The Art of Starting Small: Five Steps

Put It On Paper!

Have you really thought about the idea? Have you written it down? Research shows that there are numerous benefits to writing down your goals and ideas.

Writing things down sets the intention and is the first practical step. Written ideas are clearer and more tangible than mere thoughts. Moreover, writing or typing out your ideas clears your mind. This begins the organization process and clarifies your random thoughts. Slowly, your ideas begin to connect and a plan comes together.

Did you know that you are more likely to stay motivated when you have a visible reminder of your goals? In a week, a month or a year from now, you can look back to see the progress you have made at the written-down plans. So, go ahead and jot it down!

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Do The Essentials List!

Once written down, don’t stop there, go beyond the writing, capture the things that you need. For instance:

What kind of business am I starting?
What do I need to kick start?
What products will I be offering?
What is the industry like in this line of business? Is it competitive? Am I alone? What are other sellers like me doing?
What is my uniqueness as a business? (The niche)
Where do I see my business in fifteen years?

You may find yourself not having the answers to all these questions at the beginning, and this is okay. This brings us to the third thing…

Do A Recon!

Do a research, find out what other businesses in your industry are doing. What successes and failures are they experiencing? How are the businesses coping with these challenges? What kind of questions should you expect from customers? Which common mistakes should you avoid?

This exercise will give you a clear idea of what to expect and plan for, your timelines, where to source supplies, price estimates, and much much more.

You know what’s awesome? You can do a Recon on your way to work, or your way home. Remember, you are starting small and doing everything a small step at a time. It may take time, but it’s all worth it.

Before we proceed, did you know that every month we hold free webinars just to grow you as an entrepreneur? This month we have 5 Marketing Tips to Grow Your Business with James Macharia! See you there.

Draft A Pre-Budget

Now that you have done a recon and a list of the essentials, draft what your expenditure might look like. At this point, don’t jump to a cumbersome company budget servicing million customers. Hold your brakes, you are not there yet!

Bearing in mind it might take some time to gain customers and establish a regular cash flow, draft a simple day-to-day budget of the costs you anticipate. So, be specific. Draft down the little you need to produce just for the first batch of products. Remember, entrepreneurs that break this secret have higher chance of success that those that don’t.

The Taste-Test

With the budget out of the way, it’s time to test and taste the waters. The only way to know if people want your product is to give them an opportunity to interact with it. Sell to family and friends, get their feedback, and use it to improve the product.

Another way you can test the idea is through crowdfunding. This opens your business and products to customers beyond your network. This means:

More awareness- crowdfunding is a marketing tool
More feedback about your product
Possibly, more funding

You can learn more about crowdfunding here.

Track Progress

Check your progress regularly against your plan to see whether you are moving in the right direction. Remember to always celebrate each milestone no matter how small!

Congratulations on taking the first steps towards bringing your ideas to life. Which step resonated with you the most? Tell us on the feedback.

Remember to Join us for our Free Webinar: 5 Marketing Tips to Grow Your Business on 1st July, 2021. Register Here.

Five Reasons You Should Start Small

May, 2021February, 2022Leave a comment

Be not afraid of growing slowly. Be afraid only of standing still.

Chinese Proverb

Every large business you can think of started small. Even the tech giant, Microsoft, started with two childhood friends who had a dream and it has over the years grown to what you see today. Many entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs find themselves struggling to start their dream business when the answer is sometimes as simple as starting small.

Why start small?

1. It ensures that you start!

Starting your own business can feel like a daunting task even when the passion and excitement are there. Committing to making one small step wards off the paralysis that comes in the beginning when there seems to be just too much to do! It doesn’t take much willpower to do the small tasks, the key is to make each step easy to carry out so that the initial resistance is lowered. Make that phone call, create that Facebook page, draft a monthly budget and before you know it, you have your own small business up and running.

2. Feedback and Flexibility

Starting small opens your business to immediate feedback from the people that matter (customers, suppliers, partners, etc) If you find that 70% of your sales are coming from one out of five products, you might want to focus on developing and improving that one instead of investing equally in all five.

Starting small further gives you the flexibility to incorporate the feedback you get. Even in the event that things do not work out as planned, you have more room to change direction or start over.

3. It minimizes the risk

One of the things that makes beginnings tough is thinking about all the things that could go wrong. Indeed, there are some real risks to starting a business. What if we run out of money? What if people don’t like our products? Starting small makes these risks a little more bearable. You get to learn what works and what doesn’t before investing all your time and resources

4. Grow as it grows

Running a business is a journey of trial and error, and oftentimes the mistakes you make, grow you as a person and as an entrepreneur. The skills that you learn when starting small give you the much needed confidence and motivation to set bigger goals. The more you succeed the more you want to succeed and it’s the small wins that build your momentum towards your big dreams. Clarity also comes with action, the more steps you take, the clearer your vison and direction become.

5. Why not?

There is less to lose in starting small and you can change your mind at any point.

We are all for dreaming big and aiming high. But if the big bold steps are getting in the way of you starting, maybe you should consider taking small daily baby steps. Small efforts sustained over time can produce great results. Consistency is key.

Just start!

Want to learn more?
Register for our Free Webinar, A Guide to Growing Your New Business.

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Wisdom of the Crowd

March, 2018March, 2018Leave a comment

Millennials in the future of business, as told by a Millennial

February, 2018Leave a comment

I grew up in a world far removed from the one known by my parents, a world where instant gratification and self validation through my peers are at the core of my being. As a millennial there is a difficult balance between what I am told by my elders and what I know to be true, where previous generations have grown up understanding that all things come in good time, I see the world through a screen and gratification comes through the push of a “button” so to speak. Everywhere I look I see how millennials are going to struggle in adapting to the “real” world, how the need for instant gratification will be our greatest weakness. For a while I accepted this to be true, as I could see their point and see how this could all be the start to a downward spiral for my generation. However, after several weeks of contemplation, it became quite clear that yes these “undesirable” characteristics may not work in the “real world”, but maybe that is because the real world is out of date to some degree and potentially that is what needs to be rectified.

Life is not the same as when my parents started out, the world has changed and continues to do so. Everything that was once easy to achieve (University acceptance, bank loans, etc…) have only become more challenging, so I am proposing that it is time to start looking at alternatives to what we view as traditional/conventional methods of achieving goals, ways that introduce the norms of impatience and instant gratification into this system we call life. I think if you ask most millennials what they want to do with their lives they will tell you that they want to make a difference, effect change, be an entrepreneur, but the big question is always how. Now I may not have all the answers, few do, but I have some thoughts.

I truly think that we millennials will be just fine, there really is no other alternative if the world is to continue spinning. Though to be fine we are going to have to embrace our so called flaws and channel them into making this “change” we want to affect a reality. How great would it be to gain that bliss of instant gratification from something positive/productive instead of through a new follower on Instagram or another like on a photo of your morning latte.

We live in the 21st century where almost anything is possible, where innovation is part of everyday life, and where we don’t need to ask what if but rather when will. As a species we have never had the luxury of taking such immediate action until now, in almost every aspect of our lives we have grown accustomed to instant gratification. Why should the world of business and innovation be any different? It is no secret that starting a business or creating new and innovative ideas has become increasingly expensive, we also know that the traditional means of obtaining finance have become virtually impossible, and even if you obtain this finance it’s just riddled with debt, basically setting you up to fail from day one. Now what if we look at a way to take this new and innovative world that we live in and merge it with the art of obtaining a debt free version of traditional finance.

Crowdfunding – A viable solution to our future.

Crowdfunding is a term that most people would have heard of, but might not always grasp what it is at its core. I stumbled upon crowdfunding by accident one day when I was partaking in every millennials worst nightmare, the job hunt. I decided to learn a bit more about this job I was applying for, and realized that it was actually a game changing industry for many people just like me, who are not necessarily lazy or unmotivated but unable to fake enthusiasm over something that we have no passion for. It sparked my interest, which few things do, so I applied and to my surprise I got the job. I began to learn the ins and outs of this industry and realized that as an industry it evolved so quickly, with new projects coming in and out, the joy of seeing them succeed, and the motivation and learning that I got out of watching them fail.

It is a shame to see potential go to waste, but it is a great comfort to know that there is some hope at the end of the tunnel, that all of the misunderstood talent of this generation does not have to go to waste due to obstacles like money. Which is the reason I am writing this, to hopefully inspire some of my peers to do what they are passionate about, to prove the world wrong, and to show everyone a new way of doing things in a headstrong world stuck on old traditions.

Crowdfunding offers a combination of obtaining finance, gaining media exposure, and testing new ideas in a real market. In any new business one of the first thing that come to mind are the costs associated with getting it off the ground, not to mention the hassle and stress involved in obtaining a loan. Other concerns that are inherently involved with getting traditional forms of finance include debt repayment, which creates the pressure caused by the potential for failure, and the stresses of implementation. Crowdfunding is a solution to these problems, crowdfunding provides the opportunity to be proactive in avoiding these issues.

Obtaining Finance

Crowdfunding is a means of obtaining finance for your idea without the pressure of debt, but rather the responsibility of delivering on your promises within a predetermined time frame that you have set.

Gaining Media Exposure

One of the many benefits of crowdfunding is that it offers the key principles of e-commerce with the added benefit of a unique story attached to it. Making use of crowdfunding means that you are not completely on your own, and are working with an established brand to build the credibility of your own. Crowdfunding platforms will also have various media contacts that can be leveraged to help give exposure to your project, of course there is never a 100% guarantee.

Testing The Market

When it comes to launching a new product or service there is not always a sure way of knowing if it is needed in the market enough to be feasible. On the other hand there may very well be a profitable market out there that you have yet to identify, and may waste all your efforts in the wrong place, costing you time and valuable resources.

There are various forms of crowdfunding available to entrepreneurs from the more traditional rewards-based to the newer asset-based crowdfunding. While both of these can work in unison during the same campaign, sometimes one is more than enough to provide you with what you need to launch your brand and idea.

Rewards-Based Crowdfunding

The best way to look at rewards-based crowdfunding in terms of a concept that South Africans are familiar with is e-commerce. Rewards-based crowdfunding allows the project creators/entrepreneurs to pre-sell their products/services to their potential/ideal market. How this differs from doing this on your own stand alone website is that doing it through crowdfunding provides an indication to the buyer that the product is not yet ready, it also provides much needed trust, and transparency. Unlike a normal e-commerce site, crowdfunding give the buyer a detailed look at who you are and what you are doing. The project page allows them to connect with you on a personal level, as well as understand and connect with your brand and products. If they can buy into your story they will be more than happy to buy what you are selling, and be loyal customers long after your campaign has ended.

Fokofpolisiekar

South African rock band Fokofpolisiekar launched a campaign Fokof Crowdfunding at the beginning of 2017 to record and independently release their third studio album Selfmedikasie. This album caused a lot of excitement as it was their first album to be released in 11 years, since their sophomore album was released back in 2006. This campaign was an instant hit amongst fans, as could be seen when they reached their dream goal of R500 000.00 in only a week. This campaign was the first of the year to break South African rewards-based crowdfunding records, raising R1 081 010.00 through the campaign.

The overwhelming success that this campaign had was a result of three main factors; the band’s network, their project and their rewards, but most importantly how these three factors all worked together. In crowdfunding these are known as the three pillars of success, and by tapping into even one of these can make a campaign successful. Fokofpolisiekar hit a sweet spot, with a network of fans longing for a new album, and excited about any merchandise that they could purchase as rewards through the campaign. Throughout this project the rewards were constantly updated, bringing new life into the campaign and reigniting excitement. Here we can see how the story added to the value of the rewards, as Fokof merchandise had been available before, but the key reason to buy was due to the demand for the project. A win for both the band and the backers of the campaign, great rewards contributing to a common goal.

Asset-Based Crowdfunding

Asset-Based crowdfunding is in essence a short term investment in a particular product, which can run hand in hand with a rewards-based campaign. This type of crowdfunding is best utilized with a product that is made using mass production. This works where an investor will front you the finance to produce a large volume of your product in exchange for their investment back and return on their investment through a percentage of the profits made. A riskier reward to add to a campaign for both project creator and investor, but with the potential to show massive profits when done correctly.

Sugarbird Gin

Sugarbird Gin is a new craft gin brand on the market in South Africa, it was founded out of a love for just good gin. This is their mantra, not to be the best but the favourite, to be top of mind among South Africans. Craft gin is a fast emerging market in South Africa, and there is an ever growing array of options to choose from. Sugarbird saw this barrier to entry as an opportunity to stand out amongst the clutter in the category. It was this that led them to their record breaking crowdfunding campaign. Raising an astonishing R1 086 973.00 during their campaign they proved that crowdfunding is more than just a method of obtaining capital for a new business, but can be a great method of introducing yourself to the market.

Creating a campaign as a new brand that breaks records is no easy task, Sugarbird proved that it takes hard work, innovative thinking and a strong team to accomplish such feats. Throughout the campaign this brand continued to create exciting and relevant content to update people on the progress of their campaign, they took risks and broke down barriers by offering rewards never before seen on Thundafund. Their most innovative offering utilized asset-based crowdfunding by allowing people to get in on the action and buy a batch for which they would receive a 25% return on investment within 6 months. This proved to be a huge success and ultimately set them over the top, sealing their spot in the crowdfunding hall of fame.

Now obviously there are many different options when selecting a crowdfunding platform, but as a South African I like to keep it local, so I’m going to talk about the leading South African crowdfunding platform for entrepreneurs and innovative individuals.

Thundafund.com

Now that you have an understanding of crowdfunding for entrepreneurs and how it could be the answer to your innovative prayers, it is time to answer the question of where to do it. Thundafund is one of South Africa’s oldest crowdfunding platforms and the largest rewards-based and asset-based crowdfunding platforms in South Africa. What really makes Thundafund stand out to me from other rewards-based crowdfunding platforms is the knowledge and commitment of the team. While the brand awareness and success rates are amazing, I feel that the passion shown by each individual there really does make all the difference.

Understandably whenever money is involved people are skeptical, it seems that someone is always trying to take advantage of someone else when finance is involved. Banks and other credit provider promise the world to you and always leave out the fine print, effectively bleeding your wallet dry. This shouldn’t ever be the case with crowdfunding, crowdfunding is a powerful method of uniting people together to support a common goal, which is why trust plays such a huge part in it. This is why Thundafund has implemented an “all or nothing” system, that means that should you not make enough money to actually do what your project says, the money is given back, and neither party makes a cent. Personally I find this honesty in business rather refreshing, especially when living in a world that is so full of hypocrites and fake social media lives, which only create more anxiety and depression among today’s youth.

The truth is we all know that life in unfair, some are blessed with gifts and opportunities that fit right into society as is, while for others have to fight just to be heard. That is what crowdfunding is to me, it’s a voice for those who are unheard and an opportunity to excel beyond what is currently possible. To live your best life and celebrate the brilliance of each individual.

In 2017, my first year at Thundafund I saw many amazing projects come onto the platform, and got to become a part of each project creators story. I was fortunate enough to see two record breaking campaigns that went further than anyone would have thought possible. I will always be grateful for this, partially because of how much I learned, but mostly because I got to see first hand that anything is possible when hard work meets passion. In 2018 I hope to see many more people take over the world and prove the naysayers wrong. I truly believe that together we can make this world a better and more fair place, one dreamer at a time.

“2018 is here and our aim? To double up again. We’re part of the entrepreneurial movement in South Africa that is re-writing people’s futures and dreams. Every business going live, every creative project realised, every new product launched is an opportunity for us to build a prosperous nation of people doing it for themselves. That’s the expanding culture we’re part of, ‘don’t wait on others, make it happen yourself’. “ Patrick Schofield CEO Thundafund.com

As told by Nicholas Dilley

Supporting articles on Millennials.

GRIT: A Crowdfunding Essential

March, 2017March, 2017Leave a comment

It’s been a week and no one has backed my campaign, what do I do?

Giving up is not the right answer. You’ve put a lot of effort into setting up your campaign, you can’t give up yet!

This is where grit comes in. The American Psychologist, Angela Duckworth, who is the leading authority on Grit describes the term as ‘perseverance and passion for long-term goals.‘

Crowdfunding success is having grit, following through with your campaign, not giving up after a bad first week.

So what can I do about my funding problems? How can I show my grit?

Well you can start by answering these questions:

Have you told everyone you know?
Have you reached out to people beyond Social Media?
Do you have a clear idea of who is going to back your campaign?
Do you have a group of people helping you spread the word
Have you asked people for their opinion on your campaign?

A great start to getting funding is to read our blog post on creating a Funding Strategy. Read it here.

If you feel you need to restrategise your campaign send us an email or give us call. We’re here to help you achieve the funding you need.

At the end of the day it’s important to realise that it’s up to you to get the funding you need. Having grit throughout the journey will help in achieving your funding goals

Your Thundafund Campaign is just the start of your project’s journey. Grit will play a serious role in the success or failure of your venture. To learn more about the power of Grit and how it can be learnt check out the Freakonomics podcast on Grit here. Angela Duckworth has a great TED talk, watch it here

The Importance of a Funding Strategy for your Thundafund Campaign

February, 2017February, 2017Leave a comment

Why you need a funding strategy:

A funding strategy helps you identify possible backers and how to get through to them. Crowdfunding starts with your crowd, it’s these people that will comprise of your core funding. Here is the outline for constructing your own funding strategy, this is purely a template so customise it to your own situation. Crowdfunding is hard work, it requires persistence and perseverance. A funding strategy can help you stay focused and directed so you don’t end up wasting your time trying to reach the wrong people.

Backers Inventory:

Here you list all of your potential backers from your third cousin Nelson to your oldest friend Justene. This helps you identify and prioritise who you need to target for your campaign. Here are some examples:

Immediate Family
Extended Family
Friends
Fans/followers
Communities – Shul, Church, soccer club, etc

Potential Funds

Working out how much you will be able to raise helps prioritise how much time and effort needs to be expended on certain potential backers. It also reduces the risk of setting your tipping point too high.

How much can be raised from immediate family?
How much can be raised from extended family?
How much can be raised from friends?
How much can be raised from passionate fans?
How much can be generated from an event?
How much can be raised from your communities?

Channels to best reach these potential backers:

Phone Call:

A call provides a direct communication with the potential backer, increasing the chance of them funding you. A phone call is personal and shows initiative on your behalf. It is also important when contacting someone that doesn’t have a strong online presence such as Great Aunt who hardly uses her computer.

Email:

This is a great way to reach out to a large amount of your potential backers. An email allows you to communicate why their support is needed. This is a quick way of spreading the word about your campaign and is more direct than posting on your social media feeds. Make sure to always include the link to your project page to ensure it’s easy for the recipient to support you.

Social Media:

This is an easy way to spread awareness around your campaign to your friends and followers. It’s a powerful tool in keeping everyone updated as well as reminding them of your campaign.

Here’s to a successfully funded campaign,

The Thundafund Team

Utilising Facebook for your Crowdfunding Campaign: a Thundafund Case Study

January, 2017January, 2017Leave a comment

Facebook is the number one social-media platform for crowdfunding.

If you do one thing, have a Facebook Page. We’ve found that an active Facebook Page is the one thing that correlates the most between campaigns that reach their goals, and ones that don’t.

Here we’ll discuss how best to use Facebook for your crowdfunding campaign. We’ll be using Ground Up as our case study. Check their awesome campaign out here.

Launch

Let everyone know you’ve launched your campaign! This first post needs to introduce your campaign, what do you need, how much do you need and how to support it?

Do’s:

Make sure you include the link to your campaign
How much you need
Explain what you need the funding for
Tag us so we can share, like and comment

During

It’s important to find a balance of how frequent your posts should be regarding your campaign. Posting too often can irritate followers, however too few posts lead to low awareness.

We believe it’s best to post 3 times a week to ensure low irritation levels and high awareness. The posts are broken down as the following:

One post as a reminder about your campaign

One post about the progress of your campaign

One post thanking backers who have pledged to your campaign

After

Whether successful or not it’s important to acknowledge and show gratitude towards your backers. You now have the funding you need, let the world know! Post about your rewards your busy sending out and ask backers to send photos of them and their rewards. It’s always great to show your followers where the funding is going and how far along you’ve come.

Final Thoughts

Boosting your posts can really help reach your target market, spread awareness and gain new followers
Spending between R10 and R50 is a great starting point for boosting your posts
If you aren’t a Photoshop wizard Piktochart.com is an easy way to create beautiful graphics for your posts.
If you need any further assistance feel free to contact us

Have a fantastic day,

Thundafund Team

What on Earth is Crowdfunding?

August, 2016August, 2016Leave a comment

When I tell people that I work for a crowdfunding company, I am almost always confronted with looks of confusion, which are then quickly followed by a response along the lines of, “What on earth is crowdfunding?” It is safe to say, that while crowdfunding is growing quite quickly in this country, many people are still unsure about what it actually is. It is definitely time to unpack this growing venture which has changed many lives for the better.

‘Crowdfunding’ can be defined as: “the practice of funding a project or venture by raising monetary contributions from a large number of people, today often performed via Internet-mediated registries, but the concept can also be executed through mail-order subscriptions, benefit events, and other methods.” In simple terms, crowdfunding is therefore a means for your regular citizen to help fund their fellow regular citizen’s business idea or campaign. Some of the popular crowdfunding platforms around the world are ‘Kickstarter’ and ‘Go Fund Me’. Thundafund happens to be South Africa’s leading crowdfunding platform.

Thundafund has quickly become South Africa’s leading crowdfunding platform’s and one of the reasons for this, is the fact that Thundafund uses a ‘Rewards-based’,‘all-or-nothing’ crowdfunding system. A rewards-based crowdfunding system means that anyone who makes a contribution to a campaign, is guaranteed to receive some form of reward for their contribution. In addition to the ‘all-or-nothing’ system, Thundafund also ensures that any project or campaign can only claim their contributions if they have reached their ‘tipping point’. A ‘tipping point’ is the minimum amount of money needed to get your campaign started. This is incredibly beneficial because it not only ensures that contributors’ funds don’t go to waste, but it also helps campaigners see whether or not their project/business ideas are actually lucrative or not.

In addition to that, one of the factors which makes Thundafund stand out, is the fact that it focusses on growing African businesses/campaigns. For too long, Africans, specifically South Africans, have fallen into the mind-set which has led us to believe that in order to be successful, we have to work for someone else, instead of becoming entrepreneurs and actually working for ourselves. Thundafund has begun to dismantle this mind-set by quickly becoming an important platform for Africans to showcase their innovative ideas and start world-changing businesses and initiatives.

The time has come where we can no longer depend on big companies to fund our brilliant ideas and with crowdfunding, we no longer need to. Whether it’s your friends, family, friends of family, family of friends, or anyone really, platforms such as Thundafund are making it easier for your everyday person to invest in their fellow everyday people’s ideas, and make their dreams a reality. Whether you want to change the world with a great idea, or you want to change the world by funding a great idea, Thundafund is the name and crowdfunding is the game! Visit our website at http://www.thundafund.com and make it rain, today.

A note from the editor :-

This blog piece is taken from a fresh look from our social media intern, Zanele Kabane, to explain what Crowdfunding is about.

Interview with “Sibo Looks Right” creator Ginny Stone

February, 2016February, 2016Leave a comment

When Project Creators come on board Thundafund and immerse themselves in their crowdfunding campaigns, reach their Tipping Point and gain more support than even they envisioned, we have no choice but to pick their brains! Ginny Stone, the creative force behind the “Sibo” series of educational children’s books, was eager to have us interview her for our blog.

TF: How was the crowdfunding experience for you?

Ginny Stone: It was brilliant – I really enjoyed it – despite the fact I made mistakes and could have done better.

TF: Do you feel that through your campaign you have managed to crowdsource for Sibo more?

Ginny Stone: Yes definitely – through the incredible generosity of Nash Nissan we’ve got enough funding to have “Sibo Looks Right” illustrated and print 750 copies of the book – plus have the e-book to freely distribute. Without the campaign we would still not have this book – we had been trying to find funding for 2 years before this.

TF: Please note some of the challenges you had with your campaign?

Ginny Stone: I should have built up to the launch more. To be honest I started the campaign at the wrong time (was in the end stages of organising a conference and I was multi-tasking like crazy). I also did not dedicate enough time to a twitter campaign (except for the last few weeks). I somehow imagined that more of the people I know would have kicked in R50 just because it’s a good cause – that was a learning curve – people have other priorities! I also thought the marketing opportunities would be wildly attractive – but clearly I missed the boat somehow. All good – more learning curves! I also missed opportunities of have radio interviews purely because I was too busy. Silly me!

Probably the most challenging was that some people are just not very online literate and they had huge problems trying to register and deposit funds (and yet others had no problems at all). I overcame this by having them deposit money into my account and then I would create TF accounts for them using Sibo’s emails and deposit the money into the TF campaign account. It was a tad laborious at times.

TF: Do you have any advice for other campaign creators?

Ginny Stone: Don’t assume all your friends will support you. Do your build up to your launch properly. I think the biggest thing when asking for money is that your product or end result is something that is useful to other people – not just something you fancy doing and don’t have the money for.

TF: What, in your experience, are some of the benefits of crowdfunding?

Ginny Stone: Apart from the fact that we raised enough money to make our book happen… Marketing. Getting your product – my “Sibo” books – better known. Plus, in our case, I approached a potential funder for R300 and instead they have commissioned their own “Sibo” title and have ordered 10,000 copies (this is a real deal – done and dusted). It will be launched in October – transport month. This was a fabulous spin-off.
The contributions from Department of Arts and Culture were also unexpected and very much appreciated.

Also, I am quite sure that people will be happy to download the free “Sibo Looks Right” e-book and so my ultimate goal – of getting people and kids to be more road safety conscious will be realised even if we did not raise enough money to freely distribute real books around the country.

TF: Where to from here? Now that your campaign has closed, what happens now or what are your future plans?

Ginny Stone: “Sibo Looks Right” is currently being illustrated – it should be printed and will be launched mid-March. As I mentioned above – I am currently working on a new title on etiquette when using public transport (a “Sibo” book on manners – fabulous!). Also as a result of the campaign I have had chats with a guy who is considering having me write a “Sibo” book on saving – another great topic. I do also have many other “Sibo” titles brewing in my head – plus I write a weekly “Sibo” column in the African Reporter and it runs as a blog.

Check out the “Sibo Looks Right” campaign here

You can listen to an interview with Ginny Stone with Cape Talk’s Pippa Hudson here:

Your Homework: Do At Least One Customer Interview

April, 2015September, 2015Leave a comment

Some solid advice from Dave Duarte on the importance of customer validation!

Customer interviews are essential as part of the marketing process, as they help us make sure that what we are offering actually has willing buyers, and that we’re presenting it in a way that is compelling for these potential buyers.

Here’s some suggestions for how you’ll structure your interview… Feel free to go off-script or create your own questions. (Plus, shiny gold star for anyone who does 5 or more interviews!) Continue reading →

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