The Salient Benefits Of Social Entrepreneurship

Working towards the benefit of society does give you a sense of satisfaction. However, you also tend to receive a lot of support from the various stakeholders. A social entrepreneur comes up with a product or offers a service that works towards the well-being of society. In certain cases, a business owner aware of what is good for society makes a product with a smaller carbon footprint. They can also offer conditions that will benefit the employees. If you are thinking of starting a new business that aims to benefit society or introduce corporate social responsibility, you need to understand the upsides of social enterprise work. That will help expand your ideas while you are out to achieve your goals.

What is a Social Entrepreneur?

A businessperson who owns or starts a company to improve society is a social entrepreneur. Certain businesses create a product or offer a service that contributes to the well-being of society. Others who make regular products are socially responsible. Have you heard about Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia? He is among those famous entrepreneurs who are extremely conscious about society and have spent years operating a business that practices CSR or corporate social responsibility. Patagonia is known to follow green practices.

Besides that, the company also works with vendors and suppliers to ensure that the workers get a fair wage and have good working conditions. It also focuses on the ethical production of goods. Now, you might wonder whether Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, is a social entrepreneur or not. Though Musk makes expensive luxury cars, Tesla has played its role by replacing cars and trucks powered by gasoline.

Higher Levels of Personal Satisfaction

The first and foremost advantage that you will have as a social entrepreneur is, of course, personal satisfaction. You know that you are doing good for society. Social entrepreneurs often run or start a business that manufactures a product or delivers a service that’s close to their hearts. It’s a known fact that Paul Newman, the late Hollywood actor, loved to cook for his near and dear ones. He planned to utilize this and eventually laid the foundation stone of his food company, Newman’s Own. The company donates 100% of its profits and royalties through the Newman’s Own Foundation to various charities spread across the globe. Since 1982, Newman’s Own has donated over half a billion dollars to charity.

There are instances when social entrepreneurs have worked towards solving an issue plaguing society. Did people like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates only have money on their minds while running their businesses? They had the ambition to introduce computers to the masses and make technology easily available to students and office goers. Today, the world stands witness to the way inventions have completely changed the world. It’s also a known fact that Bill Gates donates a major chunk of his wealth into his charitable organization, the Gates Foundation. It has been doing charity in various social areas and different countries across the planet.

An Increase in Capital Options

Aside from regular investors, social entrepreneurs might be found eligible to receive foundation grants from either government or private foundations. With those grants, you can start your social enterprise. For instance, if you want to make solar panels cheap for residential homes, you might receive grants. If the products that your new company offers look lucrative and are beneficial for society at the same time, you can have big business houses investing in you so that you can get your business off the ground.

Less Direct Competitors

Many companies can’t afford to practice corporate social responsibility even if they want to. This holds for publicly traded businesses. The ethos of a social enterprise attracts many customers who have a strong belief in making purchases from organizations that practice corporate social responsibility. Though that might make for a smaller percentage of the market share, smaller companies would require only that small percentage to make a profit.

According to research, if employees get personal satisfaction, they prefer jobs with lower pay. Higher pay doesn’t always matter. Personal satisfaction helps employees to perform better.