Is Social Enterprise for You?
If you have an idea for a business as a force for good for the community or the environment, but do not know where to start, this webinar is a perfect opportunity to learn a bit more about social enterprise.
This webinar explains key considerations when setting up your social enterprise:
- Voluntary Code of Practice for SE in Scotland
- Social and/or environmental impact and how to measure it
- Enterprise- commercial viability and sustainability
- The need for market research and proving the concept (assumptions)
Duration: Up to 60 mins.
For you if: You are at the early stages of setting up a social enterprise or those who are just thinking about it.
NOT for you if: You have already established your social enterprise.
Social Media Foundations
This webinar is designed for those looking to see how they can use social media to further their business. It offers an insight into how to get started using social media as a business tool and provides useful starting point for social entrepreneurs.
The webinar will cover:
- Why consider social media, the benefits of social media
- How to tell your brand story (through social media)
- Ethical considerations for marketing through social media
- How to discover who your key audience is
- How to create engaging content for your audience
Duration: Up to 60 mins.
For you if: You are at the early stages of setting up a social enterprise and have limited knowledge of using social media for business.
NOT for you if: You are an existing social enterprise with an established social media presence.
Governance and Board
Are you considering starting up a new social enterprise? What does Governance mean to you? Do you know you will need a Board? Who can be on your Board? What are the responsibilities of a Board member?
This webinar will clarify some of your initial concerns and hopefully reassure you of the help and support available to help you along your path of developing a social enterprise. The webinar is complimentary to the Legal Structures workshops available through Just Enterprise but will not investigate different structures and incorporation of your social enterprise.
Duration: 45 minutes.
For you if: You are considering starting up a new social enterprise and would like an overview of governance and the roles and responsibilities of boards.
NOT for you if: You are looking for legal advice or in depth guidance about legal structures.
Legal Structures
Understanding legal structures for social enterprise and business can be daunting, even for the most enthusiastic entrepreneur. This workshop will guide you through the minefield of different legal structures and help you consider which one is best for your business.
The programme is divided into two workshops:
The first session will consider incorporation and what that means; provide an overview of the most adopted legal structures for social enterprises in Scotland; and will clarify the governance and legal responsibilities required from your Board of Directors.
The second session will consider the asset lock and what it means; explain the need for Memorandum and Articles of Association, highlighting their importance to a social enterprise; and will go over some frequently asked questions.
For you if:
- You are starting a social enterprise and want to know about choosing the right legal structure;
- You would like to understand the roles and responsibilities of Directors;
- You want to better understand Memorandum and Articles and what they mean;
- You want to better understand the term Asset Lock and what it can mean for your enterprise.
NOT for you if:
- You are looking for legal advice rather than guidance.
Cashflow Forecasting
All businesses need to be able to forecast to ensure a stable financial future. In these sessions you’ll learn what a cash flow forecast actually is, and why it’s important to put one together for your own social enterprise.
The programme is divided into two workshops:
The first session will: consider what ‘cashflow’ means, why a business needs to plan and what a cashflow forecast is. It will also include exercises designed to help you build your own cash flow forecast (to be completed before the second session).
The second session will: review the exercise and build your cashflow, help you understand what funders are looking for, highlight some common mistakes and demonstrate how a simple cashflow will help you to manage your business. Time will also be available to discuss your completed exercise and your newly created draft cashflow forecast.
For you if:
- You would like to understand basic cashflow forecasting
- You are ready to develop a draft cashflow for your own enterprise
- You are in the early stages of developing your social enterprise
NOT for you if:
- You are a not a pre-start or early start up social enterprise
- You need a specific style of cashflow to apply for funding to another organisation
- You are just looking for advice on how to use Excel
Planning and Delivery
If you’ve got a good socially and/or environmentally aware business idea but are looking for more advice and more clarity on how to plan and run it as a social enterprise, then this workshop will help you get started.
This workshop looks at both essential angles: social/environmental impact and commercial viability of the business. It’s an interactive session which is aimed at early stage social enterprises or early start-ups looking to re-focus their business model. Through a combination of theoretical explanations and practical exercises this course will take you through the main steps of planning & delivery for social enterprise.
For you if: You’ve got an idea for a social enterprise or have recently started trading and are looking for some structure and guidance on how to balance the commercial and social impact elements of your business idea.
Branding and Marketing
How a business presents itself to the outside world is crucial, but there’s much more to branding and marketing than simply designing a logo. In this workshop you will develop a deeper understanding of the vital components which go into building a strong brand.
In the session you will have the opportunity to explore marketing trends and strategies which can be applied to your own business. You’ll also begin to work out ways to build a brand which is in line with the social/environmental and commercial aims of your own social enterprise.
For you if:
- You have a great social enterprise idea or are in the early stages of trading and need to know more about branding and marketing techniques
- You are looking to develop a strong brand which reflects the values and purpose of your social enterprise.
- You want to learn more about strategies which will help you reach and keep customers or clients