It takes more than a great idea to help make a difference in Africa. You need to be better than smart, you need to be shrewd. Know your market, know your limiting factors and know your end user. Simple, but powerful strategic planning can make the difference between just creating excitement about your endeavor and the impact of real results. The following article from Forbes really inspired me to remember to deploy all of the strategic marketing tools that I know work.

"When our colleagues studied 439 market-based solutions in Africa, they found that a mere 13% of them had achieved significant scale."

<a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/skollworldforum/2014/04/08/can-social-enterprises-really-solve-poverty/">http://www.forbes.com/sites/skollworldforum/2014/04/08/can-social-enterprises-really-solve-poverty/</a>

<em>Photo: <a href="http://www.maasaiwilderness.org/?gclid=CIjb_uKX1L0CFcqUfgodZUQAvw">Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust</a></em>

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