In the European Union, women represent 52% of the total European population. But they account for a mere 34.4% of self-employed professionals and 30% of start-up entrepreneurs. There is a growing consensus that the creativity and entrepreneurial potential of women remain an untapped source of economic growth and job.

The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) is a not-for-profit network representing, promoting and supporting women entrepreneurs across Europe. In 2016, WEP contacted logos to develop a growth strategy for the association, raise its profile among European policymakers and support its communication activities.

challenge

Formerly an EU pilot project (2014-15), WEP has become a fully independent Brussels-based association with about 12 member organisations in Europe. In light of its ambitions, the board members asked logos to develop a growth strategy that would increase revenues. The objective was to position WEP as the “go-to” organisation for the promotion of female entrepreneurship, and foster relations with policymakers and civil society actors across Europe.

solutions

logos tapped into its expertise in communication and association management to meet WEP’s needs.

Building on its 20 years in association management, logos worked closely with the Board of Directors to revamp its organisational and operational governance structure. This institutional reform would the necessary condition for recruiting new members. Then, logos reviewed and adapted the membership, benefits and marketing material to make them more appealing for prospective members. Acting as the association’s de facto secretariat, logos managed all outreach activities and secured a 20% increase in revenues in the first year. Beyond members, new partnerships were also forged, including with global companies such as Airbnb, who became an official sponsor of WEP events.

Second, our communication team developed a comprehensive communication plan, including the organisation of high-level policy briefings and other profile-raising events with EU policymakers. In three years, logos organised seven policy roundtables in the European Parliament that brought together a wide array of political, business and civil society representatives. Each event focused on a particular challenge associated with women entrepreneurship and the objective was to identify actionable solutions. For each event, logos secured relevant partners and sponsors, whose contribution would cover logistical expenses for up to 50 participants.

logos also boosted WEP’s digital engagement capacities. It quickly upgraded the association website and updated it regularly with salient news and milestones reached. Our team also designed and ran a new social media strategy on Twitter and LinkedIn. Our social media experts were successful in raising WEP’s digital profile. In 10 months, the followership of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform increases fivefold. That’s why WEP later asked logos to managed the communication activities of an EU-funded project “Women Business Angels for Europe’s Entrepreneurs“.

results

In 2020, the voice of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform in Europe’s capital is louder and listened to. The association has built strong relationships with a variety of Brussels-based institutions and civil society stakeholders. Acknowledged as THE organisation promoting the voice of women entrepreneurs, it has become the trusted partner of European policymakers in the eyes of its membership, allowing WEP to be considered as a reference organisation for the EU WEGATE initiative.

Milestones of our collaboration include:

• 20% increase in membership and incomes
• 7 policy roundtables in Brussels in 24 months
• +1,000 followers on social media platforms (Twitter and LinkedIn)

services

association management, membership development, public affairs strategy, industry & policy events, communication, digital engagement