“Strengthen your network by making meaningful connection” – Response to External Blogs

After having taken part in Jumpstart, one of our very first lectures had been about discussing the importance of networking in the world of Business. Although I have been informed since the very beginning of my middle school and was constantly reminded, I had moments when I thought the concept was a bit too exaggerated. Its most likely due to my introverted personality that makes it difficult for me to be a social butterfly, hoever I’ve come to realize just how important it is as I learn each day.

The blog written by Dõna Storey highlighted exactly that, why networking is relevant in every aspect of a business. Opportunities arise from the more people you know, conferences allows you to share your ideas and get to know others who may or may not be of help later in the future, and they opens up customer loyalties and marketing and many others.

I’ve come across a phrase that I thought was astonishing to me personally, it was something along the lines of ‘you’re only 6 people away from knowing anyone in the world’, which stresses out even more of it’s importance in business. Not only does it bring great benefits to the business, it can also develop social skills, one that will come in handy as its mentioned in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs ‘Love/Belonging, also known as Social’ is one of the factors that drives motivation in an individual.

With its clear, precise goals and objectives, the United Nations managed a steady line of operations for Social, Economical and Security worldwide. So the real question here is, why do we need Social Enterprise or initiatives like ‘The Arc’ if we can simply get funding from the UN?

The answer is simple; Social Entrepreneurship is society’s means for an innovative and revolutionary world, whereas the Arc initiative is a form of collaboration between Sauder, South Africa, Rwanda and several others as a means of gaining experiences and developing the economy. For example, in the case of Salem Kassahun who needed to expand her production to meet the growing demands for her baskets known for their designs, funding from the UN could’ve been sufficient to rent out a factory, but does not consider the long-term costs and effect, thus leaves out the possibility for them to innovate and explore different scenarios. Having said that, joining the Arc initiative then allowed her to dwell into the world of management, marketing and finance, which resulted in finding the best alternate course of action.

In other words, The Arc initiative and social entrepreneurship create pathways to different possibilities for small businesses to grow and develop. Not only are they beneficial to the businesses they work with, they benefit the economy significantly. On the other hand, UN funding will only be assistance in the short term and will not be a lasting solution.

Cecilia Wu’s blog regarding Airbnb, “Airbnb: Finding a Unique Place to Stay” caught my attention as it talks about the easy and quick service as well as a trustworthy ‘platform between hosts and customers’. I’d like to add my opinion on the matter, as I believe that in the 21^st century, convenience is key to a successful product and services.

As time moves forward, more and more are being invented in order to ease societal life, as a result, demands for ‘something new’ and ‘innovative’ keeps increasing in such a rapid scale that its nearly a gamble whether starting up a business, or launching a product will be a success or not. Hence, Airbnb is in fact, one of the services which innovated itself in a way that allow society for an easy access to vacation or temporary living spaces.

Similar to online shopping, one only needs to simply go to their website, create an account, find a suitable spot and communicate with the host whether the unit is available or not. This can also be said as a new and less costly way for the hosts to advertise their units, as an alternate to posting ads on the newspaper or magazines.

Response to Hui Lai’s “Successful Advertising Can Be More Than Advertising”.

After reading Hui Lai (Stella)’s article, I looked up this Deaf Violinist advertisement and I have to admit, it is one of the most touching advertisements I’ve ever seen. I agree with Stella regarding the matter that advertisements that have a connection with society are a lot more memorable and effective. The number one goal in marketing is to attract customers either from a specific customer segment or a wider range of audience, thus it comes down to how well can they strategize their advertisings.

To add on to the idea: Save The Children released a video “Most Shocking Second a Day Video” to spread awareness and save the innocent children who became victims in Syria. As a non-profit organization, their main goal is to have as many people to donate and help, thus the spread of information needs to be clear, concise and memorable to their viewers. The video clip for example, allowed their audience to indirectly experienced the events and by being able to relate, may feel the sense of obligation and responsibility to help.

According to this article, the Taylors’ Pacifica makes the perfect example of an innovative movement that hits the mark with their products, goals and target segments. The whole idea of innovation is to introduce something new to the market and get the ‘upper hand’; this is exactly what the Taylors did by launching their all-natural cosmetics.

By simply adding to what they do best, instead of turning away from their original business goals gave them the integrity and innovative spirit to launch the cosmetics, targeting a new yet similar customer segment. Adding that they only partner up and work with others who share the same vision and goals as they do, such as the widely popular Wholes Food to become one of Pacifica’s retailers, gave them more advantage in terms of reputation and marketing.

Aside from focusing on minimalizing waste and using more organic materials, they believe in building a better community by working with and donating to local charities and women’s shelters. CSR is in general, highly doubted by many due to the nature of businesses typically looking for ‘reputation’ by doing ‘good deeds’, but Pacifica differentiated itself by making environment the center of their business, which in this case, proves to be a success for them.