is a place of innovations. Several projects to introduce cashless payments in the bus system had been led, such as Google’s BebaPay bus card. What sparked the idea to integrate urban commuting with mobile payment? The public bus system in Africa is mostly privatized and informal. The day-to-day operations are run by a crew of drivers and conductors who earn little money from their hard work. That pushes them to overcharge commuters for their own benefit. They abuse the current cash system to set higher fares based on demand and supply. For instance, in Nairobi when it rains, the bus fare triples. Commuters themselves don’t like to carry cash around. They worry about pickpockets, and not being able to get their change back in the bus. Furthermore, the police also abuses the cash system. Police officers know the bus crews carry cash 24h/24h, and do not hesitate to fine them for absurd reasons. We envision that cashless payment in the bus industry will bring more safety and order. We believe the way to implement a cashless bus system is through the use of mobile money, which is already widely used in East Africa. It is quick, accessible, and locally relevant. Prior initiatives have been using bus cards linked to banks, but most people don’t have bank accounts, banks have high transaction fees, and buses need liquid cash on a daily basis. What steps did you take to grow your company by 5000 booked tickets in less than two months? In order to acquire a customer, you must spend on marketing. We did a lot of mass-marketing through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Whatsapp groups. We also do outreach marketing, implementing stalls at university campuses. Furthermore, we do collaborative marketing with the bus operators themselves, handling flyers to commuters, in order to build trust with potential customers. Last but not least, we also do product demos of our technology at major bus stops. As we launch in Nairobi, we will expand to advertising through radio, TV, and billboards. What does a student start-up need to thrive and be successful? A student start-up needs to be backed by a board of advisers, with a diverse background and expertise. Magic Bus Ticketing consistently asks for feedback from renowned experts in the fields of transport, technology, finance, and organizational management. Our advisers come from valued institutions such as the World Bank and MIT university. Briefly, a student start-up needs to create for itself a network of mentors who understand the goals and challenges of the organization —no, they don’t have to come from particular institutions, but they have to be right for your organization. For example, for Magic Bus Ticketing, one of our key advisor is Bernard, who has been a bus driver in Nairobi for the past 10 years. That’s real knowledge! Perseverance is key, even more for student start-ups, to succeed. I remember our humble beginnings on our campus at Earlham College. Our initial plan was to add more buses on the roads, and to provide commuters with a subscription model to access buses on-demand. Our buses were supposed to have TV screens, Wi-Fi, bike racks, online libraries, and much more. We presented this idea at the local Hult Prize at Earlham, and were not selected to attend the regionals. It was extremely upsetting because we all knew we were tackling a real challenge in public transportation. We had to iterate our business model, and re-apply online to ensure our spot at the Hult Prize Boston regionals, which we won. Without perseverance, we would not have come this far! What do you think of the industry you work in? How do you plan to remain consistent? Magic Bus operates in
Taking command: Meet Kenya’s first female marine pilot, Elizabeth Marami
At only 27 years, Elizabeth Marami is charting the path less travelled and breaking gender barriers that have been in place for so long. Her courage would see her swim away from the waters of comfort to take up a comprehensive and challenging course in navigation and become a marine pilot. Intimidating and authoritative would be the ideal requirements for her job. However, Elizabeth has a warm personality, petite physique and is soft spoken for a person whose main duty is to take ‘command’. You have the name pilot in your job title, does that scare you? I do not often introduce myself as a marine pilot. It was just recently that I just found myself doing so. I believe it must have leaned more into the fact that I was talking to someone who inspires me and made me feel comfortable saying it. I am just Liz. What influenced your choice of career? I didn’t want to be ordinary. I wanted to pursue something that would challenge me. So when I heard about a scholarship, I could not resist the temptation to apply. The scholarship would have me leave Kenya for Alexandria, Egypt to study navigation. The selection process was very competitive and I couldn’t believe it when I was awarded. I had another offer to study law at the University of Nairobi but my mind was set on navigation. What comprises navigation studies? The degree course takes 5 years. On completion you get certification from a UN body, the International Maritime Organization (IMO). There is also a mandatory requirement of 18 months of sea time for every rise in rank and additional channel training at Kenya Ports Authority (KPA). I’m currently at second officer level. When I joined the training I was one of 2 female students, the rest were men. The training is very extensive with classes running late into the evening. I never had a typical college life of fun and socializing. You are now a marine pilot; describe a typical work day in your life I am a second officer in command. Foreign ships coming to the Kenyan territorial waters are not allowed to navigate on their own and have to have a Kenyan pilot meet them and help navigate. By doing that, you are taking ‘command’. I understand you are the only woman in your workplace. What are the dynamics? Do you prefer working with men as opposed to women? Our workplace is predominantly male. Small things such as bathrooms —where we have separate bathrooms for the male staff and the rest for general public— goes to show the gender disparity that is in the maritime industry. Yet the real struggle is not about the bathrooms but so many other key policies that keep away women from the sea. There is gender imbalance in staffing and training. Consider that women in the maritime industry account for only one or two per cent of the world’s 1.25 million seafarers, according to the International Labour Organisation. The men I work with are great; they encourage me and push me towards achieving my goals. Actually, working with men has helped me understand women better. The men in my workplace affirm, encourage me to be more assertive and don’t compete against me. This has helped me look at women not as competition, but team players in the same frontier. If you weren’t a marine pilot, what would you be doing? I would be working in the fashion industry. I would want to build an international brand that showcases African fabric and authentic designs. Tell me about your blog? Is it an escape from the unwavering tide in your career? I have always loved writing and fashion. Running my blog keeps me normal. I get to wear beautiful pieces and get photographed —which is a world away from my job. Sometimes I wish I could run this blog anonymously and that way I would be able to write about the deep-rooted issues of my life. You wrote extensively about rejection on your blog. Would you comment on that? We were 9 students who were awarded the same scholarship, 8 are male and 1 is female. Part of our course requirements is practical skills in form of 18 months of sea time. All the men in our class have successfully secured sea time on board ships since been offered the opportunity. I have been rejected by various companies in my quest to meet the board requirements for 18 months of sea time so that I can graduate to a captain, 1st in command. My applications often come back with rejections based on my gender which can be very frustrating. Companies are afraid of getting into sexual harassment (legal) suits so they prefer not to hire women. The blog gives me an off-my-chest platform where I can share my frustrations. I have however learnt to be patient. Good things come to those who wait. What does your family feel about your career choice? My family is very understanding. They have been very supportive. It’s only when I started my initiative, ‘Against the Tide’ that my dad became a little concerned. Be on the lookout for the official launch of this initiative. Tell me more about the initiative Against the Tide is my own initiative to see a reasonable gender balance in the maritime industry. Although in its infancy, I want to advocate for policies that favour both genders and allows for equal opportunities in access to opportunities in the industry. I also intend to mentor young girls into believing in themselves and having the courage to get into the profession. I have been speaking to students at various schools about the importance of believing in themselves. You met the President, His Excellency Uhuru Kenyatta. How was it like? The most impressive thing about meeting the president the second time was that he remembered me from the first time we met. On this instance, he commended me on our work before
#BossingFromBirth: Lessons you can learn for your career/entrepreneurial journeys from #SheHiveJoburg
[bctt tweet=”Lessons on #BossingFromBirth from Linda Mabhena-Olagunji and Vere Shaba #SheHiveJoburg” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] The final #SheHive tour was in Joburg this November. The Motherland Moguls in Joburg got a chance to hear inspirational talks from women making strides in their respective industries, giving us lessons on #BossingFromBirth. Two of the women were Vere Shaba of Shaba and Linda Mabhena-Olagunju of DLO Energy Resources Group. One of the many valuable lessons we took from Linda and Vere was their entrepreneurial drive from an early age. Both women started in the corporate sector. Linda started off as a lawyer at one of the top five firms (Bowman Gilfillan) and Vere started off as a Mechanical Engineering at WSP Group but both left to start their own companies. The aim of only making money is not a good idea to get into business For some people, the driving force to starting their own businesses is to only make money. If you get into a business base with the intention of only making money, people will definitely see through that. Vere pointed out that what helps in getting into business is having the passion for it. This is an important lesson because the passion is what will drive you to make your business and career path work. [bctt tweet=”In business/career failure will happen but it’s all about having a good comeback” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Make sure you always have a comeback Whether you’re in building your business or building yourself in your career, failure will happen but as Linda had pointed out, it’s about having a good comeback. It’s about continuing even after the failures and making sure you fail upwards and keep moving. You need to be resilient. As with any business or career path you choose, things probably won’t go as planned or what you have wished for, so you need to ensure you have a strong support system. A support system could be your colleagues, family and close friends. Have those people around you who will encourage you to keep moving. Most importantly, you need to have a extraordinary confidence and belief in yourself, Motherland Moguls! Value networking Every person that you meet could be your potential client or business partner, therefore creating networks and maintaining those relationships is key. Always make sure that you leave a good impression on people. This should not business or career wise but also all aspects in your life where you’re constantly meeting and working with people. [bctt tweet=”Planning is key! & other advice on #BossingfromBirth from Linda Mabhena-Olagunji & Vere Shaba” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Commit your dreams and thoughts into writing Planning is key! It’s also important to commit everything into writing. Once you commit a thought to writing or once you tell someone about a dream or thought, you should hold yourself accountable. Ensure that you execute on those dreams and thoughts that are on paper. Linda pointed out that: Your word is your bond. Making plans is important, and plans change but as a chaser of your dreams, learn to be adaptable. With all the changes happening, always make sure you know what your end goal is and whatever you do aligns with that end goal. Put in the hard work With growth, comes more learning. Learn and master your craft. It’s very easy to see through you if you don’t know your craft and you can easily lose credibility for that. Know that you are on a consistent journey of learning. You never really arrive at a destination of learning and once you feel that you know it all, then it’s probably time to check-out. This doesn’t mean stop learning, but it means find something that challenges you and continue the journey of learning everyday. #MotherlandMogul tip from Linda: Make a plan, and know that your plan might deviate. Know and write down your short, medium and long term goals and execute on them. [bctt tweet=”You need to be clear on who your client base are and understand them to be a boss from birth” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Understand your client base To understand your client base, ensure that you surround yourself with them. You need to be clear on who your client base are and understand them. This will help in you better positioning yourself based on who your client base is. Everything about you and your brand and how you carry yourself, should align with your brand. #MotherlandMogul tip from Vere: Have a clear plan about what you want, your client base, your brand and Live Your Brand! Know when to continue or give up In some cases, the breakthrough happens just when you’re about to quit. Stick through it during the hard times. Yes, it won’t be easy but it is so fruitful to work hard to make your own dreams a reality than to work hard towards making other people’s dreams a reality. When you know that this is your passion, continue until the breakthrough.
9 personality traits for guaranteed success
Ever seen the look of surprise when certain men hear that you are the Managing Director or CEO? Most women are generally content and more likely to take a back-seat when it comes to leadership roles. However, being a woman shouldn’t hold you back or alter your chances of success. It all comes down to personality. You need to develop confidence and a fiercely independent attitude for determination to succeed. Read on to learn more about the important qualities that prosperous businesswomen possess and how to develop them. 1. Ambitious Being successful is not only about being an expert in your industry, but also having the desire to see the bigger picture, and play a greater role in society. A successful entrepreneur has a vision and can see the path ahead and be able to inspire others to help them turn a dream into a reality. 2. Entrepreneurial and hard-working Women can be extremely resourceful. We are able to identify opportunities and develop the relationships that are needed to get work done. Hard work is our secret to success and to be successful you has to learn to sacrifice most of your spare time to build up your business. 3. Passionate Successful female entrepreneurs have a passion for what they do because they tend to develop businesses through the things they enjoy doing. Women have been stereotyped as emotional leaders by men, but really we are just passionate about success and excellence. What you need to do is find your own passion and once you believe in it, turn it into something you can really be proud of. 4. Optimistic/Positive attitude In the face of adversity, you need to be bold enough to stand the test of time. The tendency to look on the positive side of events or conditions helps you maintain a hopeful outlook. With an optimistic perspective, one expects the most favourable outcome, and as such, is more likely to get that favourable outcome. The ability to analyse situations, see the good side of projects and the results showcases a person’s attitude and level of confidence. This trait is contagious. 5. Confidence One of the defining characteristics of being successful is confidence —the ability to understand what you are capable of. A confident personality is essential to win the hearts, respect and earn the trust of clients and build a profitable business with a solid reputation. There is no point in starting a business unless you are confident and believe that you are destined for success. To be a successful Motherland Mogul, you need to stand tall and hold your head up high. Whenever you are around and engaging with other people, smile, shake hands and always maintain eye contact. 6. Assertiveness You also need to be straightforward and confident in our communication with others to enable them to seize new opportunities. You’ll be greatly respected for this. In order to express your ideas, values and abilities you need to be assertive and confident. As a woman, when you are are self-assured, your peers will treat you with respect. Be fearless and learn to speak with authority and purpose. Remember though to also keep calm and deal with criticism rationally. 7. Aggressiveness Being aggressive doesn’t necessarily mean fighting all the time. It involves bringing constructive energy to projects to make sure that things get done. You can enhance this personality trait by developing a determined attitude to make sure you see things through until they are done. 8. Persistence We all get tested and life knocks us down now and again, the secret is in remembering to get back up when we fall. I have one motto, to always remind myself why I started even when I face challenges or opposition. Starting something is one thing, but keeping it going and making sure it’s a success is another. You need to learn the power of persistence and never give up. 9. Humility The business industry is always changing, so you will constantly need to keep up and remain innovative. Successful Motherland Moguls understand this and are willing to put in the extra work to learn and improve. Read books, attend workshops and learn from others. Remain humble and don’t ever be afraid to admit that you don’t know everything.
Exclusive Community Event: SLA Accelerator Meet & Greet
For the past 3 months, She Leads Africa has worked with 10 amazing female entrepreneurs in our accelerator program. We have helped them grow and expand their budding businesses & in just a few days, they will have a chance to pitch their business to local and international investors. The Accelerator Demo Day is a closed event specifically for investors, corporate senior executives & the press. But what about all the entrepreneurs and interested audience members who also want to hear directly from these amazing women about how they have started and grown their businesses? Then have we got the event for you! Join us 16 November 2016 for a meet & greet cocktail & networking session with presentations from the Motherland Moguls in our accelerator program. This amazing opportunity is exclusively for our community members. Details for the event will be released Nov. 10th but only to those who receive our newsletter. Event Details: When: Wednesday 16th Nov. 2016 Time: In the Evening Where: Lagos, Nigeria Cost: FREE! Who: You must be part of our community to get more details & an invitation Not part of our community? What are you waiting for? Join here: Already part of our community? Make sure you check your email for the event details on Nov. 10th. Help us spread the word: Help us spread the word about this event and you could win a Motherland Mogul or Boss T-Shirt, even if you don’t attend the event! Must be based in Lagos. Sorry, shipping’s expensive! Not in Lagos? Still spread the word & win SLA brownie points! [bctt tweet=”@SheLeadsAfrica is having an exclusive networking event just for their community members. Sign-up here:” via=”no”] Not sure this event is for you? Here is what you can expect: Learn directly from Motherland Moguls building their empires Hear the stories and learn how these 10 amazing women started their companies & their plan for expansion Network directly with the women in our accelerator program in small intimate sessions Meet other like-minded women in the Lagos area and start creating connections to help you grow your business Refreshing drinks & light snacks, of course FREE ENTRY. This is an exclusive event for our community members, so this one’s on us! You’re welcome.
How to beat the rewards system
As someone who has been working in this crowdfunding space for quite some time, I have had the opportunity to have incredible conversations with people who run crowdfunding platforms and people who run campaigns on crowdfunding platforms. As you can imagine, the information you gain from both sides of the coin, while different, is necessary for a complete understanding of the crowdfunding scene. Before I decided on exactly what I wanted Do it Now Now to be, and the kind of support we would need to offer our campaigns, I did a lot of research into what it takes to run a successful campaign and what support campaign founders need. Let’s talk about perks/rewards Yes! You got the money, congratulations! But now, you have to deal with sending everyone that pledged an amount of money to you, the things you promised you would give them. If you have raised $23K and you have 380 backers who have each donated between $10 and $1000, you are going to have to gift 380 people a gift corresponding to the amount they donated. That means, you are going to have to design or purchase the gift and send it to their individual addresses. To some of us, this seems pretty straightforward. However, for people like myself who need to break stuff down, consider this. What is your donation percentage? The first thing to consider when deciding which perks you are going provide to your donors, is how much of the donation is going to go to perks. Most platforms offer a 5% (or more) commission on the amount raised. After that, they add the transaction fees (usually between 3 and 4%). The problem with pledges, is that not everyone has the money in their account when it is time to collect. Factor in the cost of failed pledges. We suggest you factor in another 2% to cover this. So, before you factor in perks at all, you have just paid out 10% of the amount raised on each donation. So far, on each $100, you are making $90. Not bad. What is your attraction percentage? Now, how much money do you want to spend to attract someone to donate to your campaign? This includes any kind of advertising (Facebook, twitter, Instagram etc.) you want to use. We don’t actually suggest you pay a ridiculous amount for advertising a campaign. Say you spend 50c on each $10 donation, that isn’t too bad. So far, on each $100, you are making $85. Not bad. What is your perk percentage? How much do you value your donor, in each donation bracket? Think about this purely monetarily. Your perk percentage reflects how much of the donation you want to spend on the physical or non-physical perks, the shipping of the physical perks, the design costs, etc. We suggest as an individual campaign, you spend no more than 15% of your raised amount on perks. There are different rules, depending on the type of campaign you are running. If you already have a product you are trying to sell, and you have a RRP, then by all means use your existing merchandise! You have already paid for it, and if you are making a small mark-up on the cost-price of your merchandise you are doing well. However, if you do not have existing merchandise and you actually need to make some money to create merchandise, this 15% maximum budget is for you. The 15% includes the physical items, and the packaging and shipping of those items. Note that with the state of most platforms, people expect a lot as a reward. We suggest you get really creative so that you don’t end up spending 50% of your raised amount on perks (trust me, it happens!). You are now at $70 for every $100. Not bad. Keep on budget and you will get a good amount back! Make sure you factor in the quantity of each perk you want to offer. What will your community actually donate? Are you surrounded by $10 givers, or $100 givers? What do you think your $100 will want to receive? Try talking to your community. If you make them a part of your decision making process, they are much more likely to respond to your campaign. What is your administration cost? Think about your opportunity cost. How much time are you going to spend on the post-campaign administration? How much time are you going to spend on marketing and organising your campaign? Most campaigns take 10 hours a week to run, and most campaigns run for 8 weeks. Post-campaign administration is about 3 hours each workday for a month (approx. 60 hours). Factor in a salary that makes sense for whoever is going to be dealing with this part of your campaign. You are looking at 140 hours at an average wage of $5/hour; $700. Factor in 3% of your fundraising amount as a guide, if you don’t want to have strict time/cost constraints. These estimations depend on the number of backers and the type of perks you have —the more personalised the perks, the longer it is going to take to organise properly. It is not impossible to do this well. There are actually a number of print and ship on demand platforms that you can look up. There are also a number of crowdfunding support companies that handle all of this for you. They usually charge between $3-5 per physical item for shipping and handling post-campaign. If you plan and budget carefully, and you do as much of the work yourself and try to use as much readily available merchandise as possible you could be at $67 for each $100 donation post-campaign. Not bad at all. There are benefits to donation/reward based crowdfunding, and there are obvious benefits to no-reward donation based crowdfunding. You need to think about what type of crowdfunding best suits what you are trying to do. Merchandise based campaigns with ready merchandise should go for
Valentine Njoroge: If you have an idea, do something about it
Entrepreneurs are a dime a dozen in this millennial age. Here on the African continent, the main obstacles preventing one from getting their business started is the lack of enough capital and investors ready to believe in your new, cool idea. Valentine Njoroge, a young entrepreneur from Kenya, saw this problem and decided to fix it by starting an online crowdfunding company for African businesses, Mradifund. Her passion about financial inclusions and development, entrepreneurship and impact investments, not only inspired the start of this initiative but also landed her the coveted role as projects director at East Africa’s leading investment firm, Centum Investments Ltd at the tender age of 24. SLA contributor Diana caught up with Valentine and got her to share her tricks and tips to making it in the fast paced financial world and why she is determined to help other young people get their dream off the ground and become a success. When did you first get interested in the investments industry? One of my first internships was at Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT), a micro-finance institution focused on funding low income women. The women who got these loans had such incredible stories of transformation. They would start very impressive businesses and see their lives changed because of these loans. This got me really interested in the investments space and I got to discover all sorts of other verticals in the industry. How did the idea of Mradifund come about? Mradifund has been a journey of sorts. One of my senior seminars while I was pursuing my undergraduate degree was all about economic development. I chose to focus my paper on alternative investments in Africa (with a bias on Kenya). While researching for this class, I came across Kickstarter, which was still fairly new at the time. They had applied crowdfunding to social/cultural works of art that the public wanted to see. I thought the same concept could be applied to businesses, so I wrote about Equity Crowdfunding. I envisioned a situation where the general public could fund ‘cool’ companies that were too small to be interesting to the traditional investor. Fast forward a few months, I was working in Private Wealth Management aiding high net worth individuals to allocate their wealth to various investment opportunities. Then, one of my clients asked if there was a way he could invest in African companies. At the time, I said I didn’t know, but kept researching. When I next visited home, I started finding out more about start ups and SME financing. I eventually connected that same client to a startup which he invested in. He later asked me how much I would charge for the connection which triggered the thought that this could be an actual business. I moved back home a few months after that and spent some time fine tuning the ideas from my paper. The experience of actually connecting a business to an investor is what inspired Mradifund today. You currently have various investors from not only Kenya but all over the world. How did you manage to get them on board with your vision for online crowdfunding? I still know all of my investors personally, so I met each of them and explained the concept to get them on board. Most of Mradifund’s investors already have an interest in funding businesses due to a variety of reasons including past experience or passion for SMEs or a certain sector. Investing with other people is valuable to them because it allows them to spread the risk of investing in SMEs over several opportunities by putting less money into each opportunity. The fact that the investment is shared among several people also means that investors can make more investments. Again, this spreads the risk which makes investors happy. (If an investor has KES. 10M, they can invest KES. 1M in 10 companies and the probability of 10 companies failing/losing money is lower than that of 1 company failing). This is what makes them stay. You are also currently the Projects Director at Centum Investments. How do you juggle running your own company, working at such a big corporate company and still get time to live life? Haha, well… I have learned how to use the resources around me to the max! My board at Mradifund, my team at Centum, my friends and family all help me achieve my goals in little ways, even if they don’t realize it sometimes. I kill two birds with one stone on very many occasions, especially in the work/friends’ quadrants. Also, I have had to learn how to be very efficient with prioritizing the urgent and important stuff. I say no to stuff that’s just interesting (but not value adding) or just feels like an obligation when it’s really not. Did you ever see yourself going the entrepreneurial route or did you just chance upon it? I have always kind of had an entrepreneurial spirit in me. I sold everything as a kid and I grew up in a very entrepreneurial family, so maybe in that sense I never had to think about it much. It became clear to me once I was already in it that it was a big passion of mine. I did spend a ton of time dreaming up my career in corporate (it was constantly changing) —wearing suits and carrying a briefcase as a teenager though. What has been the proudest moment of your career? One of the founders of the a business that Centum Foundation supported wrote me an email saying how much impact we had on his company through our mentorship program. He spoke about the knowledge and opportunities it opened up to him, as well as how much more confident it made him. As a result, he was able to partner with a major retailer which turned his business into an overnight success. It was really heartfelt and was very inspiring! As a young woman working in the male-driven field of finance, what
Irene Charnley: We women will lead fundamental change on our continent #SheHiveJoburg
[bctt tweet=”Have the conviction & fortitude to put forth your ideas – Irene Charnley #SheHiveJoburg” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Irene Charnley is an ex-MTN exec who led the company’s expansion into Nigeria and Iran. She’s also now a telecoms founder whose company, Pan-African, reigns supreme in Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania and Congo. At #SheHiveJoburg Irene Charnley dazzled the crowd by sharing the key principles she has followed throughout her career to get to where she is today. With a net worth of around $150 million, it was clear to all in the room that Irene knows a thing or two about being a Motherland Mogul. Irene’s key principles to follow if you want to be successful Have some core values and let them guide you The most important relationship you will ever have is with yourself. According to Irene, when it comes to succeeding in business and in life, you have to realize that there is no magic out there, the magic is within you. You must cultivate some core values rooted in integrity, as these will help guide and sustain you on whatever path you choose to follow. Irene shared that her core value is this: everything is possible. There is always a way, it is up to you to find it. She talked about the difficulties she and her partner faced when trying to secure a building for their business. They faced challenges in getting landlords to rent to them. But having this “everything is possible” attitude, they were persistent in knocking on doors till someone finally let them in the building. “What are the core value that drove you to action everyday?”, Irene opened this question to the audience and the awesome ladies of #SheHiveJoburg shared some of the following responses: “I have the power to make everything I want come true”, “Be truthful to yourself and to others”, “Always follow through on your promises”, “Be present in everything that you do, both physically and psychologically”. Irene encouraged everyone in the audience to be true to their values every single day, to forget everyone else and please themselves first, to simply, “Be you!” [bctt tweet=”Irene Charnley’s core value is simple, everything is possible! #SheHiveJoburg” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Always aim to be a subject matter expert Irene talked about the importance of working twice as hard as everyone else in the room to become the expert, the one that people turn to when they want an explanation of how things work. This is the only way to stay ahead of the competition and to become comfortable being in a position of power and influence. When you prepare diligently, you’ll begin to see things outside the box and are able to come up with solutions that no one else has thought of yet. At the end of every day, you ought to ask yourself, “What did I learn today that was worth it for me?” My key takeaway from Irene’s wisdom was, “Know that it’s about you, know what your core values are and always be prepared”. [bctt tweet=”The only way to stand ahead of competition is to work twice as hard – Irene Charnley” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Business is logic. Business sense is common sense Sometimes what trips most people up on the way to success, especially when it comes to success in business, is that they waste too much time overthinking things. Women especially have the tendency to dwell too long on things. We are afraid to speak up and share our ideas because we feel like someone in the room must have a better one. Irene shared a very important lesson on this topic. After having spent a lot of time in several boardrooms, one thing that became clear was that no one in the room has all the answers. Have the conviction and the fortitude to put forth your ideas, even if they will be shot down or criticized. Use every opportunity as a learning point: ask questions, share your ideas, learn from others. That’s the only way to keep growing. Find voices you trust. Keep them around you Again, as women we have this tendency to want to shoulder all our burdens ourselves and fight and toil to get the answers we need. But Irene, as successful as she is, shared a key insight, “You can’t go through this journey alone. You need to find your angels and let them help you out along the way”. Irene talked about the importance of having mentors to guide you by offering advice and a fresh perspective. Also of importance is being a role model yourself to someone else who is a bit behind you on the same path. And as a sign of putting your money where your mouth is, Irene offered to share her email and phone number with all the ladies in the room. She promised to be available to mentor anyone who felt they could benefit from talking to her. [bctt tweet=”At #SheHiveJoburg Irene Charnley offered to be a mentor. See what else you missed out on” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Be a value-add. To everyone. All the time For a minute, stop and think about you. What is it that you bring to the table, to your business, to your community that no one else does? What is it that you do differently that makes you so special? Irene reminded us that we all have gifts that we should be nurturing. It is up to us to bring these gifts with us to every relationship or partnership. We should start to view entrepreneurship as a way to add value to what is already out there. Build sensible relationships, sensitively Last but not least, Irene talked about the important of relationships. Of cultivating the right relationships, with the right people at the right time. On the journey to success, we must strive to do our best to listen and learn, and to truly understand where others are coming from so that we might know how to best serve them. Irene ended her talk on
Imane Bensalem: Humanity needs more dreamers, storytellers, lovers and givers
[bctt tweet=”As an author @imane_bensalem deals with her start-up as a life plan rather than a business” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] Ever felt so alone and isolated in the world? Imane Bensalem would know that feeling. It was a sense of isolation that lead he to start the Tribe of Why, a global community of like-minded individuals who support each other to achieve their dreams. Dreaming is something Imane strongly holds on to and her goal is to help others know that they are not alone. A community that provides support will lead to more dreams to become realities, is her philosophy. From organising local events in Marrakesh, Morocco to linking up members to start businesses in foreign countries, the Tribe of Why does it all. You’ll be motivated and ready to become part of the tribe after reading some of Imane’s wisdom. Tell me about yourself, who are you and what’s your story? What makes Imane the human she is? Pain is a great teacher, the truest of all. And I have had my share of pain. I could not be grateful for it when I was younger, but I am now. Because those nights I did not know if I would make it to the next morning were the reason I can now give so much love to others and be a leader who is altruist and empathetic. I am Imane, they call me Mani. I am the founder of Tribe Of Why and author of The Bird who Lived with Humans. In addition, I connect people who share the same life dreams because I believe that dreams unite the human race and go beyond our societal barriers. Dreams build the future and sharing them with many other supporters around the world will enrich each individual in the Tribe and will inspire them to continue the search for meaning. How were your childhood and growing phases an inspiring force for the Tribe of Why? I was a single child of a single mother. I experienced isolation and questioned the capacity of our educational system to get me out of such a situation. My mother is a professor, and she agreed that the system did not allow her to be present in her own child’s life. I started seeking knowledge in people —through deep talks— rather than books, and authentic liaisons rather than superficial links with others. Then, I succeeded at building an international tribe for myself and they were my school, my inspiration and now, my Tribe Of Why members. I wanted to extend this experience to every other human on planet because with the amount of connectivity allowed to us, I do not see why anyone should suffer isolation or give up on their dream just due to a lack of local support. The global pool of talent is so big and rich that even the wildest of dreams will always have a match somewhere. [bctt tweet=”I don’t see why anyone should give up on their dream due to lack of local support” username=”SheLeadsAfrica”] As an author, I deal with my start-up as a life plan rather than an actual business. I try to bring my life learnings into my work and allow art to be a constructive part of business. Art changes people and people change the world. I try to be a vehicle of that change. What inspired you to begin the Tribe of Why? Walking into my room everyday is an inspiration to continue building the Tribe Of Why. If you walk into my room you will find cards from a best friend in Greece, letters from another friend in Spain, Germany, and dried flowers from Maldives. A regular day for me could look like a brain-cafe with an inspirational entrepreneur/friend from Vienna, then a meeting with a stranger who just landed from the UK for the first time in Marrakesh. Her first destination was a Tribe of Why event in the city. Then this stranger becomes a friend, she meets me 2 or 3 more times and then tells me she found love here, in this new city, during one of my events. All of the things I just stated actually happened. I began Tribe Of Why the day I started a small talent community in my business university. Within 3 months we grew to 300 members throwing the biggest flash mob defending women rights. The dance was designed by us, the DJ was a student too, we were self-sufficient because we were a tribe that shared the same passion; passion for art and freedom. What is Tribe of Why about? Is it a single tribe in one location or stretched across the globe? Tribe Of Why allows you to connect with creative minds, thinkers, entrepreneurs and dreamers across the globe, but also locally. When you are travelling, you can rely on the tribe to host you and co-create ideas with you. But, you can also share coffee with the wannabe author next-door that you never actually knew about until you joined the tribe. We are a moveable feast of knowledge and creativity. Also, small talk is something you won’t have to endure in the tribe, we go deep! Why do you think your tribe is important in our day and age? It is extremely important during our current times to cultivate love, empathy and peace. Such things expand out of themselves when connections from one human to another are true and purposeful. Many of our youth today use the social platforms to compare themselves to others, they deepen their depression and sense of isolation from the world. We want people to understand they are all on the same quest. This is why we care about building tribes who share the same dreams, they implicitly share the same pursuit and same obstacles. But together, it is easier to overcome these obstacles in contrast to being alone and feeling maladjusted to the world during such a pursuit. How do you think this can help humanity? In a