Finding ‘untapped enterprise potential’

Mariska van der Linden, Make your Mark

Enterprise Insight commissioned qualitative segmentation research to examine how women, those aged over fifty, and ethnic minorities relate to communications around business and entrepreneurship. Findings suggest that shaping communication efforts based on demographics will be less reliable than approaches based on a range of attitudes and motivations in relation to enterprise. Promotional activity should concentrate in segments of the market based on enterprise needs rather then gender, age or ethnicity. The research identified six major drivers of entrepreneurship: success, passion, ideas, freedom, entitlement and necessity. These drivers are being used as basis for ongoing campaign activities to inspire entrepreneurship in the current economic climate.

Finding Untapped Potential

Enterprise Insight is a national campaign to create an enterprising culture in the UK. It runs Make Your Mark, Enterprise Week and Global Entrepreneurship Week. The campaign was founded by the British Chambers of Commerce, the Confederation of Business and Industry, the Institute of Directors and the Federation of Small Businesses, is funded by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, and is chaired by Peter Jones, entrepreneur and Dragon’s Den panelist.

From 2004, Enterprise Insight has built a solid reputation inspiring young people (aged 14-30) to think and act entrepreneurially. Following the publication of the government’s Enterprise Strategy , the campaign has expanded its reach to new audiences of ‘untapped enterprise potential’ - groups that are traditionally underrepresented in entrepreneurship:

• Those aged over 50

• Four specific black and minority ethnic (BME) groups (aged 16-50) - Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Black African and Black Caribbean

• Women (aged 16-50)

The research aimed to assist our work with these groups by understanding the behaviours and needs of these large and varied audiences. It complements a rich body of policy and research evidence, and significant practitioner expertise from a range of organisations on issues and barriers to enterprise, and working with these audiences.

Enterprise Insight asked The Futures Company to conduct a research study that would segment large audiences of people, with differing behaviours and attitudes, into sub-groups based on enterprise motivations and needs. Then to investigate language and communication channels that would motivate change with the different groups, and inspire successful enterprise campaigns.

In September to October 2008, research was conducted with 200 people at each of four stages in the enterprise journey: “inkling”, “thinking”, “creating” and “living”.

Discussion groups were used to gain an in-depth understanding of their attitude and intentions towards creating their own business. In addition to this face-to-face research, participants created scrapbooks that documented their reactions to issues concerned with the enterprise process.

Results

The research found assets of enterprise characteristics that seem to cut across gender, ethnicity and age. This enabled researchers to divide participants into six typologies each with a different set of requirements, motivations, and responses to communications around enterprise.

The six typologies are outlined below:

Typology

Success Driven

Characteristics

• Knowledgeable and realistic about business issues

• Likely to have previous experience of starting their own business

• Will have clearly defined requirements for the types of enterprise assistance they require

In their own words

“It’s just a venture – I’m willing to take a risk, if it fails, fine, if it booms even better” (African/Caribbean, male, 30-50)

Preferred language and tone

Confident, serious, professional tone using positive language such as “succeed”, “grow” “business” entrepreneur”

Necessity Driven

Characteristics

• Likely to be their first involvement in self employment.

• Unsure of themselves and of the path they are considering pursuing.

• Unclear about their enterprise requirements, requiring reassurance more than business information and advice.

In their own words

“That’s the bit I’m stuck on, the concept of the whole business… there’s a lot to it. It takes it from being an idea to a more committed thought and that’s where I get stuck”
(Female, 30-50)

Preferred language and tone

Reassuring, nurturing, empowering tone using words like “possibilities”, “small steps” “support”, “partnership” and guidance”.

Passion Driven

Characteristics

• Clear about their enterprise idea but unsure how to convert it into a functioning business.

• Perceive themselves as creative individuals who are seeking to benefit from their talents.

• Will be seeking basic information about the process and requirements for starting a business.

In their own words

“I don’t want mine to be big, I just want the self-satisfaction that I’ve had a really nice day doing something that I enjoy doing. To turn my hobby into my job”
(Female, 30-50)

Preferred language and tone

Informal, down-to-earth, encouraging tone using words like “enjoyment” and fulfilment”. “Project” rather than “business”.

Independence Driven

Characteristics

• Likely to have had a successful working career and be confident about their business skills.

• Unsure and lacking confidence about making “the jump” between paid to self employment.

• Will be seeking specific types of enterprise support to supplement their existing business knowledge.

In their own words

“I have more of a need to venture off on my own and show what I can do, what that is I don’t know - I feel like I’m not fulfilled. I’d like to venture off and achieve something.”
(Male, Over 50s)

Preferred language and tone

Professional, respectful tone, also encouraging. Words that emphasize freedom; “work for myself”, “control”, “reward”, “independence”.

Entitlement Driven

Characteristics

• Single minded about what they want to do but less clear about how to make it happen.

• Confident in their abilities and enterprise skills but lacking in focus, objectivity and structure.

• Likely have a list of detailed enterprise requirements, which could mask their need for more basic and comprehensive assistance.

In their own words

“Everything I do in this sphere is towards my own financial independence, I just look for ideas that will make me money, as soon as possible.”
(African/Caribbean, Male, 30-50)

Preferred language and tone

Professional tone as well as empathetic, down to earth, and encouraging. Strong language such as “opportunity”, “success”, “entrepreneur”, and “recognition”.

Idea Driven

Characteristics

• Confident and passionate about their enterprise idea and possibly obsessive about the intricacies of the product detail.

• Most likely to have worked in a technical or manufacturing environment.

• Their enterprise requirements are likely to be about obtaining access to finance, especially grants.

In their own words

“For the ideas I’ve got, the biggest problem is going to be the legislation and possible claim if anything goes wrong. It…has been proven to work, but the risk side of it frightens me.”
(Male, Over 50s)

Preferred language and tone

Confidential, adult-to-adult, respectful professional and objective. Use words like “create”, “innovate”, “business” and “challenge”.

A range of these typologies were applicable across ages, genders and ethnic backgrounds. Furthermore, participants reacted strongly against demographics-based marketing such as those targeted at the over-50s. For instance, one participant said: “Age isn’t all important, it’s who I am not how old I am”

Conclusions

Along with many working in this space, we are convinced that the most effective way to inspire entrepreneurial endeavour is through communications that focus on enterprise needs and characteristics of individuals. The six typologies that we’ve identified can serve as a backbone for activity aiming to encourage and assist individuals in starting up and running a business. The typologies offer a framework to reach individuals through the things that they are interested in, how they see themselves and in the places where they choose to be.

The identification of these drivers of entrepreneurship, do not mean that demographics are irrelevant in campaigning communications or the marketing of specific business support services: services still must be empathetic to individuals’ demographics. Rather we suggest that demographics do not lead the communications effort. For instance, the over-50s may still have specific support needs – they just might not want to read that the service is overtly labelled “for the over-50s” – a category which many do not readily identify with.

Other factors also impact on the effectiveness of communications and enterprise assistance, in particular the individual’s position on the enterprise journey. Somebody who is already running their own enterprise will have very different needs to the person at the first stage of thinking about being their own boss.

To be most effective in helping people achieve their enterprise objectives, assistance and communications need to recognise all three factors: which of the six typologies they most closely identify with, where the individual is on the enterprise journey, as well as demographics.

Next steps

The findings from this research can assist all of those involved in encouraging and assisting individuals to start and manage their own business. Enterprise Insight has shared the findings with others working to promote enterprise activity including Government Departments, Business Link, PRIME and Regional Development Agencies. Enterprise Insight has recently commissioned a quantitative survey to gain a sense of the numbers and demographic profile of each of the typologies. The findings of this work are expected in July 2009.



For more information about this research contact Amisha Miller, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, at amisha@makeyourmark.org.uk or 020 7430 8038.

For more information on Enterprise Insight’s policy and research work, and to sign up to our bi-monthly bulletin featuring enterprise policy and research news, please visit www.makeyourmark.org.uk/policy

<Back to contents