Slides from Elephants Abroad pilot conference 5th June 2015, Douala, Cameroon

1. AN INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS
SUCCESS
Helen Hammond, Elephants Abroad

3. Now you… your goals and objectives from
today

4. THE OBSERVATIONS OF A
WOMAN IN BUSINESS

5. Exercise 1
In groups, draw a picture of a successful
business woman

6. Exercise 2
Now, draw a picture of an unsuccessful
business woman

7. Exercise 1
Let’s agree, the things that make businesses
succeed and fail

8. STARTING UP A BUSINESS IS…
Frightening Exciting Confusing
Challenging Entertaining Frustrating
Rewarding Problem-solving
Problem-
creating
But above all… it’s lonely…

9. I’LL LET YOU INTO A SECRET…
WE ALL FEEL THE SAME
WAY...

10. I’LL LET YOU INTO ANOTHER
SECRET… NOBODY ELSE IS
WORRYING AS MUCH AS YOU…

11. I’LL LET YOU INTO ANOTHER
SECRET… THE WORRY DOESN’T
GO AWAY…

12. Today’s agenda
• Understanding why people go into business and
why they ‘buy’
• Deciding on an idea
• Setting and understanding target audiences
• Setting goals and objectives
• Planning for your business
• Key skills – finance
• Key skills – the law
• Key skills – marketing
• Key skills – measuring & reporting
• Planning for the future
• Personal action plans

13. WHY GO INTO BUSINESS?

14. Why go into business - motivations

15. But these are also the reasons people buy

16. Exercise 3
You are selling bottles of water. How would
you describe your product to satisfy each
level of buyer need?

17. Exercise 4
Know the difference between needs and
wants

18. DECIDING ON AN IDEA

19. QUESTION: Deciding on an idea
What questions should you ask yourself?

20. Deciding on an idea – questions to ask
1. Why are you doing this?
2. What do you want to achieve?
3. Who are you targeting?
4. What do you need to do to be a success?
5. What are your timescales for success and are
they realistic?
6. What tools and skills do you need?
7. Have you got them?
8. If not, where will you get them?
9. How realistic is it that you can make this work?
10.How are you going to do it?
11.How will you know you’ve succeeded?

21. TARGET AUDIENCES

22. QUESTION: Why do you need to understand your target audiences?
Can you just ‘sell’ to everybody?

23. Why do you need to understand your target audiences?
1. Needs
2. Wants
3. Motivation
4. Language
5. Saves money
6. Saves time
7. Gets results

24. Understanding target audiences
Sally is a teacher based in Oxford. She is in her first year of teaching at a private,
mixed primary school, linked to a well-respected senior school. Sally is teaching 8 year
olds.
Outside of school Sally is a keen environmental crusader, supporting her local
recycling campaign, as well as growing her own organic vegetables at home. She
drives a Ford Focus when she needs to but tries to cycle whenever she can. She has
two cats and a goldfish (Hugh, Jamie and Nigella, respectively) and is currently living
with her partner, Steve. Steve works at a local charity, supporting the homeless getting
back into work. They own their own house, a three-bedroom semi-detached house on
the outskirts of Oxford. They both have iPhones and Steve has an iPad. They are
both on Facebook and use it to keep in touch with friends, particularly those that they
met at university. Sally keeps up to date with current teaching practice on The
Guardian website, as well as various blogs and teaching resource sites. She rarely
comments.
She recently read about the concept of Environmental Citizenship in The Guardian.
She’s is keen to integrate this into curriculum studies, as well as extra-curriculum
activities and holiday clubs. She has approached the Head Teacher about starting a
vegetable garden and taking more of her classes outside. She would like to be able to
sell the produce to parents and teachers, to use the money to take the children on trips
to local farms and nature parks. She is also keen to work with the Student Council to
hear what they have to say about how the children think they can help to make their
school ‘greener’

26. Exercise 5
Your turn…

27. GOAL SETTING

28. Setting goals and objectives

29. Setting goals and objectives
• Specific
• Measurable
• Actionable
• Realistic
• Time constrained
• Experiential
• Challenging

30. Setting goals and objectives
By the end of December 2015 we will
have increased our profit margin
from 20% to 25%.
measurable
specificachievable
realistic
time constrained
experiential
challenging

31. PLANNING

32. Planning
PLANNING… START WITH WHAT YOU
KNOW…

33. Elephant Creative is me, Helen Hammond. A ‘really useful marketing
person’, soprano, retired rowing coach and organist’s moll…
Elephant Creative is the sum of all the people I know. A collection of
expertise that means the right team for every business.
Elephant Creative provides common-sense solutions.
Elephant Creative puts order in chaos for businesses.
The statements

34. The elevator pitch
Elephant Creative is an innovative new marketing
consultancy, providing a full-service to
organisations in the UK, and in particular across
the South of England. We don’t just provide advice
but roll our sleeves up and help you to achieve
your business goals through intelligent, practical
marketing. That means drawing on a wealth of
experience and a network of specialists to
translate marketing ideas into action and action
into achievement.

35. The people

36. Other elements… if helpful
• Financial review
• Where does your work come from
• The current sales process
• Review of current marketing activity
• Competitor review

37. Planning
PLANNING… THEN STATE WHAT YOU
WANT TO KNOW…

38. The SWOT test
STRENGTHS
•Over 10 years of experience
•Plain speaking in plain English
•Common sense approach
•Approachable
WEAKNESSES
•Only one of me and sometimes runs things too thin
•Marketing can be spasmodic depending on time
available
•Lack of belief in herself
•Lack of confidence in networking
OPPORTUNITIES
•Growing expertise in online retail
•Could get loads more PR work if I had more expertise
available
•Could do more remote work which would mean
cheaper for client (in particular copywriting)
THREATS
•Work gets in the way of business development
opportunities and pipeline
•Relatively saturated market with marketing
consultants
•Only one ‘Helen’ – threatens growth
•Recession is still going meaning budgets are tight

39. The Action SWOT test
STRENGTHS
•Share case studies more – write up examples of
things I’ve done and share them more on the blog to
demonstrate expertise, experience, clients and
approach.
•Consider ways to develop relationships with more
referrers and improve those I do have.
WEAKNESSES
•Need to develop network of people (see above)
•Need to allocate time each day to marketing. Suggest
timetable?
•Have started business coaching to build personal
confidence in business scenario and also in
networking.
OPPORTUNITIES
•Need to develop network of experts – in particular
with PR freelancers. Broaden network and
specialisms. Need to ensure core specialisms are
covered: professional services, online sector,
hospitality/leisure.
THREATS
•Learn from the competition – start a log of the ‘good
ideas’ the competition have had and expand to factor
in to my weekly/monthly marketing.

40. So, with all this in mind, do you want to revise
your personas?
Make sure you’re talking to the right people.
QUESTION

41. Planning
PLANNING… WHAT ARE YOU GOING
TO DO?

42. Questions to ask…
• How do my personas communicate?
• What brands do I love/hate? Inspiration?
• What is each activity supposed to
achieve? What does success look like.
• What ROI can I expect from this activity?
• How much is it going to cost?
• How will I measure it?
• What’s realistic?

43. 1: Your actions and priorities

44. 2: Your action plan

45. 2: Your action plan

46. 3: Immediate actions

47. Review…
• Put it in the diary
• What have we learnt?
• What have we achieved?
• What have we not achieved?
• What next – goals?
• What next – target market?
• What next – action?

48. Planning for your business

49. Exercise 6
Now apply it to your water selling
business…
Objectives, goals, target audience and plan
examples

50. LUNCH – YIPEEEE!

51. LET’S RECAP ON THIS MORNING…
WHAT HAVE YOU GAINED? NEW
OBJECTIVES?

52. KEY SKILLS - FINANCE

53. THE MOST IMPORTANT RULE
Profit is more important than revenue
Key skills – Finance - Cash is king

54. Key Skills – Finance - Cash is king
YOU MUST RECORD:
• Money coming in – from sales
• Money coming in – from other areas
• Money you started with
• Fixed costs
• Variable costs
• People costs
• Obligations

55. Key Skills – Finance - Cash is king
• Link budgets and decisions to goals
• Learn the value of every penny spent
• Save money for fees, tax and overheads before you do
anything else
• Never a lender or a borrower be
• Don’t buy anything the business can’t afford to buy for you
• Measure, report, adapt
• Make sure you know the law and your obligations
• Consider these things daily
• Don’t forget growth – what do you want to do next and
how much will it cost to do it
• Don’t be afraid to ask

56. PROTECT YOURSELF – THE LAW

57. Protect yourself – the law
“I don’t want to get too
legal with people – they
might not want to work
with me…”

58. Protect yourself – the law

59. UNDERSTANDING CONTRACTS
• A verbal contract is binding
• A text message is a contract
• An email is a contract
• Contracts protect you and your buyers
TYPES OF CONTRACT
• Business creation and obligations
• Employment
• Terms and Conditions
• Sub contractor
• Health & Safety
• Property
• Data protection
• Intellectual property
Protect yourself – the law

60. TERMS & CONDITIONS
• You should include:
• A detailed description of the goods and/or services;
• The agreed price and any deposit (returnable or not);
• Payment terms and what happens if payment is not made;
• When the goods will be delivered, and/or the services
provided;
• The expected quality of the goods or services, and the
process for deciding whether any goods/services are
defective;
• Limitation of liability;
• Force majeure; and
• The circumstances in which the agreement may be
terminated and what will happen upon termination.
Protect yourself – the law

61. PROTECT YOURSELF WHEN BUYING TOO…
• If prompt delivery is important, inform the seller and
confirm it in writing.
• Ask for detailed product specifications. When you place an
order, insist that the product must match the specification.
• State what quality levels and standards you expect.
• Tell the seller what you will use the product for or why you
require the service.
• Ask the seller to tell you about any hidden dangers,
limitations or quality changes.
• Keep a record of any claims made by the seller.
Protect yourself – the law

62. BREAKTIME – CONSIDER THE TERMS
AND CONDITIONS YOU NEED TO
SELL WATER – WHAT SHOULD THEY
CONTAIN?
EXERCISE 7

63. MARKETING

64. “Marketing consists of individual and organisational
activities that facilitate and expedite satisfying exchange
relationships in a dynamic environment through the
creation, distribution and pricing of goods, services and
ideas.”
Dibb, Simkin, Pride & Ferrell
WHAT???!!!
“Marketing is common sense. It’s talking to the right
people, in the right language and in the place they’re
already talking, so that you encourage them to do what
you need them to do in a way they want to do it.”
Helen Hammond

65. The marketing mix
• Product
• Price
• Place
• Promotion
• People

66. What’s the difference?

67. • Advertising
• PR
• Web
• Email
• Social media
• Partnerships
• Sales promotion
• Customer care
• Networking
• Competitions & incentives
Types of ‘marketing’

68. Planning your marketing
1. What do you want to achieve?
2. Why?
3. Who you’re talking to?
4. About what?
5. How?
6. When?
7. How will you know it worked?

69. Planning your marketing
1. Marketing is one person talking to another one
person
2. It’ll only work if it’s integrated
3. Know where you’re going and what you need to
happen
4. That’s enough about you… what do they need?
5. Common sense must prevail
6. Beware of competitors
7. Good marketing principles will win out
8. The method doesn’t dictate the activity

70. Let’s understand brands…
Your brand is not your
logo. It’s everything you
ARE & WANT TO BE
wrapped up in how you
communicate.

72. Let’s understand brands
FIND YOUR VOICE
• Who are you talking to?
• What sort of ‘person’ is the speaker
• Words we love
• Words we dislike
• Visual ideas
• How will our target audience respond
• Try it out and test it

73. TELL ME ABOUT YOUR WATER
BRAND… WHAT ARE YOUR VALUES
AND THE THINGS THAT ARE
IMPORTANT TO YOU AND YOUR
CUSTOMERS?
EXERCISE 8

74. 1. What do you want them to do?
2. Know your audience
3. Get the language right
4. Blank space is important
5. Think about what they need to know, not what
you want to say
6. Problem, solution, call to action
Advertising top tips

75. 1. Title
2. Sub title/intro
3. Body text
4. Editor’s notes
5. Contact details
6. Keep it personal
7. Include photos
8. Don’t forget digital
PR top tips

76. 1. What do you want them to do?
2. Know your audience
3. Get the language right
4. Blank space is important
5. Think about what they need to know, not what you want
to say
6. Problem, solution, call to action
7. Google Analytics
8. Consider search engines
9. Link things up
10.Websites should evolve
11.Landing pages
12.Continuity
Web top tips

77. 1. What do you want them to do?
2. Know your audience
3. Get the language right
4. Blank space is important
5. Think about what they need to know, not what
you want to say
6. Problem, solution, call to action
7. Link it up
8. Google Analytics, MailChimp
9. Data Protection Act 1998
Email top tips

78. • Logos are ok, but people like to connect with people.
• If SEO is important, name your profile photo, images and logos
• Make the effort to get things set up properly – this is your shop
window
• Think of social networking like a networking event – DM isn’t the way
to start
• First be interested – find people that contribute good content and
follow them
• Then be interesting – provide content yourself and contribute to the
conversation
• Join in the chat – join/follow groups and get talking in response to
posts you’ve liked
• It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it does have to be you!
• Engage with people outside of your normal friends/colleagues
• Find your favourite brands/companies and follow them for inspiration
• Make sure you respond to posts/RTs/mentions if people are kind
enough to mention you or share them
• Keep it fresh – set up Google Alerts for topics of interest – you can
post directly from there and save time
• Check your profile tab regularly – would you follow you?
• Make life easy with tools
Social media top tips

79. Partnerships top tips
FIND PARTNERS WITH THE
AUDIENCE YOU WANT AND JOIN
TOGETHER.

80. 1. What do you want them to do?
2. Know your audience
3. Get the language right
4. Think about what they need to know, not what
you want to say
5. Problem, solution, call to action
6. Always consider the longer term
Sales top tips

81. 1. Don’t assume – ask
2. Think about how you will know you’re doing well
3. Be prepared to change
Customer care top tips

82. 1. Develop an elevator pitch:
1. What do you want them to do?
2. Think about what they need to know, not what you want to
say
3. Problem, solution, call to action
4. Ask yourself whether anyone can understand the value you
bring
2. Do your homework
3. Two ears, one mouth
4. Make notes
5. Follow things up
Networking top tips

83. EXERCISE 9
WRITE YOUR ELEVATOR PITCH

84. 1. Know your audience
2. Get the language right
3. Problem, solution, incentive to move faster
4. Plan it out properly
5. Remember your Ts and Cs
6. Measure results
7. Be prepared to change
Incentives top tips

85. Turning it into a campaign

86. MEASUREMENT & REPORTING

87. Measuring activity and return on investment
• Customer feedback
• Online survey
• Face-to-face survey
• Post sales
• Focus groups
• Financial information
• Digital tools
• Social media
• Website traffic
• Activity reports

88. Measure, report, change

89. Two big questions…
HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE HOW
MUCH TO SPEND?

90. Two big questions
BUT WHERE DOES THE
INSPIRATION COME FROM?

91. Be brave

92. You are not alone

93. THAT’S IT… YOUR TURN… WHAT
WILL YOU DO DIFFERENTLY
TOMORROW?
Personal action plans