Zimbabwe is considered to be a Christian nation due to the overwhelming number of Christians. There are of course several other faith-based groups or organizations. Anyways, let us explore some business ideas that such FBOs can embark on. I will incline toward Christian ones given my being a Christian. I am a member of Christ Embassy also known as Believers Loveworld Incorporated. That of course is not meant to discredit other FBOs. This is just to enunciate the business ideas I want to share with you. Otherwise, they are business ideas any FBO can take up as is or tweak a bit. The faith-based economy is a multi-trillion US dollar global economy.
Coaching Services
There are so many niches to settle for here. You just have to find out which areas have the most widespread needs. The thirst for how to achieve financial freedom is one such area. Another area is that of personal development which branches off into numerous focuses. It can be soft skills, career development, entrepreneurship and business development, dating and relationships, marriages, and so on. You can tailor specialized coaching programs that people pay to sign up for. They can be workshops, seminars, masterclasses, or actual courses. You can use in-house talent or experts to facilitate and execute them. Alternatively, you can hire external experts depending on your focus. There is a high demand for coaching services so lots of money can be made from this.
Music Teaching And Recording Services
Music generally makes up a huge part of FBOs e.g. churches. It is common to see such music even making waves in the mainstream. It is not surprising to find several in-house members aspiring to learn and even record music. Those needs create a ripe opportunity to start a thriving business. You can start offering paid music learning programs or classes. At the zenith, you can build a music school specifically for that.
Then we have recording services; you can build a recording studio for that. It is normal to see churches having recording labels. It is more or less like it is for secular music teaching and recording. There are huge prospects in those areas, especially for FBOs. If you have a notably big membership you will enjoy the ease of client sign-ups and product or service distribution. It is a smart way of making money whilst creating value and financial empowerment.
Events Management
This involves several things to major in. For starters, you can use your facilities as events or conferencing facilities. You can go as far as building facilities specifically for that. Then there is also the area of equipment hire. You have items such as chairs, décor, public address (PA) systems, and musical instruments amongst others. Such equipment can be hired out to other FBOs or other types of clients. You can even recoup the money that was used to source that equipment over time. The same goes for hiring your real estate properties for selected events. It is a lucrative business model if handled well. You can also venture into offering catering services. This would be ingenious in that your events management services become comprehensive.
Academic Institutions
I highly recommend FBOs start academic institutions as a business idea. You can start right up from early childhood development (ECD) to the tertiary level. Most of us attended academic institutions built by FBOs; it is an age-old business model. That is why I recommend it because it is tried and tested. FBOs should go all out here and never limit themselves. The academic world has vastly evolved over the years. The education system in Zimbabwe has been comprised over the years. FBOs can come in to improve that by building learning institutions that provide cutting edge academic programs.
Multimedia Services
The world we live in has become increasingly digital all-around. When the pandemic set in that is when that reality hit hard here in Zimbabwe. The need to conduct meetings online became apparent. The need to live-stream services or events became apparent as well. Many FBOs still rely on social media and video conferencing platforms for this. That is all good and workable but it would be great to have customized platforms. Many FBOs would need such customized services to exclusively handle their activities. This also spans video production, graphic design, print and electronic media, amongst others. There is a growing market for this as more and more FBOs embrace new age media.
These are 5 of some of the common business ideas that faith-based organizations can take up. They are nowhere near exhaustive especially when you consider how diverse membership of such FBOs often is. There will be people with all sorts of expertise, backgrounds, and influence. Tapping into or pooling all that human capital can give birth to limitless business ventures. You primarily enjoy a ready market i.e. the members themselves. Then they in turn play a role in word of mouth marketing and referrals. It is essential that FBOs strategically plan and roll out businesses. Running FBOs takes money so never be misled into thinking they must not conduct business.
