You Never Know What The Answer Will Be - Part II

A couple of months ago I wrote about Andrew Odom’s book “Your Message Here” and how it inspired me to think outside the financial box and pursue sponsorships as a way to help finance my build. 

(Want to Buy His Book? Click Here!  Your Message Here!)  

The getting-sponsor-process basically works like this: In exchange for donated materials, labor, or cash; sponsors receive social media exposure for their products and/or company in the rapidly growing world of Tiny Houses.  

(To read my first article Click Here:  You Never Know - Part I)

I am more than giddy to report that my efforts have, for the most part, been very well received. I have met some amazing people, and helped the Tiny House movement gain momentum by sharing the creative and inspiring stories of other house builders who have gone before me. Since, however, this process of finding sponsors is far from common and not very intuitive; I decided that a “Part II” to my original article might be helpful to you.

Finding and securing sponsors has been a fun, challenging, and very rewarding experience. But there have been three particularly difficult learning curves to conquer.  And these are the areas of my project that I am sharing with you today, with the hopes that you may be able to learn from my efforts.

Research, Research, Research!

One of the hardest parts of finding sponsors is finding the “decision makers” for each company.  Depending on the size of the company, and their marketing strategy, finding out who you need to talk to can be tedious and frustrating.  In small companies, it is often the general manager who will make the final decision for where to spend their marketing budget.  Medium size companies will probably have a sales manager who also performs the role of marketing manager.  And, very large companies will most likely have a marketing manager or even a consulting firm who assists them with this decision. 

The main thing to remember is the larger the company is, the harder it will be to find the decision maker.  That challenge alone may leave you deciding to only pursue local companies with whom you already have a relationship. (like your local hardware, tire, flooring, or décor store) 

Before you embark on this first step, I recommend that you become very familiar with internet search engines like Google, and Bing, and Linkedin; as well as think a bit about your level of comfort in dealing with people at multiple levels of an organization, and then go from there. Maybe your sponsorship strategy is broad and aggressive?  Maybe it’s narrow and conservative?  In the end, however, remember that your strategy is totally up to you and the amount of research that you’ll need to do will be a direct reflection of your strategy.

Organize, Organize, Organize!

When it comes to keeping track of “stuff”, I am lucky.  I am a list-making-spreadsheet-creating queen.  If you’re not adept at Excel, however, you can accomplish this task just as easily with a notebook.  Either way, the goal is to stay organized, focused, and on task. 

As you do your research, and then start contacting sponsors, you should note the following information for each one:

Company Name

Corporate Phone Number(s)

Decision Maker

Decision Maker’s Email Address

Type of Product They Sell

What do they need from you?  (“follow up call on 06/01”, “email them outline”, etc…)

Did you send a Thank You card? A Sponsorship Outline? A Sponsorship Agreement?

When is the product due to arrive?

In addition to this basic information about each sponsor, and in order to ensure that you have contacted the sponsor enough times to let them know you’re serious (but also to make sure you don’t bother them) you’ll also need to make a note each time you call or email them.  This information is what I refer to as “my matrix”.  And mine, I have to admit, is BEAUTIFUL!!!!  

Above all, consider that it is very likely that your initial email will go into a SPAM folder since the recipient has never received an email from you before.  You cannot assume they received it, and for that reason, a follow up phone call is always needed.  Sometimes you’ll call first and introduce yourself and your project and then email them additional details. Sometimes, you’ll “cold” email them first and then call to follow up and ensure they received your email.  Sometimes your “opportunity” will be met with enthusiasm and support.  Sometimes your request will be considered a complete waste of their time and they’ll inform you of such.  Sometimes they’ll just completely ignore you no matter how nice you are, or how many emails you send, or voicemails you leave for them.

And that brings me to my third point…..

Inspire, Inspire, Inspire!

My sponsorship strategy is pretty aggressive.  I spend almost an hour, every single day, updating my information matrix, contacting sponsors, following up, and writing thank you cards.    It’s tiring, even for a super high energy person like myself.  And for that reason I added this subject to the list.

If you have a goal, make sure you are clear with yourself about what that goal is because you’re going to need to remember it, after hearing the sixteenth person tell you that they’re not interested in supporting your project.  Remember:  Social media advertising may not fit the marketing strategy for every company.  The ones who do “get it” however, are truly appreciative and supporting and enthusiastic.  Your “job” is to find those companies! 

Your “job” is to inspire them to follow the Tiny House Movement, and support their local community, and the sustainable living community, and your project.  Your “job” is to inspire them with your story about why you want to build a Tiny House, what you going to do in it or with it, and why they should consider your project worth of their time or product.  Although your Tiny House build is likely not a charity (I get asked that, a lot) it should be an inspiring story nonetheless.  Try to find that one point about your build, or your life, that makes people smile and nod.  Then they’ll WANT to help!

And last but not least, your “job” is to inspire yourself to keep going!!

Since I started this process in February, I have contacted 84 different companies / individuals.  I have sent hundreds of emails, and made well over a hundred phone calls.  I have met with some of them in person, I have told my story countless times, and my stamp inventory has been depleted by all the thank you cards I have mailed.

So, you may ask “Has it been worth it?”

So far, I have $7,593.00 worth of product that has been provided by 13 different sponsors. My sponsors are both large and small companies.  The products range from flooring, to custom made upholstered furniture, to kitchen fixtures.  My garage and project room are brimming with paint swatches, and fabric samples, and tools. 

So, yes, having 30% of my build costs covered by my sponsors so far, had been very worth it.  Almost, every day I see the pile grow and I am inspired to keep going, to keep moving forward towards my goal of building my own Tiny House. 

But, even though I have realized a fair amount of success thus far, I am not done.  I have 14 sponsors in the “still deciding” mode and many more to initiate contact with. A Tiny House is a BIG project and it’s only me. I have so much farther to go and more stories to tell….

Not until I sleep in my tiny loft,

in my tiny house,

on my new tiny spot,

will I be done,

 telling my tiny story.

(and probably not even then)

My Downsizing "Plan"

While I still have a long ways to go, I have to admit that when it comes to downsizing, I’m very lucky.  I won’t have to work too hard at reducing my “stuff” to a pile no larger than a small car.  I won’t have to embrace the “100 Things” concept or worry about how many plates I have, how many bungie cords, or hand tools, or fabric bins.

I am, you see, going to be an Empty Nester.

Don’t get me wrong.  After I moved last August I FREAKED OUT over the amount of stuff I had.  It’s amazing how much stuff pours out of your closets and into boxes when you move.  It doesn’t look like much, until you have to lovingly (or not so much) wrap the item, and put it into a box, and seal the box, and load the box, and unload the box, and unseal the box, and put the contents away.   Oh. My. God.  What am I going to do with all this *#@*$ stuff?

Since we moved, I purchased a label maker and have been obsessively going through my entire garage, and all of my closets, touching everything I have, and putting all of it into categorized and labeled bins.  I have already donated or thrown away 27 boxes of stuff!  I make it a habit to have a donation bag, handy by the door, and I empty it every couple of weeks.  I have also sold quite a few items on craig’s lovely and oh-so-practical little list.

Now I have a lot less stuff but I am still far, far, from the minimalist I will need to be; to fit into My Empty Nest.  But at least I have a plan…

I have two children.  My daughter is 18, already in college, and will graduate in January of 2015.  Our goal is for her to transition from a part time to a full time employee, where she works now, once she graduates.  She can then start to build up her savings (again) and move into her own apartment when I finally move into my Tiny House.  My son is 16, and will be starting college this summer.  (Yes, I know it’s early but he’s ready, and brilliant, and it’s cheaper that way.)  I don’t have a firm plan for how he’ll transition from my house to his own but a dorm may be involved or a subsidized apartment. (Subsidized by me, that is.)

Less Stuff?  Check.

Organize what’s left?  Check.

An active plan for continual downsizing progress?  Check.

Timeline for transition? Check.

So, what’s left of my brilliant plan?

Picture this.  What’s left of the contents of my house will be divided between the three of us!  My children won’t have to search high and low for rugs, and bookshelves, and shower curtains, and furniture for their first apartments.  They won’t need to “invest” in camping gear, it’s already comfortably resting in the blue bin labeled “CAMPING”.  (The bin may live with my daughter but it will be shared amongst us all.) No money will be needed for gardening tools and garden décor, it’s in the green bin clearly and cheerfully labeled “GARDEN”.   And believe me when I tell you that I have enough kitchen stuff for the three of us!  Despite the fact that “collecting stuff” is a bad word in our house,  my daughter also has dozens of bins and boxes of her own, ready to augment mine, and outfit her own chef’s kitchen.  (she’s a Culinary Professional)  I even have enough bathroom towels, and tweezers, and scissors to go around.  (oh wait…..I have 37 pairs of scissors in the scissor bin….maybe I’ll have to downsize a few of them after all….)

So, you see, I’m lucky.  I’m using this time of my life to free myself of stuff AND help my children at the same time!

Selfish?  Maybe.

Brilliant?  I want to think so….

Lean Principals For Our Tiny Lives

Many, many, years ago….in a land far, far, away…manufacturers in Japan realized the value of doing more with less.  In 1988, an MIT scholar wrote his thesis on the subject and the resulting book launched the domestic “lean” movement we know today.  In a nutshell, Lean Manufacturing is the process of eliminating waste in any process.  The most common wastes, as defined by lean principals, include unnecessary movement (bodily movement) storage (or inventory) and transport (movement of goods).

To put this in more real terms: If you go to Costco and buy a truckload of toilet paper, what have you gained and what have you lost?  You might have saved a lot of money, if you calculate it by the roll, but you also have a lot less cash in your wallet.  (You probably also have one less room in your house to use because it’s full of toilet paper.)  

Whoa!!??

On the opposite end of the practical scale, you could walk to Dollar Tree to buy one roll at a time.  You would have a lot more cash in your pocket, didn’t expend any gas money, and you’ll need a whole lot less space to store the toilet paper. But you should now be prepared spend a lot of time walking back and forth to the Dollar Tree! 

But, maybe that’s a good thing?

Whether we think about it or not, we all make the cost vs. benefit decisions every day.  Sometimes we get it right, and sometimes we throw out a lot of spoiled food because of poor menu planning.

Here’s another example.  Think about your tool shed.  Can you look inside the door and know where your hammer is?  If you have a dedicated “peg” where it hangs, with one look you’ll know if you have it.  If it is buried in the bottom of a tool box, however, you’ll have to expend some time and energy to answer this simple query.

Can you see anything missing?

What does all of this have to do with Tiny Houses?

The Tiny House Movement in the US, while relatively new, is actually just a new application of a very old Japanese manufacturing perspective.  Our society has taught us that “More is Better” and our culture has trained us to actively pursue the latest, biggest, and bestest of everything…even if we cannot afford it.   We are now, painfully, learning that society does not always have our best interests in mind and are now left managing too much debt, space, commuting, and stuff. 

To summarize, we’ve got way too much toilet paper.

And while downsizing is a proven and necessary step towards fitting into a new smaller life, I am here to suggest that also applying lean principals to this process is worth a bit of your time and energy.

Learning exactly how to apply lean principals to your life or workspace can take hours, days, or weeks to learn.  (I once spent 8 weeks, in a classroom, in pursuit of a Lean Certificate from my employer)  But since I assume this is not your consuming passion, like it is mine, I’ll give you the quick-and-dirty-how-to…right here:

When establishing a space for everything in your Tiny House, try answering these few simple questions:

How can you…

1)      Ensure you never bring, into the house, more than what you’ll need for a few days?

Example: Buy a small refrigerator on craigslist vs a large new one.

2)      Store, what you really need, as close to the place where you’ll need it?

Example: Store a small tool kit in the truck of your car vs a tool shed.

3)      Look at your closet, drawer, or cupboard; and know instantly what you need?

Example: Own a kitchen knife block with one slot for each, and own no more knives than will fit.

4)      Quickly remove, or recycle, waste and excess from your day to day life?

Example: Utilize small recycling bins in the kitchen that then “feed” larger ones near the curb.

Downsizing and simplifying really is more about the time we spend thinking about it, rather than the time we spend actually doing it.  If we can’t wrap our brain around it and we don’t know WHAT to do, then we end up not doing anything at all.  We get stuck.

A random picture of a banana helicopter to see if you're paying attention!

Ha!!

Maybe these questions can help you get UN-stuck?

Maybe they can provide you with an intellectual structure to form your plan around?

Maybe discuss them with your family, or roommate(s), or Google?

My answers, to all of the above, are my own.  Yours will be different.  My challenges in pursuit of my mortgage free home are my own.  Yours are equally difficult; I am sure, but are your own.  To clarify things a bit, my goal here is NOT to necessarily give you the answers.  My goal is to ask you the right questions, to make you think, and inspire you to jump start your own progress.

Have I met my goal?

The Tiny House movement is exciting!  I am inspired, daily, by all the creativity that people put into their designs.  While “Lean Principals” are not as fun to talk about as curtains, framing studs (the wood kind) or towing vehicles; I think there is also a real need for these kinds of pragmatic conversations.  Behind all of the media hype, and the Pinterest pages, is a desire for a better world that starts with one tiny conversation at a time.