A Worthy Mission
The Msanidi Online mission is to foster a vibrant and collaborative community of developers, designers, bloggers, creative minds, and more. The power of shared knowledge, collective growth, and economic empowerment cannot be stressed more. To drive engagement and fuel the financial growth of the community, the website has established a central depository, ensuring that payouts and rewards are provided to members.
But real money has to come from somewhere and, since most people have prior engagements and responsibilities, few members may be willing to reinvest in the community and may opt for the KES 1,000 payout if it made itself available.
In this post, we’ll discuss the financial justification for a reinvestment schedule and highlight the benefits of holding onto the points gained on the website to reach a potential goal. For purposes of this justification, we will set the goal at KES 396,000 which can arguably be enough to support a business or technological development project or solution in some form or fashion ensuring return on investment of equal or more than the principal. This amount is also equivalent to being able to give each member of the “WordPress Community KE” WhatsApp Group exactly KES 1,000 at the time of this writing.
The Power of Reinvestment
As we embark on this exciting journey together, it is crucial to understand the significance of reinvestment. By earning points and maintaining higher and higher balances, we create a cycle of growth, allowing us to expand our opportunities and better reward members in the future. This strategy ensures that the community can sustainably thrive, with the ultimate goal of moving towards a self-sustaining ecosystem where community-driven projects and initiatives take center stage.
Incremental Growth and Increasing Engagement
To facilitate the growth of our community and encourage engagement, I propose a structured schedule for increasing the amount of money available in the central depository while keeping the withdrawal limits generally low unless in the case of an agreed upon project or venture. It appears more and more like a savings plan but what should be guaranteed is that the amount in the central deposit represents the cumulative amount of real money that community members have and can earn from and transact with. By adhering to my proposed schedules, we can gradually expand our financial resources, unlocking new opportunities and benefits for our members.
Take, for example, a community member (John) that has accumulated KES 10,000 points on the website and requires a service from another community member (Jane). They have negotiated and agreed that the service would cost KES 5,000. John transfers his points to Jane which Jane decides to claim for real money through the central depository that initially rewarded them the points for creating content, surfing, and participating in any other special tasks that could earn points.
By utilizing the points instead of real money, they foster a sense of trust, collaboration, and value exchange while contributing to the overall growth and success of the community.
The Strategy: Crunching the Numbers
Premier consideration before delving into the calculations is that these numbers need to be reasonable enough for anyone to be able to contribute without feeling like it is a financial burden. I have made the assumption that a typical member would be earning KES 30,000 to KES 50,000 a month in their professional engagement and would be willing to part with (at most) KES 250 a month to support the cause and participate in reaching the target funding goal.
Target Funding Goal: KES 396,000
Current Funds in the Central Depository: approx. KES 8,000
To calculate the incremental weekly increase needed, follow these steps:
Determine the funding gap:
Funding Gap = Target Funding Goal – Current Funds Funding Gap = KES 396,000 – KES 8,000 Funding Gap = KES 388,000
Decide on a timeline for achieving the funding goal:
Let’s assume you want to achieve it in a very reasonable period of 36 months (156 weeks).
Calculate the weekly increase needed:
Weekly Increase = Funding Gap / Number of Weeks Weekly Increase = KES 388,000 / 156 Weekly Increase ≈ KES 2,487.18
Therefore, to reach the desired funding goal of KES 396,000 within 156 weeks, the amount in the central depository should increase by approximately KES 2,487.18 every week. It may sound like a lot of money and yet another financial commitment but it’s imperative to remember that the points are fabricated. It is the duty of the central depository to ensure the figurative amount is available in real liquid currency.
Let’s assume that the website is getting at least two new members to join the community every week and each new member is willing to contribute KES 250 to the central depository every month (an amount that can be earned as points through website interaction and activity).
Let’s break down the calculation:
Monthly Contribution: KES 250
Weekly Contribution: KES 250 / 4 (assuming 4 weeks in a month) = KES 62.50
Increase in Community Membership: At least two new members every week
Additional Contributions per Week:
Number of new members * Weekly Contribution per member Additional Contributions per Week: 2 * KES 62.50 = KES 125
Total Weekly Contributions:
Weekly Contribution from the original member + Additional Contributions from new members Total Weekly Contributions: KES 62.50 + KES 125 = KES 187.50
But remember the central depository has committed to increase its funds by approximately KES 2,487.18 every week.
New Total Weekly Contributions:
KES 2,487.18 + KES 187.50 (assuming two new members contributing KES 62.50 each)
New Time (in weeks) = Funding Gap / Total Weekly Contributions Time = KES 388,000 / (KES 2,487.18 + KES 187.50)
New Time to Reach Target Funding Goal ≈ 135.67 weeks.
That would shorten the time taken to reach the goal by 7+ months. However, it is important to note that this relies on the community members’ willingness to contribute to the central depository and does not take into account some external factors. The actual time may vary depending on the consistent contributions and growth of the community membership.
Getting Started
Before winding up I wanted to explore some ideas on what members can write about or design in their first WordPress post or page to begin earning points and reinvesting in the community:
- Showcasing Personal Projects and Experiences: Members can share their personal projects, experiences, and achievements within the community. They can write about their development journeys, design processes, or blog about topics relevant to their expertise. This not only fosters knowledge-sharing but also provides inspiration to others, fostering a sense of community pride and engagement.
- Collaborative Initiatives and Challenges: Members can organize collaborative initiatives or challenges that encourage members to work together on specific projects. Members can document their progress, challenges faced, and lessons learned. By highlighting the success stories and the impact of these initiatives, we emphasize the value of reinvestment and how it can lead to meaningful outcomes.
- Expert Insights and Tutorials: Members can contribute insights, tutorials, or guest posts on specific topics of interest. These contributions can range from technical tutorials to career advice or industry trends. By sharing their expertise, these individuals inspire members to actively participate in the community and recognize the potential for personal and professional growth.
- Exploring Prompt Engineering on AI: Members can leverage AI to easily create content given they provide an accurate enough prompt to the machine. There already is a category dedicated to ChatGPT content on the website. I believe that may be the best and easiest place to start.
- Feedback on the Msanidi Online User Experience and Ways to Improve: Members can suggest and/or guide on ways to improve the end-user experience when using the website. It could be design improvements, plugin/widget suggestions, or entire pages that serve different purposes.
The last parting shot is a vision of how the website can inform the community on the current market environment and what to expect, especially for new entrants in the business and technology industry. Eventually, the points earned for creating content on the website should ideally match the industry standard and require the same amount of dedication or attention to detail as regular work would. The community itself can come to consensuses on whether to raise or lower the rewards for work done on the website based on the strength of the central depository and community members’ willingness to support one another.
Conclusion
As we move forward with our vision of a thriving community, reinvestment becomes the driving force behind our financial growth and member engagement. By incrementally increasing the amount of money available in the central depository and emphasizing the benefits of holding onto the points earned on the website, we pave the way for a potentially sustainable and prosperous future. We can collectively reinvest, collaborate, and explore the endless possibilities that lie ahead.
Maintaining the points on the website means you are reinvesting your resources and actively engaging with the community. This creates a positive feedback loop. As the central depository grows, so does the potential for greater opportunities, collaborative projects, and financial rewards for our members. We are building a sustainable ecosystem where everyone benefits from their involvement and dedication.
As we continue on this journey, it is crucial to remember that the points earned also represent our commitment to the growth and success of the community. It is through patience and reinvestment that we lay the foundation for future projects that will benefit us all.
Together, let’s harness the power of collaboration, creativity, and shared knowledge to make Msanidi Online a hub of innovation, connection, and success. By staying committed to reinvestment and nurturing our community, we can achieve remarkable milestones, generate economic opportunities, and create a lasting impact.
Join us on this exciting journey, and together, let’s shape the future of Msanidi Online, where collaboration, growth, and prosperity await us all.
I welcome any and all feedback to improve my propositions, assuming the website will continue to develop technically and communally to allow more ways to engage, collaborate, and earn.