Incorporating Social Activism into Business

While at a fundraiser in San Francisco last week sponsored by Ben and Jerry’s Ice-cream company, I had the good fortune of meeting Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, founders of Ben & Jerry’s. The growth and success of their small business over the last 32 years is quite extraordinary. What makes their story exceptional and inspiring is how they have cultivated a company culture of fun, transparency, and social activism while growing their business. It seems they were way ahead of their time as much of the business world today is struggling to understand how to implement transparency and activism into their own business model.

In the social & environmental assessment report in 2008 from Ben & Jerry’s CEO, (Chief Euphoria Officer) Walt Freese, he states the following:

1. Use our company to further the cause of Peace and Justice.

2. Harmonize our global supply chain and ensure its alignment with our company values.

3. Take the lead promoting global sustainable dairy practices.

The report also has a section called, Leading with Progressive Values Across our Business:

“We have a progressive, nonpartisan Social Mission that seeks to meet human needs and eliminate injustices in our local, national, and international communities by integrating these concerns into our day-to-day business activities. Our focus is on children and families, the environment and sustainable agriculture on family farms.”

Here is a link to the entire content on their social and environmental report.  This BOLD report, which they proudly display on their website, caused me take great pause in how any business would go about incorporating something similar into their own strategic and/or business plan.

We are now entering the second half of the year.  And here at Hware, we are preparing for our own upcoming two-day strategic and business planning retreat. We will be looking at our financial projections, marketing campaigns, sales forecasts, product development, etc. We will be using our own business planning methodology called Envision Plan Act to help guide us through the two day meeting. Ben and Jerry’s company model has given me much to ponder as we reassess our business model, redesign our website and update our content.

What about you? Have you found a company that inspires you to grow your small business in a more creative and daring way?  Who inspires you? What inspires you? Please share your comments below.

Not having a Social Media Plan is like going for a long Hike in the Mountains without any Food and Water.

The point is that you may survive, but it will be a very challenging and frustrating experience that could have otherwise been avoided. In my last post, I wrote about how planning starts with a VISION. In this post, I want to emphasize the importance of PLANNING. When most people think of planning, they yawn, BORING! Who wants to get boggled down with details?! “Let’s just go for it, make it happen and we will adjust along the way. Besides, it’s more fun and adventurous to have some spontaneity in our lives!” I swear, I used to say that and believe that with all my heart, and I still do in some areas of my life, but NOT when it comes to business. Unfortunately, I have had to learn through too many failures to understand why PLANNING is key to a successful business. So let’s dive into some key factors that are fundamental to having a solid social media plan. For the purpose of this blog post, I will be referring to small businesses:

• Know your target audience – Who are you selling to? Who’s attention do you want? Let’s narrow it down further. What  is your buyer persona?  That means, what are your buyers’ preferences, tastes, likes and dislikes. For example, my company, Hware sells software tools that help small businesses. Therefore, I look for entrepreneurs, and Work-at-Home folks to connect with online and try to make myself useful to them. I am laser-focused on the kind of person I want to interact with online. It’s  not that I don’t or won’t engage with anyone other than my ideal client, it’s just that I am very specific and clear about who I need to be talking to online for my business. More importantly, if your target audience is not online, then you are wasting your time being online. You need to be where they are. That’s where market research comes in.
• Spend some time doing some Market Research – It is crucial to find out where your customers hang out. Are they on Twitter or LinkedIn? Are most of them not using social networking sites and still prefer e-mail? The point is that you need to have a clear understanding of where they are so that you can communicate with them.  Occasionally, I enroll my online audience in surveys, which gives me insight into what they need. I then provide them with the results of the polls. By engaging my audience and asking for feedback, I gain tremendous knowledge on who they are, what their challenges are, and how I may better serve them. Here are a few online survey tools: Poll Daddy,  Survey Monkey and Twtpoll (for Twitter). The surveys need to be short, simple and convenient for the participant, otherwise, they will be reluctant fill it out.

• Know your online STAG: I call these your Strengths, Talents, Attributes, and Gifts. You must find and own your STAG and become like the beautiful statuesque male deer I live with here in the foothills of Northern California. They know their own power and beauty.  They grace the land with great ease and confidence. When you know your STAG, you will attract, engage, and be like a magnet to your online Fans, Friends, and Followers. When you are clear about your STAG, it will show in your energy, your presence. We all feed off of each other’s energy and your customers are no different. They will know if you are moving with ease and confidence and when you are putting their best interests first and foremost. (I will write more about STAG in future blog posts.) An example of using your STAG is let’s say that you are better at talking than writing; then perhaps you may want do more vlogging (video blogs) than blogging. The point is that you are playing to your strengths and when you work from a place of strengths, it always much easier.
• Remember that your Social Media Plan - should come under the umbrella of your marketing plan and your marketing plan falls under your business plan and your business plan should be part of your long-term strategic plan, (which I will write about in more detail another time.) So many people get overwhelmed with social media, but it is important to keep things in perspective. Social media is just one aspect of your overall business and as an entrepreneur/self-employed, you wear many different hats – social media is your marketing hat.

On my next blog post, I will delve into more detail about social media planning. I will be writing about some specific automation tools to help systematize and simplify your online presence.

Brenda Horton is Co-owner of Hware, a software company that designs business planning tools for small businesses. She will be hosting a FREE and LIVE Webinar on Social Media STRATEGIES for beginners on September 2nd.

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