Time for a heart-to-heart, DUers (w/update)

[grantcart]

122. My suggestion

is that at this point you may want to change from thinking about specific proposals and think more about process.

For example maybe it is time that you have a "Public Board" of a dozen or so people that would work on these issues.

You could draw from people already interested as well as try to invite some key business person in a business area that you are interested in developing.

This will help you with a peer group that everyone needs (and the reason that corporations have boards). For example there is little more I could contribute on the question of a film tie in than I already have. However if you had somebody from the film industry on the board they would be able to provide valuable inside information. They might be able to say "This is what you have to do and this is who you have to talk to".

I think the key here is very much along the lines of Twitter and other social media. Build the community and don't worry about how to "monetize it". If you even had 10,000 people that were linked to Wishadoo on social media you then would have an asset that you could "market" with appropriate commercial matches. You would exchange an expensive social network that has an activist bent to promote a product that was in harmony to what Wishadoo is all about.

I believe that you have a lot more to offer businesses than you may currently realize.

Promotion of suitable products (like an independent film) is one thing. Businesses face some of the same problems that you do. For example one of the questions you face at Wishadoo is how to evaluate a request. Over time you will develop a reliable mechanism that will answer much of this problem. Through experience you will continue to find ways that protect privacy concerns and give some level of assurance to benefactors that there is some legitimacy in the request.

Think about it, Business face the same challenge. For example there was a comment from a property manager that they constantly faced decisions about trying to help people make the right decision but felt that they were constantly ripped off. Perhaps in time Wishadoo could become the "go to" place for a business to refer the inquiries they get (and they are bombarded with them) but are unable to assist. I am sure that there are many businesses that would like to help in particular ways but simply are not comfortable in trying to weed out who is worthy and who isn't.

Business is all about one key thing: Solving problems.

If you can solve the problem that businesses have in sorting out legitimate humanitarian requests then they will want to support you because you have made their lives a little bit easier.

In order to understand their side of the problem you have to bring them into the conversation and see it from their point of view, and that is what a board can do for you. If you have 3-4 business owners on the board and they all say "this is the problem we have with requests for help and we would like to help but don't have the time or expertise to respond" then you will be on the way for a business tie in.

Beyond helping businesses solve their problem there is also an obvious upside for business involvement: They would benefit from good publicity.

Again my observation is that you have done a tremendous job in establishing a platform that is needed, worthwhile and well thought out. To take it to the next level you may want to spend more time working on the process of getting people involved rather than the actual day to day running of it.

There is also another reason that a board is going to be an assist to you. If this were to take off and resonate and become a much larger operation you will need to spend more and more time on it, and eventually there might be a need for staff. A board can help you by establishing an objective criteria for professional compensation for those that are employed to make it work.

I understand that you don't intend to 'get rich' with it but neither did Craig's list. If it is to go to a higher operational level then there will be legitimate questions of compensation that need an objective view.

Hope this helps.