I’m constantly amazed and delighted, how many of the South African entrepreneurs I meet started their business because they wanted to make a difference. Yes, they also want to make a living, flex their skills, support their children and build wealth for the family, but the core purpose for the business is rooted in making a difference. 

Some want to improve the environment, others to bring better education to young people, create jobs for youth…. The ways South Africans do this are almost endless! 

When we reach out to lenders, the first thing we learn to get right is that our finances need to be in order. Our projections must make sense, and we must be able to show our financial history. The audited financials! 

What we often forget, though, is that ‘making a difference’ also has a value. It is a currency that counts. When we track and manage it, we build trust with our clients and stand out from the crowd when raising finance.

The act of simply tracking and reporting basic environmental and social impact puts your business into a category of its own. Being able to show verifiable impact data demonstrates that you are serious about managing what matters, not just making money. This could be as simple as tracking youth jobs, water usage, energy consumption or what you donate to charities. 

If you want to learn more about this, do be sure to sign up to our webinar, Grow a business that funders want to back. And in the meantime, do share what difference you make in your business, and how you show this!