Subject: file Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 20:23:04 +0100 (MET) From: "J. v.d. Eijnde (Gopher beheer)" Reply-To: eply-To:eply-To:@urc.tue.nl To: SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING a self-proliferating learning system for entrepreneurial initiatives and attitudes The project in Central Europe Project Proposal April 1991 SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING a self-proliferating learning system for entrepreneurial initiatives and attitudes The project in Central Europe Introduction Over the last 15 years, in the Netherlands, a complete concept for stimulating the creation of small business (including training, consultancy, business incubators and financial instruments) has been developed. This concept is also suitable for special groups such as unemployed people, women, artists and craftsmen, young people and people of ethnic minority groups. The initial ideas have proliferated successfully by the work of many people and organizations incorporated in a network of Local Employment Initiatives. As a consequence of the recent political changes in socialist countries of Europe, from which a need for entrepreneurial initiatives and attitudes evolves, it seems appropriate to offer the above mentioned knowledge, skills and know-how to individuals, networks, organizations and institutions in these countries. Under the umbrella name of Small Scale Marketing and Networking, in Ideeprodukt a project team was formed to offer the following services: - Advisory assistance to local organizations wanting to set up (training) programs for local business development. - Consultancy and training for entrepreneurs in marketing and management. - Lectures about marketing and management for this particular application; - Management assistance for the development of business incubators. - Introducing marketing in formerly not market oriented organizations: The aim of this project is to demonstrate the concept and the educational techniques to academic professionals from Central European countries. These may be staff from universities who educate students or consultants from local organizations involved in small business development. If it is found to be useful, we want to adapt it, in close cooperation with a local organization, so it can be of help in the change-over to an economy dependent on private initiatives. Or, to be more precise, it can be used to improve entrepreneurship among students (future managers and entrepreneurs), businessmen and -women and consultants in small business development. As a next step we can assist in the implementation of the concept with some initial workshops and training of the teachers. Our ambition is to work on small scale marketing on a small scale, not to launch big training programs. In the next two years we will develop this project in cities in three different countries: Budapest (Hungary), Bratislava (Czechoslovakia) and a city in Poland (Lodz?). In each city we will cooperate with a group of staff from a university and some consultants from a local organization for small business development. It's our experience that this is the best way to create a learning system that is really self proliferating. Background The concept of Small Scale marketing started in the education of students in the faculty of Industrial Design of the University of Technology in Delft. The subject marketing resulted in an approach which became known as small scale marketing. One of the essential features of this approach is that it starts with the person who may want to be an entrepreneur. The concept has been developed by Prof. van Eyk who has since then taught it to several different groups ranging from the unemployed to managers working in big companies. The concept itself and the way it is taught has proved to be very useful to those people who are thinking of having their own business either as consultants or as producers. The concept is specially suitable for the first phases of the existence of an enterprise. In the Netherlands at the end of the 70's there was a strong growth in local employment initiatives. Patrick Boel became involved in this field as a consultant. He introduced Prof. van Eyk's concept to the every day practice of helping people to start their own business. In developing his educational concept, Prof. van Eyk worked together with Ghislaine Bromberger, who in her practice as a psycho-therapist and in her teaching, made use of a technique called "Visual Thinking". Alexander van den Eijnde operated a small local exhibition centre for marketing try-outs for small producers, for whom he also arranged marketing courses and marketing projects. (see annexe 1 for further details on the participants). The phases of the project. Phase 1: Orientation The first visits aim at locating relevant individuals, networks, organizations and institutions for starting-up explanatory discussions, and to learn about the specific situations in different countries in Central Europe. This should lead to exchange of expertise, agreements for further cooperation and/or co-developing plans of action. Results: - A local partner who is interested in the concept of small scale marketing and who wants to cooperate in phase two. - Sufficient information to set-up a demonstration. Phase 2: Demonstration Giving an example of a lecture or a course/workshop and discuss the concept of teaching with relevant people from universities and local organizations. The lecture/workshop is about the characteristics of different kinds of small enterprises and their relation to marketing. With many examples it shows what marketing is in the day-to-day practice of a small enterprise. Results: - Two local partners, one at a university and one in the field of small business development, for cooperation in phase 3 and 4. - Sufficient information and ideas for an approriate first adaptation. - Plans of action for phase 3 and 4. - Arrangments to finance phase 3 and 4. Phase 3: Adaptation Assist the local partner with the development of teaching material and a teachers guide. Results: - Materials to use in workshops for teachers and a teachers guide. - Arrangments with the university and the local organization for implementation: Participants, planning, facilities. Phase 4: Implementation Assist with the testing and developing of materials in practice with a local partner. Results: - Two workshops done for university staff and local consultants. - Several workshops done by university staff and local consultants with our assistance. - Testing and evaluation of materials plus plans for further improvement. Finances Phases 1 and 2 are somewhat experimental. The expenses for these phases are an estimated 4000 ECU per city/country. In these phases only expenses are calculated, no fees. We are searching for sponsors who are willing to share these costs with us. Sponsors might be interested in the result, may want to stimulate this kind of transfer of knowledge or may want to participate in the project. For the phases 3 and 4 of the project we expect to find ways to cover all costs (fees and expenses for local partners and ourselves) from EG and Dutch government subsidies. Information about the different aspects of the project is available: SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING 1)History of the concept by Prof.ir. G.H.A. van Eyk 2)Three C's: Compact, Consistent and Common Sense, by Patrick Boel 3)A local testing-ground by Alexander van den Eijnde 1 SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING Annexe 1 Project Team The project team has four members with different backgrounds. Prof.ir. G‚rard van Eyk (born 1929). He is as team leader, is responsible for the scientific contents of the project and for explaining the concept to his colleagues in higher education. He will coordinate the adaptation of the concept to local circumstances. He has recently retired as a Professor of Marketing at the University of Technology Delft, where he still holds a one-day a week assignment in the Didactics of Design Education. He has been co-founder and chairman of a non-profit and non-subsidized foundation, Memoles, in Amsterdam, successfully giving courses to individuals and consulting organizations on the principles of Small Scale Marketing and Networking. Some of his recent projects are: - Workshop on networking in an international congress of secretaries. - Course/workshop on marketing for small software business. - Marketing counseling for a number of small firms and individuals in the region. Patrick Boel (born 1951): Is a consultant for business development and local employment initiatives. Together with Prof. van Eyk he was originally involved in the development of the idea. In this project he is not only responsible for teaching and demonstrating the concept in workshops and courses, but also takes care that training gets its adequate role in the complete concept of the creation of business. Recent examples of his work: - Four day seminar on marketing for staff members of different museums in the former East Germany - A workshop on marketing for associates of Women's World Banking. - Advise about marketing strategies for small consultancy firms in the fields of social housing and environment. - Project management for the development of an business centre (24.000 m2 in an old harbour building in Amsterdam) for artists, craftsman and small enterprises in the field of art. Drs. G. Bromberger (born 1941): Is a psychotherapist and education officer at a School for Arts and Drama and business trainer who has specialized in creativity and stress management. Currently she is also training art students to give them a more entrepreneurial oriented view on their profession as an independent artist. In the project her responsibility is the adaptation of the teaching approach to fit the circumstances in other cultures. Ir. J.A.F. van den Eijnde (born 1943): In this project he is responsible for all the planning, organizing and coordination of the activities of the group. He is marketing manager of the Institute for Continuing Engineering Education at the University of Technology of Eindhoven. Next to his job he organises training for young professionals from various backgrounds who have ideas on new products and services. He has recently been involved in: - Marketing of new commercial courses for the university, among which a 30-day course in marketing for recently graduated engineers, employed in industry. - Organizing a marketing course for small software firms. - Managing a local experimental shop/office for entrepreneurial initiatives. You can contact us at: IDEEPRODUKT P.O. Box 222, NL-5600 MK Eindhoven, The Netherlands Tel: +31 40 514709; Fax +31 40 445187 SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING as a self-proliferating learning system for entrepreneurial initiatives and attitudes. The workshop/lecture as first phase of action We think that on-the-spot orientation and research for the building-up of appropriate contacts is necessary, starting within educational institutions. The first visits aim at locating relevant individuals, networks, organizations and institutions for starting-up explanatory discussions. This should lead to exchange of expertise, agreements for further cooperation and/or co-developing plans of action. One way to start the second phase and stimulate discussions on the subject is to organise a lecture and/or workshop running from 2.5 to 4 hours. The lecture/workshop is about the characteristics of different kinds of small enterprises and their relation to marketing. With many examples it shows what marketing is in the day-to-day practice of a small enterprise. Marketing is a key entrepreneurial skill, needed to successfully run a business. In large firms there are marketing departments with specialists. But their theories and methods for marketing do not apply for small enterprises nor are they applicable in the first stages of starting a business. Since entrepreneurs have to do almost everything on their own, they need marketing know how and methods that fit into the specific situation of small enterprises. As an introduction to the concept, the lecture/workshop is an interesting opportunity for people to get the feeling of how the concept developed and is practiced in the Netherlands. We also consider it an excellent opportunity to start discussions about the suitability of the concept for entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial education in Central Europe. But at the same time it also starts to give an insight into those basics of the market-oriented attitude, which are applicable to all profit and non-profit organizations alike. The contents of the workshop The theory of (small scale) marketing is relatively simple but there are many questions: - how to learn about your customers; - how to find out what you want from your business; - how to name your firm; - how to design paper, business cards, brochures and how to get them made; - how to set prices; - how to find a good shop (location); - how to deal with a bank; - how to get your first contract; - etc etc. And - how to handle all these questions within a very low budget. Actually in small businesses, the entrepreneur himself is the business. It depends on his/her qualities and personal contacts whether the enterprise is going to be a success. Networking is therefore of great importance and it's an essential part of marketing: - how to develop and maintain successful personal relationships; - how to maintain and use them; - how to develop your own tools for networking; - how to do business in your network. In the lecture/workshop many of these subjects will be briefly introduced and demonstrated with on-the-spot exercises. It is meant to give a feel of what marketing is for the small businessman or -woman and it will stimulate creativity to develop a personal view on marketing. Prof.ir. G‚rard van Eyk (born 1929), has recently retired as a Professor of Marketing at the University of Technology Delft, where he still holds a one-day a week assignment in the didactics of design education. He has been co-founder and chairman of a non-profit and non-subsidized foundation, Memoles, in Amsterdam, successfully giving courses to individuals and consulting organizations on the principles of Small Scale Marketing and Networking. 2 SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING History of the concept by Prof.ir. G.H.A. van Eyk Its origin. In 1976 I was appointed Professor of Marketing at the Delft University of Technology with the assignment to teach Marketing for students of Industrial Design Engineering. I soon discovered that the conventional marketing theory only partly fulfilled the students' justified expectations of a marketing course. It helped them indeed to understand the marketing machinery of the company they were working for, but it left them in the cold with their business as free lance designer, a professional position chosen by a large portion of the alumni, or when marketing some new idea of their own. Only a few publications dealt with the marketing of professional services, but these were limited to established organizations in established professions. It was 'marketing of the running business'; not suitable for young, eager and talented designers who had something to offer to the market. A good marketing theory, covering the starting-up phase, when ideas and market relations are still vague ! ! and embryonal, was lacking. Entrepreneurship nor innovation was popular at the time and Casson's key book on the economic theory of the entrepreneur came only in 1982. My research unveiled three important insights: Creative and vital entrepreneurship finds its roots more in the human need for self expression than in the needs of the consumer or the wish to earn (lots of) money. Received marketing theory requires alienating behaviour of the entrepreneur and extinguishes his or her creativity. And thirdly I discovered that the early and fundamental choices in shaping the enterprise are essentially made intuitively and can hardly be challenged objectively. So I developed a course for my students based on the training of intuition, vision building, learning from each other and from yourself and action learning. It was a great success and it spread through many layers of the society: Vocational schools, unemployed, artists, ethnic minorities, highly skilled professionals and other groups not commonly connected with entrepreneurship and self-employment. Patrick Boel, in particular, developed 'small scale-ness' for starting up small businesses in the context of local employment initiatives. Ghislaine Bromberger, amongst others, as a therapist working with arts, guided daydreams and other imagination techniques, co-developed much of the methods and exercises to enhance motivation: 'A vivid imagination compels the whole body to obey it'. She still teaches these courses to students of drama and of fashion. In California, during the same period, a similar movement came into being under the labels of Going Solo and Briarpatch and Michael Phillips wrote in Honest Business (1981) that 'business should be fun' and that 'hands-on learning' was greater joy than learning from professors. Deepening the concept While many institutions and individuals were developing and offering these courses to young (and older) persons wanting to become an entrepreneur, I continued my research to deepen the concept. Between 1985 and 1987, I published eight short essays on the 'themes' I considered to be core issues: 1. The entrepreneur as a marketeer is less concerned with economic criteria as with satisfying his or her needs for self-expression and social relationships. 2. The enterprise is an extension of the entrepreneur's personality. He himself is the product, the price he is asking reflects his self respect, his network of friends and relations is his presence in the world and he makes himself visible with everything he does. 3. The exchange of goods and information in the social network (apart from the 'economic' transactions) is an essential ingredient of the satisfaction of the entrepreneur as can also be seen from anthropological research. 4. Small Scale Marketing -like Honest Business- is wholesome for the person who, in particular in large bureaucratic organizations, is alienated from his own being and creativity. 'Small Scale-ness' makes people creative, productive and healthy and must also found at key positions of large enterprises if these are to survive and prosper. 5. Received marketing theory fails to appreciate the creative and vital core at the root of all business. It investigates in depth all satisfactions of the customer while buying off the salesman's frustrations with money to buy fun after office hours or to pay for his ulcer. 6. The teaching and learning of small scale marketing led to a deeper understanding of 'education to creativity and self learning'. Can 'Going Solo' be taught?' did I ask myself in 1982 in front of the European Society for Engineering Education. Various training strategies were developed for different kinds of 'students': younger, older or special interest groups. 7. If the entrepreneur is indeed a self learning person, what then about his needs for advice? Can paid 'salarymen' from a government service be credible advisers? Isn't it paradoxical to offer 'help' where only 'self help' is adequate? Should the consultant to be an entrepreneur himself? 8. What about the entrepreneurial team? Can this be a team of equals or should we accept that the entrepreneur is a solitary and lonely person cared for by a 'team' of (unequal) 'water carriers', leaving the entrepreneur even more lonely? Subsequent developments and applications The entrepreneurial personality and the 'education' of a person to an entrepreneurial attitude in life became my major focus. I exchanged my fulltime Marketing Chair for a part time professorship in Didactics of Design Education. The training of designers is, like training for entrepreneurship, a challenge to the paradox of 'teaching independent thinking at a bureaucratic institute'. I published 'Self-portraits written by students setting up there own business' (1984) and 'Some difficulties in integrating large group engineering courses' (1983) to approach the problem not only with action but also with the written word. In 1985 I co-founded Memoles, now a small but vital enterprise teaching entrepreneurship on a commercial basis. More recently I used 'small scale-ness' in workshops to train individuals to take initiatives in bureaucratic organizations under the name of 'intrapreneurship'. Similarly I have been giving workshops to have people (re)discover the art of 'networking', the art of reciprocal support, to learn, to create, to inform, to be informed and to deploy new ideas. Looking back on the concept I can more precisely define it as a widely applicable cluster of theories, recipes, insights and didactics practical for the individual wanting to spread creative ideas or social initiatives of his own before external support can carry it further. In particular the point of view of the individual action orientation is, as such, neglected by received knowledge. Its 'small scale-ness' ensures that the individual doesn't alienate from his intuition and stays healthy and creative. Patrick Boel (born 1951): Is a consultant for business development and local employment initiatives. Together with Prof. van Eyk he was originally involved in the development of the idea. 3 SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING Three C's: Compact, Consistent and Common Sense by Patrick Boel Most entrepreneurs hope that there are some recipes for marketing. "Do this, and your business will be a success." But marketing does not work that way. Especially for small business, marketing is more a way of thinking, an attitude. The entrepreneur is the business. That makes a big difference with the conventional theories of marketing. They help you to understand the marketing machinery of (large) companies, but it leaves you in the cold when you start your own business. The 3 C's. Small scale marketing is marketing for small business. Out of may own experiences with the start-up of a consultancy firm, I made a checklist: the three C's. 1 The C of compact Going into business you have to know quite clear what you are doing: What is your product, who are your customers, how do you offer your services, etc. You have to be able to tell this in a very compact form, just one page. It is like explaining is to a potential customer in a telephone-call. Or making a leaflet. As long as you cannot make a r‚sum‚ about your business on one page, you are not ready to start. 2 The C of common sense You already know a lot about marketing. Really. Just look around, with the eyes of an entrepreneur and you recognise very well the differences between, for instance, the formats of envelopes; which are to be used for business and which are not. Reading the papers you can analyze the trends that are important for your business. Comparing different styles of brochures, you can say which style is better. You have to learn to trust your own experiences, knowledge and observations. 3 The C of consistent Anything, everything is marketing. Not only your brochure, but also your office, your clothes, your suitcase, the way you talk, the cover of your reports. It is all marketing and it says something about you and your enterprise. So, is has to fit together, be consistent. Use your common sense, talk with your friends and compare to find out what is consistent to your type of business, to your way of doing business. The three C's mean that you have to think as an entrepreneur, always, all the time. Marketing does not end at the start. It is an ongoing process of thinking, comparing, reflecting, evaluating, choosing, etc. The Entrepreneur is the Business. Maybe the most important thing in small scale marketing is the fact that the entrepreneur is the business. Talking about your enterprise means actually talking about you. There are some very practical consequences. Why are you in business? Most people think that the main reason is money. Of cause you want to make a living. But talking with entrepreneurs, you will find out that there are more important reasons, such as: independence, self expression, innovation, creativity. Your enterprise has not only to satisfy the needs of your clients, but also your needs. Fulfilling your needs is basic for staying in business. Therefore, do not only investigate your customers needs. Look thoroughly to your own motivation too and shape the business that way. Personality. Your personality is the personality of your enterprise. Your style, the way you do things, your way of relating to people, your character has much influence on the functioning of your enterprise. Becoming an entrepreneur is some kind of personal development. Style Presentation is important. If you, for instance, do not like ties, you have to find customers who d not expect you to wear a tie. Some people work better at night, some in the morning. Try to settle suitable hours for yourself. Being an entrepreneur gives you all the opportunities to do it your way. Of cause this is not necessarily the easiest way. Sometimes it is a very hard confrontation with yourself,your capabilities and your limitations. Networking As we all know are good contacts important. If you want to achieve something, you cannot do without other people. It depends on your personal contacts wether your enterprise is going to be a success. Your network of personal contacts helps you to develop the concept of your enterprise, gets you in touch with potential clients, informs you about new trends, supports you with advice, offers you opportunities for cooperation, etc. Part of your entrepreneurial skills is the way you relate to people: how to develop, maintain and use successful personal relationships; what are your tools for networking; how to do business in your network? Networking is essential for small business. Conclusion. This leaves you with the question: How to become a (successful) entrepreneur? As mentioned at the beginning, there are no recipes. In the end you have to learn it yourself. The three C's are the basics of such a learning process. As an entrepreneur you are on your own, bur you do not have to do it alone. Be creative and use your network. Ir J.A.F. van den Eijnde (born 1943): is marketing manager of the Institute for Continuing Engineering Education at the University of Technology of Eindhoven. Outside the university he organises training for young professionals from various backgrounds who have ideas on new products and services. 4 SMALL SCALE MARKETING AND NETWORKING A local testing-ground by Alexander van den Eijnde Having a shop is a dream of a lot of people who like to be entrepreneur. In particular for craftsmen it seems to be an essential extension of their workshop to be able to sell their own products in their own shop. In 1982 I became involved in marketing for small businesses and in 1984 I started a project which consisted of a shop and some office space, The shop was staffed, during weekdays, by young people, volunteers who wanted to train themselves in entrepreneurial skills. I made the shop available for enterprises, alone or in combination with others, for a period up to six weeks to put their products on display and for sale. We staged an opening ceremony for their (business)relations and press. But the most important thing was to meet the customer. The entrepreneur worked then in his usual location but on saturdays he/she was in the shop to get the feeling of having a shop of their own. The concept gave shop experience to small firms without having to start their own shop and unemployed the opportunity to get expierence in selling. It started with the existing relationships I had with some 20 small businesses. These, and the many new ones attracted by the shop, were visited by the staff of the shop and work was taken along to the office behind the shop to be executed there. In this way the entrepreneur got some work done and the volunteers got their training. The entrepreneur became known to the volunteer staff and vice versa. The preparations of the exhibition and all the questions that were put through to him through the week while the staff was in the shop worked as a catalyst. The environment and the questions of the entrepreneurs gave the staff an obvious opportunity to become entrepreneurial themselves. The office was a space from where people could act as if they were (self)-employed while enjoyong the social contacts of a job. For some staff the excuse of doing something for the shop was a far better invitation to action then 'only' being in the business of starting for themselves would have given them. Since the staff were not paid and was in the shop only on their own motiovation, there was some extra time needed for 'personal care and advice'. This gave a special managerial atmosphere of care and learning. But the most important ultimate goal was getting these volunteers in a paid job elsewhere, that has been very succesful. During the project dealing with the human resources, the checking of the bookkeeping, and contacts with new contacts were my own tasks. All other tasks were divided over all the voluntary staff who were, not surprisingly, moving in and out like birds. The project lasted two years. For the local government it has been a good place for training unemployed people with entrepreneurial ambitions. Since the whole project was run like a business, the costs were extremely low. For those using the office as a place to start their business there was a lot of support available during this uncertain period. The experience with the shop/office strenghten my belief that this formula can be used in a number of other places, provided the know-how is carefully used. Very much depends on the entrepreneurial style and character of the 'shop-manager'. ?? Small Scale marketing and Networking Ideeprodukt