Shannon Merchant M.S. Candidate in Strategic Communication, December 2014 Texas Christian University Schieffer School of Journalism and Strategic Communication Arrow Global Capital: A Strategic Communication Plan for a Start-Up International Development Social Enterprise

Introduction Arrow Global Capital (Arrow, henceforth) was founded in 2014 as a response to the nearly trillion-dollar finance gap felt by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in emerging markets by acting as a bridge between investors looking to harness their idle capital and entrepreneurs seeking credit access in emerging markets. This project will deliver a strategic communication plan designed to increase visibility and appeal of the organization and attain at least $400k in philanthropic dollars from 3-4 guarantors before April 2015

Literature Review Corporate Purpose Driving force behind social engagement and impact; businesses seek partners who align with mission Brand-Cause Fit Shared value, potential benefits to brand, relationship to commercial goal of the company Impact Investing Bringing big-business practice to investing with the intention of making a social, environmental, and financial impact (“triple bottom line”)

Primary Research Purposive convenience sample questionnaire 4 respondents, C-suite level executives (3 men, 1 woman) Industries: Food & beverage, defense, financial services, public relations Emergent themes: Enhance business needs, Scalability, Organizational reputation

Strategic Plan Goals Impact emerging markets by empowering sustainable growth and capacity of entrepreneurs through provision of credit access to small- and medium-sized enterprises Objectives To increase Arrow’s visibility and professional profile throughout Phase 1 while increasing engagement with stakeholders in the international development and impact investing community before Phase 2 begins in August 2015 To harness 3-4 guarantees from impact investors for a total of at least “$400k in philanthropic dollars” by April 2015 Key Stakeholders

Strategic Plan Strategies & Messages Convince investors that the Arrow Model offers the best private sector approach to making significant strides toward economic development by offering the highest ROI through a low risk, recyclable guarantee model Appeal to emotion, reliance on numbers to prove scale and impact, and a demonstration of the organization’s expert knowledge Tools & Tactics Marketing & sales vehicles, meeting & conference materials, website, online visibility, social media, periodic print publications

Strategic Plan Timetable Phase 1: information gathering (SEO and analytics) (December 2014) Phase 2: refining the messages (January-February 2015) Phase 3: stakeholder engagement (March-May 2015) Phase 4: reporting progress and maintaining engagement (May-December 2015) Budget Evaluation

Recommendations Printed marketing materials Refine pitch deck Create talking points and executive summary handout Implement SEO and Analytics on website Social media profiles (Twitter, Google+) Increase social media engagement and activity on Vimeo, LinkedIn, DEC-USAID, InterAction, Society for International Development, International Economic Development Council, and the Foundation Directory Biannual reports for stakeholders with detailed metrics and impact

Conclusion This organization has the potential to change the world of international development and drive a new model of philanthropy encouraging local capacity building and community development. The communication plan outlined through this research will play a role in moving Arrow from its current position to one in which it has the ability to engage its guarantee mechanism and begin full-scale lending practices by increasing the organization’s visibility, professional engagement, and implementing tactics designed to harness guarantees from potential impact investors.

Questions?