The very term “microenterprise” may limit the field’s ability to attract a broader market, a funding stream and stronger alliances. The industry needs to create new language and messages that better convey the relevance of microenterprise and the role that it can play in the redevelopment of local economies. Key messages include:

• Conveying an accurate and useful image of the field’s purpose, targets and outcomes that can speak to its key audiences: entrepreneurs, donors, policymakers and the general public.
• Connecting the field to the various public and civic goals it can help achieve, including its role in economic development, and as a tool for helping various low-income and disadvantaged individuals generate employment and income.
• Portraying the field as competent, accountable and transparent.

Yet while the field’s name and the “brand” it conveys are important, the field also needs to move beyond words to reposition itself within the broader fields of entrepreneurship and economic development. The field needs to understand and better connect to the economic development and enterprise communities at both the national and local levels, with the goal of creating a more integrated set of services for entrepreneurs across the spectrum.

The following resources provide information about the concept of branding, as well as efforts to position microenterprise within, or link it to, a system of enterprise and economic development activities.

Resources on Branding

• Corporate Branding and Identity – Why They Are Important For MFIs.  This very short Briefing Note #27 by MicroSave summarizes why a good corporate brand is important for microfinance organizations. Although developed for institutions operating in developing countries, the issues identified and the key terms relate to U.S.-based programs as well. (Undated, 2 pages, authored by Graham A.N. Wright, David Cracknell, Leonard Mutesasira and Rob Hudson.) 
• Branding and Marketing Toolkit: Community-Based Businesses and Products.  Although developed for nonprofits engaged in promoting community-based forestry products, Chapter 6 of this toolkit, titled “Developing Your Brand,” includes basic concepts and useful worksheets that can be applied to microenterprise programs. The 10-page chapter deals with how to develop, promote and protect your brand. It describes the four aspects of a brand: key attributes, personality, promise and positioning, and gives examples of materials developed by nonprofits to convey their brand. This piece is useful to organizations that want some basic, elemental advice and tools for approaching branding. (Fall 2005, 142 pages, authored by Mary Virtue with the Branding & Marketing Advisory Group, National Community-Based Forestry Demonstration Program, The Aspen Institute.)
• Corporate Brand and Identity Toolkit.  This toolkit from MicroSave provides an extensive treatment of the branding process. MicroSave’s toolkits are generally aimed at larger microfinance institutions, so this piece is most appropriate for larger-scale organizations that may have more resources to dedicate to a branding effort. The toolkit covers the types of research that are important, the principles behind a good brand, and how to internalize the brand within the organization, communicate it externally and monitor its success. In several places the kit provides suggestions on how to work with external experts throughout the branding process. (December 2004, 55 pages, authored by Olivia Leland, Yasmina McCarty, Peter Mukwana, Lisa Parrott, and Graham A. N. Wright.) 
• New Brand for National Community Capital Association.  NCCA  completed a branding process that resulted in member approval of a new brand for the organization.  Beginning in January 2006, the organization will be known as the “Opportunity Finance Network.”  A new logo, tagline and other materials have been developed in support of the brand. This process should be of interest to the microenterprise industry as a whole, as it provides a specific example of the branding process and the role of materials and outreach/publicity efforts in support of a brand. 
• Crafting Your 30-second Elevator Conversation. Once an organization has a brand, it needs to market it effectively. These Web pages from the PhilanthropyNow Web site provide solid tips on why and how to create an effective 30-second elevator speech for potential supporters. The tips cover how to create, practice and personalize your conversation.  (2003, 4 pages, authored by Carole Rylander and Charles B. Maclean.) 

Connecting to the Economic Development and Enterprise Development/Entrepreneurship Communities

• Regional Flavor: Marketing Rural America’s Unique Assets. This publication offers inspiration for rural practitioners interested in approaches to economic development that build on an area’s unique attributes, work across sectors and geographic boundaries, stimulate innovation and business development, attract tourists and create new markets. Included are many short examples of how this concept is being applied in communities across the U.S. and internationally, and a wealth of tips regarding building alliances, creating a brand, using media and the Web, and developing policy support. (2006, 78 pages, Association for Enterprise Opportunity).
• Building a Regional Entrepreneurship Network: A Guide to Action. This guide provides an overview of regional approaches to supporting entrepreneurs, and guidance on how microenterprise organizations can play a role in organizing a regional entrepreneurship network. Included are checklists and workbook activities to guide groups through the process of building more advanced supports for entrepreneurs. (2005, 59 pages, authored by June Holley.) Additional resources by June Holley on regional entrepreneurship and networking strategies can be found here.
• Energizing Entrepreneurship. This Web site of the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship provides resources that community leaders and citizens - including microenterprise practitioners - can use to help their communities embrace entrepreneurship as a core rural economic development strategy. The site includes tools, success stories, research and other information, as a companion to the Center's book, Energizing Entrepreneurs, Charting a Course for Rural Communities.
• Rural Microenterprise Development Organizations: Catalysts for Stimulating Entrepreneurship in Rural America. This training manual from AEO challenges rural microenterprise organizations to move beyond a single purpose orientation to view the entire community and its economic development as part of their mission, and to take a more holistic approach in their business development work. The manual contains examples of programs that have taken a proactive role in their communities and are active catalysts for changing the entire entrepreneurial culture. (2004, 37 pages, Association for Enterprise Opportunity).  The manual can be ordered from the AEO Bookstore.  
• The Entrepreneurial League System: Transforming Your Community’s Economy Through Enterprise Development. This white paper prepared for the Appalachian Regional Commission lays out a brief overview of the concept of an Entrepreneurial League System® developed by Dr. Gregg A. Lichtenstein and Dr. Thomas S. Lyons. The authors argue that this “systems” approach creates a more effective and larger scale approach to fostering entrepreneurship at the community level. (March 2002, 9 pages, authored by Thomas S. Lyons.)  Additional papers on this topic are available here.
• Managing the Community’s Pipeline of Entrepreneurs and Enterprises: A Fresh Approach to Economic Development Strategies.  This paper offers a methodical approach to deciding when, where and how to invest in enterprise development and entrepreneurship. This approach builds on the idea of creating a pipeline of entrepreneurs, looks at how to segment and support various parts of the business community, and suggests how policy makers and practitioners can make informed decisions about which types of businesses to invest in and which strategies to use. (February 2005, 30 pages, Gregg A. Lichtenstein and Thomas S. Lyons.)  Additional papers by Lichtenstein and Lyons can be found here. 
• Mapping Rural Entrepreneurship. This publication from the Corporation for Enterprise Development provides an overview of entrepreneurship in our nation’s rural communities. Latter sections of the paper describe the range of programs and institutions – including microenterprise organizations – that play a role in supporting entrepreneurship, and discuss what is required to develop an entrepreneurial climate in rural areas. (August 2003, 68 pages, authored by Brian Dabson, Jennifer Malkin, Amy Matthews, Kimberly Pate and Sean Stickle.) 

Have additional resources to suggest? Email us at fieldus@aspeninstitute.org.