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How to Become a Social Entrepreneur

September 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

How to Become a Social Entrepreneur

Serving the Greater Good is Good Business

We’re firm believers that social entrepreneurship is the only way to go when it comes to starting a business. Never before has social entrepreneurship gained such momentum.

For those who don’t know, social entrepreneurship isn’t much different from standard entrepreneurship. It’s still business, but with one very different purpose--to help people while you’re at it. Social entrepreneurs recognize a social problem and use entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to achieve social change.

Whereas a business entrepreneur measures success purely on profit and return on investment, a social entrepreneur focuses on social capital.

As Rupert Scofield, the president and CEO of FINCA International, writes in the Social Entrepreneur’s Handbook, “whether your mission is as ambitious as pulling millions of people out of poverty or as modest as feeding people in your neighborhood, now is the perfect time to get started. Social entrepreneurship has never been more needed, more valued and more achievable than it is today.”

So, how do you crush it as a social entrepreneur? Inc. Magazine outlined some steps to success:

1. Know Your Issue

The most successful social entrepreneurs are the ones who know what issue they want to tackle, and then aim to make that issue the core of their business. Having a passion for what you’re doing is super important. For us, we knew we had to provide easier access to healthy foods and beverages, and we achieved it through healthy vending. Being physically active with a passion for health and nutrition, this mission fits seamlessly with our business.

The best advice? No matter what issue you want to tackle, make sure you’re 100% into it. Being half in/half out is self destructive from Day 1. Know your issue and run with it. It takes an immense amount of dedication to found a business around a core issue.

Sit back and think, “Why do I want to do this? Why do I want to help solve this issue?” That right there will fuel your passion.

2. Build the Brand

In any business, the brand itself is huge. Some brands are so important that people feel like it’s a part of their life. Take Apple for instance. People are attached to their iPhones and iPods and it actually contributes to their sense of self. Just look at the Mac vs. PC commercials! People actually define themselves as Macs or PCs.

To really hit it off in social entrepreneurship, people need to know your brand. Brand recognition is essential for people to trust you and jump on board with your mission. Build your brand and make it so you set yourself apart from the competition.

3. Think of It As a Business

The term is social entrepreneurship for a reason--it’s still a business venture. Don’t lose focus of the fact that it’s a business. Of course, it’s still important to focus on your mission as the core of your business. However, make sure to run your company like any other well-run organization. Establish deadlines, keep up on accounting, etc.

4. Hire Employees Smarter Than You

This one may seem surprising, but it works better than you think. For one, hiring people who are smarter than you ensures that 1) you have a highly talented team that are key players in a variety of departments, and 2) your employees will recognize your ego doesn’t get in the way of your success.

It’s safe to say you aren’t an expert in all things business (after all, companies aren’t ran by just 1 person), so hiring the absolute smartest employees is key.

In this economy especially, human capital is what counts. You can’t outsource creative, intelligent people. Your brand will fare far better. Be selective with who you hire. Talent is better than a saving a quick buck any day.

5. Employ Transparency and Authenticity

It is extremely important to be open and honest with everything you do in your business. People who want to join your cause don’t want to be treated like dollar signs…they want to be treated like human beings. If you’re a nonprofit, be completely transparent in where the donations go. If you’re in a philanthropic business like ours, make it clear to everyone where your donated proceeds go.

There shouldn’t be any guessing games. Be real with those you interact with; people appreciate honesty and realness. We all know what it’s like to avoid the salesperson who comes knocking at our doors. People don’t want to be sold, but people like to buy. By establishing a personal, open-door policy with your employees and customers, you will establish trust, which equals better business.

6. Develop Smart Partnerships

According to Inc., “For many social entrepreneurs, success is dependent on effective partnerships.” Developing partnerships not only helps build your brand, it establishes credibility and is a great networking tool. Align yourself with organizations with similar missions. We have partnered with numerous organizations that support our cause and have similar causes themselves. These include nPlay, Let’s Move, and the USDA MyPyramid program.

Not only that, you can’t do it alone. You need to look out for companies that can help you reach your goal.

The most important thing? Make sure your partners clearly understand your goals and your mission, so there is no confusion and nothing gets lost in translation.

7. Make an Emotional Connection

Every company wants more media attention and more press. Press is good, but it isn’t the only way to get yourself out there. Sometimes it’s as simple as going back to your original passion and establishing an emotional connection with people. Word of mouth is especially important.

You can control the message and the medium, just never lose sight of what your original mission is.

8. Utilize All Available Platforms

When it comes to getting your name and mission across, use every single outlet available. Some companies have gone from no-names to super brands, just by making a splash on social media sites. Youtube, Facebook, Twitter…all of these are essential for any social entrepreneur to have. You are then able to reach out to a larger audience and establish rapport with others who support your mission.

This doesn’t have to be limited to social media, but blogging, geo-targeted websites, consumer websites, etc. are gold mines for building a brand.

Don’t hesitate to go hog-wild. There are so many platforms available today, it’s mind blowing. Never before have we been so connected, so capitalize on that.

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Ann Cooper “The Renegade Lunch Lady” Talks School Lunches

“My thing with school lunches is that it’s a social justice issue” says Ann Cooper, also known as “The Renegade Lunch Lady.”

Check out this TED talk on the social injustice of America’s standard school lunch program:

Ann Cooper makes a powerful point: We need to teach children the relationship between healthy foods, a healthy planet, and healthy kids. We’re feeding our children to death.

So how de we change it? It’s all about education. If we send our kids to school and tell them to learn, they need to learn that what they put in their mouth’s is education in itself. Not just that, but teachers, administrators, and parents need to be educated as well.

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Filed Under: CRUSH IT REPORT, Philosophies & Beliefs

The Child Nutrition Act Explained

November 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Child Nutrition In The United States

We Can't Let America's Students Starve

America is the richest country in the world, so why is hunger such a huge problem?  Poverty is the number one cause of hunger and with nearly 40 million Americans living below the poverty line, it’s no wonder so many of our neighbors are going without.  Over 14% of Americans are “food insecure” and adults are not the only ones skipping meals.  Recent studies show about 13 million kids are living below the poverty line and 16 million are living in food insecure households.  These families likely don’t eat at every meal or when they do eat, their plates are not filled with well-rounded, nutritious foods.  When these kids go off to school, their parents are unable to send a bag lunch with them or give them money for a hot lunch from the cafeteria.   Poverty and hunger have been around for a long time so this is not a new problem. In fact, there has been a solution of sorts in place for decades.

Government’s Role

The National School Lunch Program was signed into law in 1946 by President Harry S. Truman in an effort to provide free or low cost meals to qualified (low income) students through government subsidies.  This program was so successful -- both in feeding America’s youth and boosting food prices by passing off surpluses to schools -- that it spawned the Child Nutrition Act.   This federal law was signed in 1966 by President Lyndon B. Johnson and established the National School Breakfast Program as well as implemented nutrition standards for school meals.  Each day these programs serve over 30 million students in 101,000 schools nationwide.

Reality Check

These school meal programs operate at a cost of nearly $9 billion, which sounds like a lot but in reality, that only affords a school about $1 per student per day.   You can’t buy anything for a dollar these days, especially a well-rounded, healthy meal.   School lunches have deteriorated into a slop of reheated processed junk that has little to no nutritional value.   Chef, author and fresh food “activist,” Jamie Oliver started his Food Revolution in England then brought his campaign across the pond in 2010. His goal was to transform the US school lunch menu from serving processed simple carbs and fats to serving fresh meats and veggies.   Starting at the elementary school level, he won over reluctant school administrators and students who, as it turns out, would eat healthy foods if they were put in front of them.   Jamie marched his way up to high school where students actually chose fresh, healthy foods over processed junk.  The real problem faced by the Food Revolution was funding. Although it’s possible to work with local farmers and distributors and get fresh foods at a discount, it simply cannot be done with the current level of funding. But there is hope on the horizon.

Farm To Fork

Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act

Legislation is in Congress right now that would give schools $4.5 billion over the next 10 years to modify school cafeteria menus by establishing healthier guidelines.  Part of the Child Nutrition Act, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act reauthorizes child nutrition programs by authorizing the Secretary of Agriculture to establish nutrition standards.  Schools will also be reimbursed more per meal.  This bill is currently sitting in the House of Representatives after being unanimously approved by the Senate.  First Lady, Michelle Obama, is a major proponent of this legislation since it is a huge part of her Let’s Move campaign which encourages kids to exercise, eat right and be healthier.  Mrs. Obama’s goal is to end childhood obesity within one generation.  This type of law could help our kids reach that goal. If this bill passes, it could mark the end of the school vending machine era.  No longer would kids be able to get a sugary soda or bag of greasy potato chips for lunch.  Schools may be forced to remove the standard vending machines.  What happens next is up to us.

The Future of Our Kids

Parents Shouldn't Have To Worry About Nutrition At School

Some schools have already voluntarily removed standard vending machines and have seen dramatic results in students’ attention spans and behavior.  An option for schools now is the healthy vending machine which offers non-processed, organic snacks and all-natural drinks like milk, juice and water.  When kids see what choices are available apart from the usual junk food fare, they will eat better, grow stronger and learn better.   Healthy kids turn into healthy adults. Parents can join together to encourage their kids’ schools to remove these snack machines and replace them with a healthier option.   Parents can also set an example by eating better themselves and not keeping junk food in the house. Kids pay close attention to what adults do as well as what they say.  If schools and parents lead by example, our kids have a bright future.

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USDA MyPyramid Partners: Working to Combat Obesity and Promote Nutrition!

September 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Whenever I hear “USDA,” I automatically think of steak. Does that happen to anyone else? Well, if you’re like me, you should remind yourself that the USDA is not just a grader of meat; it is an executive department of the U.S. government! This department is responsible for developing and regulating federal policy on farming, agriculture, and food. With healthcare concerns at the forefront of our minds and an obesity epidemic on the rise, they’ve got their work cut out for them. So what are they doing to keep these issues in check? I’m glad you asked.

The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion was established, under of the Department of Agriculture, to focus solely on improving the nutrition and well-being of our nation’s people. The organization’s main objectives have been to:

  1. Advance and promote dietary guidance to all Americans
  2. Apply sound research and analysis toward assessing the nutritional needs of the public

Before the creation of this agency, consumers were subjected to conflicting, and many times inaccurate, nutritional messages. Fortunately, with the American public becoming increasingly educated about the importance of diet, the call for regulated information was answered.

One of the initiatives administered by the CNPP was updating the Food Guide Pyramid of the ’90s. This outdated model was replaced by the MyPyramid Food Guidance System, which personalizes nutritional recommendations into the appropriate combination of food groups, on an individual basis. The new system also acknowledges the importance of physical activity, variety, moderation, and proper proportions, incorporated into a healthy diet.

In the summer of 2008, MyPyramid Alliance was launched. Since it’s inception, the program has partnered with over 200 corporations and non-profits to make a positive difference in the health of America. Partners include Goliaths, General Mills and Kraft, national organizations such as Girl Scouts of America and YMCA, and  lesser-knowns like H.U.M.A.N. Healthy Vending and ‘nPLAY who are committed to fighting childhood obesity and improving our nation’s standards of nutrition.

Partnering with MyPyramid Alliance provides opportunities to promote messages of health and nutrition, combat childhood obesity, and educate communities about the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Check out what it takes to become a partner, and support the companies and organizations who are already involved!

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Junk Food: It’s To Die For!

July 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

If you asked the average person what the biggest threat is to their country, their family, or their community, what do you think they’d say? Pollution? Economic conditions? Crime? I say nay, good citizen. Your enemy is the insidious JUNK FOOD that lurks in your pantry, your convenience store, and your vending machines.

The junk food industry probably has some nice people in it.  But they are definitely doing some not nice things.  Let’s air their dirty laundry now!

  1. The junk food industry deliberately targets kids as young as two years old in order to create brand preference and lifelong loyalty.
  2. Fast food chains lure kids with free toys in their meals to get their parents to spend.
  3. Flavorings and colorings can cause rashes, asthma, and hyperactivity.
  4. Many children now prefer man-made flavors over real food!
  5. The average kid in the U.S. sees 25 hours of TV, which equates to 20,000 junk food ads a year! That’s a lot of brainwashing…
  6. 20% of kids under the age of two are given soft drinks by their parents! When my nephew was two, he did not need Mountain Dew. He needed to be shot with a tranquilizer dart.
  7. The average can of cola has 10 teaspoons of sugar. Picture that.
  8. Over 90% of children eat McDonalds at least once per month.
  9. American teenagers drink, on average, over 760 cans of soda per year!

Drum roll please……

And the TENTH junk food fact that is off-the-wall-ridiculous:

10.  The average person day consumes more sugar in TWO WEEKS than a person a century ago would consume in a whole YEAR.

I know. I know. It blew my mind as well.  Somehow people 100 years ago still survived their workday without draining over TWO cans (20 teaspoons, as we now know) of sugary crap drink.

Now that I’ve opened your eyes to the deadly advertising all around you and your children, I bet you’re going to retreat into the wilderness to hide.  Fear not! We can counter this marketing movement of junk food advertising and consumption with responsible eating habits and educating kids to not believe the stupid commercials they see.

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Vending Machines and Socially Responsible Business

July 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

You might be asking “What the heck to vending machines have to do with socially responsible business?” My answer: everything. Vending machines play a key role in food distribution in our country, and food is obviously an essential part of life.  That brown box down the hall from you in the break room holds more power than you think, for better or for worse….

Setting an example is not the main means of influencing others; it is the only means.
Albert Einstein

I don’t bust out Albert Einstein quotes lightly.  I only use them when I really need to drive a point home, and that point is this: everything you do as a company, down to the smallest choices you make, has an impact.  Its often the little things that get overlooked, too.  For example, how many companies out there claim to be socially responsible and yet still only provide their employees with unhealthy snack and drink options from vending machines that also have a huge carbon footprint?  While these companies may be socially responsible on a large scale, what about the health of its employees and the health of the planet?

I know what you’re thinking: “Is this guy serious? Vending machines? We have bigger fish to fry!” Well, what I’m saying is how are you going to expect your employees to perform at their peak when they are putting crap in their bodies throughout the workday? And how can you really say you’re a “green” company when you won’t replace your traditional, energy-sucking vending machines with modern eco-friendly vending machines stocked with health food?

Let me hit you with hard numbers if you’re still not convinced:

A study led by University of Cincinnati on obesity’s effects on productivity on 341 manufacturing workers indicated that health-related losses in productivity were 4.2% for moderate to obese workers, costing the company $1,800 per year in absenteeism related costs!

So let’s say your company is made up of the average distribution of people in the U.S. (30% obese).  If you have 1,000 employees then 300 are obese.  300 x $1,800 = $540,000 per year.

That’s half a million greenbacks!

While you can’t be responsible for the lifestyle decisions your employees make, the least you could do is provide them with healthy snack options while they work.


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Health Club Membership Tips: 5 Simple Ways to Get More Members

June 1, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Health Club Membership Tips: 5 Simple Ways to Get More Members from Andy Mackensen on Vimeo.

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Filed Under: ADVICE & EDUCATION, Entrepreneurship, Philosophies & Beliefs, Vending Tips & Tricks

Tackling Childhood Obesity

March 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

H.U.M.A.N. Healthy Vending is tacking childhood obesity one healthy vending machine at a time. Educating kids through streaming video display and making it more convenient to eat healthy are two of our main objectives as a company.

H.U.M.A.N. also likes to recognize other “humanists” of the world, like Jamie Oliver. This guy is reaching people in a big way! His television show, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, premiers on ABC on Friday March 26th. This show will educate people around the world (especially American’s) about the importance of healthy eating/living, and the current epidemic that we have created through consuming to many processed and sugary foods. Get ready for the awakening, because it is coming to mainstream television in a couple of weeks!

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Why Partnering With H.U.M.A.N. Makes Sense

February 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Aside from our amazing machines and unparalleled customer service, here is the #1 reason you should partner with HUMAN Healthy Vending when you start your own healthy vending business:

In vending, it’s all about finding the best locations. LOCATIONS, LOCATIONS, LOCATIONS!

Premium locations with high traffic is what any vending machine owner strives for. We at HUMAN could keep our strategies a secret, but we like our operators and potential operators to be fully informed.  Check out our 6-Step premium location acquisition process:

Step 1 -- 4 stage direct mail campaign to the top 250 locations in your region
Step 2 -- 4 to 6 Weeks of Telemarketing to every single healthy vending conducive location in your region that meets our criteria (at least 20 vends per day)
Step 3 -- 1 week of in-person location discovery & acquisition training with a HUMAN location pro
Step 4 -- A HUMAN location pro attends 30-40 top-tier meetings over the course of a week
Step 5 -- Custom press release and media outreach to every newspaper, tv and radio outlet
Step 6 - Constant follow-up marketing and outreach to EVERY location in your region for the lifetime of your partnership

With Step #3, this is all about the “Give a man a fish he eats for a day, teach a man to fish he eats for a lifetime.”  We’re training you to be successful in the short and long-run!  Which brings me to my next point, #6.  We perform continual follow-up marketing for the lifetime of our partnership to ALL of the locations in your region.  We have a custom email and customer marketing solution that helps us with this.  Additionally, as our brand grows nationally and internationally, you’ll benefit from our success.  Everyone who comes to HUMAN is passed along to you.  And as our brand grows to tens of thousands of machines, it’s very, very good for you.

Here is a sneak peak of The Media Mogul! My next post will highlight the features of this unbelievable automated retailer/digital media money maker!!!!

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Childhood Obesity And The 2010 TED Prize Winner

February 18, 2010 By 1 Comment

The TED Prize is awarded to an exceptional individual who receives $100,000 and, much more important, “One Wish to Change the World.”

Congratulations Jamie Oliver -- 2010 TED Prize Winner

Jamie Oliver’s Wish: “I wish for your help to create a strong, sustainable movement to educate every child about food, inspire families to cook again and empower people everywhere to fight obesity.”

H.U.M.A.N. Healthy Vending supports this movement by actively placing 100% healthy snack and drink vending machines across the world! Our interactive network of healthy vending machines have streaming LCD screens that display nutritional facts, offer healthy eating tips, and promote healthy products that are not only healthy but taste great!

Check out his presentation at the TED Awards….

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H.U.M.A.N.: Creating Healthy Vending Success Part II

February 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Why We Succeed at Schools While Traditional vending Companies Fail Part II

Products that are Actually Healthy AND Taste Good

When a healthy vending program fails to reach optimal success, it almost always has to do something with the products. The products must taste good and they cannot taste that much different than what students are used to. You can’t just change students’ taste preferences on the flip of a dime. Therefore, you must work with them. Take what products students like, find healthy items that taste similar, and offer those products to the students. Healthy snacks don’t have to taste like cardboard, and they shouldn’t!

Healthy products have made a huge stride over the past five to ten ears when it comes to taste. The problem is that many of the best products are not available via standard vending machine product distributors. A vending operator needs to build a network of new suppliers and distributors with different rules, policies, and prices, and many time they’re not willing to do that. HUMAN has never been involved with anything other than healthy vending. Therefore, our suppliers and our network is dialed-in to allow for the distribution of the healthiest, tastiest products that students love. We know what students like, and what they don’t, and that’s the foundation of our program.

With over six years of taste-test research (and many, many mistakes along the way), we know how to put together the perfect healthy snack and drink plangogram (product mix) for students. It’s been a learning experience, but without this experience, success would not be possible today. Without creating the optimal product offering, nothing else matters!

LCD Screens that Educate Students & Catch Their Attention

Beyond the fact that they make the machine look much better, cooler and more innovative, LCD screens also help increase sales at healthy vending machines by educating students about the products inside the machines, providing them with the products nutritional information, & offering nutritional tips & tricks that are useful to students throughout the day. This is all done vi streaming video that can be remotely loaded and, therefore, kept fresh. When getting students to switch to healthy vending, education is so important, and the best way to educate students without doing so in person is via digital LCD screens.

The 1-2-3 Punch

In order for healthy vending to work & succeed at your school, you need all of the above to exist. You can’t do one thing right and two others wrong. You can’t have the best machines and the worst products or vice versa. The entire program needs to make sense and needs to be built for healthy vending success. Healthy vending is not the same game as traditional vending--the delivery method, in that it’s automated, may be the same, but that’s about the only similarity that exists. Everything else is a 180 degree difference. A paradigm shift is needed.

At H.U.M.A.N., healthy vending is our game. Our only game. And our goal is to create healthy vending success where others either cannot, will not, or are not able to do so. I hope we’re able to serve your school and provide your students with a ton of value!

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