The first thing that comes to our mind when we hear the word entrepreneurs is profit-chasing individuals focused on achieving business goals. But who are social entrepreneurs?
Well, social entrepreneurs are the ones who thrive on making a difference by solving various social and economic issues of society. The main aim of creating a social venture is to improve social well-being rather than earning profit.
Keep reading the article to learn how social entrepreneurship is different and some amazing examples for social enterprises.
What is Social Entrepreneurship?
Fundamentally, Social Entrepreneurship means doing business for a social purpose or cause. Generally, individuals, groups, start-ups or entrepreneurs approach becoming social entrepreneurs to generate funds and solve various social, cultural, and environmental issues.
The primary motive of a social entrepreneur is to recognise and address social issues and make a social change that consequently contributes to the well-being of society. Such entrepreneurship can be related to a non-profit or a for-profit business model. However, the profits generated are generally utilised to support the venture’s operational costs and fund various programs for social upgrades.
Characteristics of a Social Entrepreneur
Here are the hints of some personality characteristics that we view as essential to be successful as a social entrepreneur.
- Nurturing a sense of curiosity about society and its problems is one of the main characteristic features of social entrepreneurs. They seek to truly understand the needs and desires of the people they serve.
- Inspiration always motivates action and helps social entrepreneurs to deal with the challenges that others try to avoid addressing.
- Social entrepreneurs know how to have a grip on the resources and develop innovative methods to handle the obstacles.
- The visions for bringing about a massive social change might take a long time, and experienced social entrepreneurs know that they need to be immensely patient to achieve big goals.
- Social entrepreneurs must always remain open to solutions and ideas. Adaptability and flexibility are crucial for developing early-stage social enterprises.
- Social entrepreneurs are the ones who persist past initial failures and setbacks and persevere to deliver effective solutions.
Tips to Become a Social Entrepreneur
To be a social entrepreneur, one needs more than an excellent purpose-driven business idea, and it requires a step-by-step plan and the commitment to see it through.
Start by Writing a Mission Statement
If you aspire to become a social entrepreneur, you should start your venture after determining who you want to help and also, at the same time, exactly how you want to serve them. Furthermore, you should be clear about how you would like to solve the demographic through your business service or product.
Research on Your Niche
You should begin by exploring the social business landscape you are interested in and research who the players are and how they bring a change in the world. Take inspiration from the existing social entrepreneurs in your niche to develop distinct innovative ideas.
Grow Your Business Model
A business model is considered a roadmap for making money for your enterprise. You should be clear on how far you want your services and products to reach and decide precisely what amount of money you need to support your mission.
Pick Out Initial Funding Sources
Crowdfunding is a clever move if you have already enjoyed some early success at the beginning of your social venture. Besides, another best funding option, particularly for social enterprises, are impact investors, who exclusively funds purpose-driven entrepreneurs.
Develop an Action Plan
An action plan is of utmost necessity to build a framework of the tasks to which you need to commit. You need to decide the exact date you want to begin your social venture and the time you would need to get there. Moreover, the time factor plays an important role, and in fact, your action plan is the master to-do list.
Social Entrepreneurship Ideas
Social entrepreneurship ideas depend on the social issues you are trying to solve. Mentioned below are some of the amazing social entrepreneurship examples for 2022.
Social Supermarket for Social Good
You can create a social food that sells food to low-income communities at a discounted price. You can purchase the food items at a low price from food suppliers and other supermarkets. Also, you can collaborate with other social entrepreneurs who are willing to donate food to your venture.
Used Textbooks for Social Change
Collaborate with specific student groups or clubs to collect used textbooks from the students at the end of each semester. You can re-sell some textbooks at a lower price to students studying in college or universities or donate them to needy students. The profits gained could be split between student groups or clubs and to support other social programs.
Travel for a Cause
As a social entrepreneur, educational travel plays a vital role because it is essential to understand various environmental, economic, and social situations to work in different countries. It helps you create genuine connections to understand the pain points of other societies. So, you can gather travellers from around the world interested in social services to reach out to people in different countries and areas.
Baking or Cooking to Support Employment
Open a bakery or a restaurant that focuses on building employment skills for underemployed groups. You could use the profit acquired from selling the food and beverages to pay wages, support training, and facilitate social betterment programs for the staff.
Beauty Products for a Social Mission
You might convince and partner with major beauty brands to provide their products at a favourable wholesale rate that you can sell on any e-commerce platform. The profits earned could be diverted to distributing milk and baby bottles in underdeveloped and developing nations.
Social entrepreneurs care intensely about making an impact more than gaining a profit. Most importantly, to become a successful social entrepreneur, you need to think outside of the box to ensure that you make positive vibes in the community.