A few weeks ago we featured Ooh.com a marketplace where (mostly) micropreneurs can promote courses, workshops and events that they run.
Given the range of interesting ideas that have already found their way onto the site, it seems to me that there’s an entire ‘show and tell’ economy that offers talented people (and forward-thinking businesses) an opportunity to profit from their skills and passions.
Case in point: Italy’s gelato university
Run by equipment manufacturer Carpigiani, Gelato University features a series of six courses (each lasting 3 days) designed to help train entrepreneurs who want to enter the gelato business – and help ‘upskill’ people who are already involved in the industry.
Around 6,000 take the courses every year and additional short (1/2 day) introductory sessions have proven popular worldwide.
But even if ice cream isn’t your thing, Gelato University has something to teach us. In fact, it has two somethings:
People will pay to learn to do what you do
Education is big business but there’s also a sizable market for ‘experiences’ – people interested in trying out something new rather than spending their weekends at the mall or holidays stuck in tourist traps. Put the two together and you’ve got a useful and usable market for both professional development and ‘fun’ courses.
If they can do it with ice cream then you can do it with flower arranging or pottery or property or animation or whatever it is that floats your own particular boat.
And existing businesses can do it too
Carpigiani not only generate revenues from their courses but they also do a good job of growing their potential market and brand awareness. Zappos does something very similar with customer care courses.
And a jeweller could do it with jewellry making courses, a plumber with DIY workshops or a restaurant with a cookery school and tasting nights. A nightclub could generate new revenues with DJ training or ‘DJ for a day’ events. A writer could earn a bit extra with a creative writing club.
In fact, it’s a lot easeir to think of businesses and professions that can do this than come up with a list of those that couldn’t.
So creamy Italian treats aside, what could you teach people to do?
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