Activity Title
Tiny Business Examples
Duration
2:30 hours
Group Composition
20 / 25 participants.
Materials Needed
Laptop, projector, speaker, flipchart paper, markers and pens
Tips for the Trainer
Prepare all the materials for tiny business presentation in advance, link to their website, video, and presentation of what they are doing (it does not look professional if you spend 10 minutes fixing projector during the session, or ir you spend time searching for your files in front of everyone). In the group work phase create small groups trying to separate already established groups as for nationality, friendship etc. the idea is to mix up participants as much as we can.
Objectives
- Present a diverse range of examples that highlight different fields, locations, and business models.
- Emphasize the uniqueness of each example, showcasing how these businesses differentiate themselves in the market.
- Include examples from various countries to showcase the international scope of tiny businesses and how they adapt to different cultural and economic contexts.
Activity Description
45 minutes - Tiny business examples
The Trainer will show a few examples of tiny businesses to stimulate participant ideas, giving them concrete and relatable examples while deconstructing each business. Examples should serve as a motivation but also an example on how participant could implement their next activity.
We used the following business examples (but you may find others from your context). It is important not to use examples from the huge companies like Apple. First of all they are not small businesses and people cannot relate with them.
That’s why we used our own examples or examples from people that we know because participant reaction is: “Wow, if they can do it, I can do it too”:
- Raminta - Espresso brewery on the wheels for morning ferry commuters
- Sende Rural coliving and coworking space
- Sende coliving consultation - (as ou can see, we use our examples because participants
- Luly Desbrze - Live call with a van burger seller (it is nice to interrupt presentation with a live call from the inside of the business, like Breaking news in the TV, when they interrupt program. This engages participants a lot.
- Daniel’s sausage business
- Clay’s Bespoke sound
We will be updating the seasonplatform.com with more tiny business ideas
The trainer should deconstruct why the following business idea are successful. There is always a reason (or a few reasons) for it’s success. Your job as a trainer is to help participants see the invisible effort from each business and to understand it. Then they will do the same while searching for their examples.
Here are some elements that they can pay attention while deconstructing:
- Where they sell it
- Who they sell it to
- Which selling channels they use
- How they communicate their idea
- Business structure
- How much they can make
- Tools/Activities/processes
- What is commonsensical?
- What is standing out?
60 Minutes - Group work
In the second phase of the activity participants will be divided in group of 5 people, each group will search for 5 tiny business examples, covering all countries of group participants.
45 Minutes – Presentation and debreifing
Each group will present the tiny business examples selected. (Please remind them to make 5 minutes presentations only so there is a time for a debriefing).
Debriefing
During the debriefing session we will ask them how was this exercise, was it difficult to find examples, was it difficult to understand the business model, when was easy to understand the business model, what is surprising for them, what did they learn.
Expected Outcomes
The session aims to stimulate participants to identify business ideas to get inspired. Exploration and deconstruction of ideas itself is learning.
This exercise inspires The business realities exploration is a perfect chance to take important info about new ideas, methodologies, and approaches that could be used in the participant’s case. Inspiration and knowledge gained are central in the session implementation. Additionally, participants can develop their critical sense on evaluating business reality and application on their realities.
Right now Ivan Dimeski from Skopje is building his brewery on the wheels because he got inspired from our video about Raminta.