300$ House brand value

[Arturs]

Hello Christian,

Thanks for the update, very interesting. You might have been very busy with all the activities.

At the moment it seems the initial mission of 300$ House platform, in general, is succesfully completed - publicity gained, pilot projects in process. Almost no new records on 300House.com, lately, long period of silence in our blog.

It's good and it's pity - because if it continues like that, we may loose the brand value of 300$House.

As an individual who has decided to dedicate efforts to develop affordable housing solutions, I am interested to be a part of community - a well recognized, branded platform which may serve as a facilitator for further development and runway for me and for others. $300House would make a perfect sense. 

Thank you for promising to post the update of activities also on the website, but will it be sufficient? Shouldn’t the mission be refreshed to give a new life to $300 House? 

I hope I am not the only one having such a wish. 

Christian, is there anything we can do to help you to strengthen the vision and to return the focus to $300? :-)

Best Regards

Arturs

[Christian]

You are right!  Let's chat - give me a shout at christian [at] christiansarkar [dot] com 

[Ian Fraser]

Hello 300$ people.

 

Christian one of the things that I was wary about from the get-go with the 300$  project is that it is all comfortable big city developed country people have an internet trip – discussions about BRAND VALUE seem to confirm that. You need points on the scoreboard.

 

You are riding a falling star I think.

 

Get some mud on your boots;  make something real happen.

 

If you think getting your face or story on desperate for any story media is doing something then you are in for some serious disappointment.

 

Asia is happening – and it’s happening – in ASIA.

 

Less and less it gives a toss about what is happening in USA or the other developed countries. More and more those countries are needing Asia for their very existence. Australia , for example, in Asia, wouldn’t know if it’s proverbial butt was on fire. I think USA is probably much the same.

 

If you want some real action get into TATA India or some of the Asian companies – but you better have something to say or deliver that adds real value. Another UN type they don’t need – unless they’re packing free money.

 

Cheers,

 

Ian F

 

Australia

--
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups "The $300 House" group.
To post to this group, send email to 300h...@googlegroups.com
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
300house+u...@googlegroups.com
For more options, visit the group at
http://groups.google.com/group/300house?hl=en?hl=en
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit our site at http://www.300house.com >>
Visit our blog at http://www.300house.com/blog >>
And tell your friends!
 
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "The $300 House" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to 300house+u...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
 
 

[Arturs]

hi, Ian,

great you helped to refresh the activity here. You have given good points to discuss.

I see you do not like to discuss BrandValue of 300$House. It can be so that the brand value of 300$House does not represent any value to you/ your business and so to many other entrepreneurs who already have their own brand to care about. But there may be a few others who do not have established own name, yet, and some, may be, not intending to do that. 

Our attitude to what’s going on depends, among other things, on how much we have got of that we expected. I cannot speak for others but I can tell what I expected when I joined this group and how satisfied I am with that.

1. $300 House - as a convenient source of relevant information - I am fully satisfied, credit to Christian;
2. $300 House / Jovoto contest - as an opportunity to develop and test my own design idea - almost fully satisfied. Principles of scoring/evaluation were not ideal (but they were OK);
3. $300 House blog - communication platform to meet other people with similar goals and values, opening opportunities to collaborate - this possibility depends on own and other’s activity and on publicity of 300$House. The reflection of the activity was not satisfactory for quite some time, raising a question - is this the end of story for us (who were not initiators and not Jovoto winners)?
4. $300 House as a branded community - being a part of it may serve a good reference when approaching potential customers, investors, partners. I don’t know is “community” the right word, what-ever it is, it has to have a recognized brand-name. 

The last two points represent some values (and interests) to stand for. Everybody who somehow added some value to 300$house brand by participating in Jovoto contest or just by blogging here - has some rights to try to receive something in return. The platform exists, already, that’s something. Should we forever demand new points on the scoreboard from Christian? I do not feel Christian owes something to us, maybe opposite. 

About Jovoto contest’s outcome - quite some negativism has been expressed, caused by a well known feeling of “winner takes it all”. This feeling comes from looser’s mentality in us. We all know we can learn from the lost games/battles only. 

About mud on boots - a great point, that would really be great to exchange our “mud-experiences” on $300 (points for all). Sure, this is top value experience, however, good thing done while sitting in a sofa is still a good thing. 

About ASIA and USA - may be a good subject for another discussion. China guys are on full speed, would be good to get them here on $300 house. To me it doesn’t matter whether the $300House is hosted in China, US, Australia or Afghanistan - as long as internet connection is fine. What makes difference is people. I do not perceive $300 House as a pure American enterprise.

Sorry for long writing, that’s my trial to move the wheel. Hope it moved a bit.

regards

Arturs

Latvia

[Michael Spencer]

I have to agree with Ian here, 

I saw 300$ take off, saw all sorts of media excitement around a provocative, yet highly oversimplified idea,  then saw it fade. All along, I kept getting more mud on my boots (literally) while designing, building and improving upon affordable home solutions in East africa. In the time that 300$ has been around I have been part of a team that has successfully launched a business that has built over 12 affordable homes, finding lower costs and greater efficiency with each new home we build. Today we are growing sustainably and getting recognition from the most important people we know, the clients we build $2,000 and $3,000 homes for. 

While I am a firm believer in BRAND VALUE, it is important to make sure that your BRAND VALUE is being created in the right customer group. In my opinion, that is the people that would benefit from $300 homes. 

If you have good ideas about housing design and cost savings and REALLY want to see those ideas have in impact, go test them in the market by building them. A design competition, while fun and insightful to take part in, will never actually tell you if an idea meets the demand of the market or addresses the actual problem at hand.

I think the 300$ idea is great, I think the group is full of interesting, creative people, but I struggle with the thought that such a group has a lot of value in actually moving forward and implementing contextually relevant, affordable housing solutions in the places they are needed around the globe. 

Michael Spencer

Studio [re] Design and Development, Inc. 

Nairobi, Kenya 

[Christian]

A message from Kristin Newton (in Japan) >>

Dear Christian, Arturs, and All,

I also hope we can give a new life to $300 House. It's such a brilliant idea. To let it die after one competition seems very short sighted when so many people on this earth live in dreadful conditions. 

It's nice to see the update of activities on the website, but how many people look at it regularly? How can the mission be refreshed to give a new life to $300 House and spread the word?

I would also like to ask, Christian, is there anything we can do to help you to strengthen the vision and to return the focus to $300? 

I live in Japan and there is an expression here, "Gambate!". It means a combination of, "never give up, do your best, keep on going no matter what". 

So I want to say "Gambate!" to us all.

Warm regards,

Kristin Newton

[Ian Fraser]

Dear 300$ers

 

Thank you for the email. I am not trying to rattle anybody’s cage.

 

Right now I am travelling and it’s not conducive to responding to you more fully but I will give it a go.

 

I join with you in taking some action.

 

I respond negatively to building “”brand”” as something useful to do – but I know it has fund raising value.

 

“”Brand”” maybe best earned. As the 300$ project first did very well.

 

So what next?

 

Is the 300$ just an interesting what-if exercise to be discussed on the net and social media or do you want to actually house people?

 

I am not sure if we are playing from the same sheet of music.

 

I think the $300 house has to become somebody’s home -- in some real world setting.

 

The design is a starting point from which the house evolves – maybe that’s how our $300,000 houses evolved?

 

And maybe there is more ”we” can help with in the house development process – not just in the “”technology”” and design of houses?

 

If you had some real-world low cost houses happening I’m sure there is a huge, huge, amount we could pass on about financing and community design etc. But no houses – no chance to pass on the rest

 

The 300$ was a contest – not intentionally, but coincidentally, it probably promoted as much division among the participants as it did interest.

 

There are people still interested in the 300$ project.

 

And a screaming need for low cost housing.

 

Is the $300 house a design exercise that sits around being refined and improved, loosely in proportion to the boredom levels or wet weekends in the Boston area, or, is the design going into a real world.

 

If you want it  in the real world, maybe see if you can draw the interested peoples into doing one housing project somewhere

 

From what I see (poor) people with no houses care little about house technology and whether it’s $300 or $350. They just want a house they can afford.

 

The existing $300 house design might not be the best solution but that is the role of R and D in any organisation.

 

Get it happening, then start making it better. The first Toyota car sold in the USA literally fell apart – today the Toyota Lexus is one of the finest cars in the world.

 

But if the $300 house wants to go into the real world I strongly advise that – in the world of people with no houses that I have experienced,  you will find what they really need is a job, an income.

 

So think about offering a house and parralelling up with someone who can work on their income needs – given that depends on so many local considerations it sounds like a local partner.

 

But, for starters I would suggest – choose a community – choose a house design (simpatico with the geography/community) and work with someone who can add some sustainability by finding how to create some jobs.

 

My ultra simplistic suggestion would be pick a house design – the best you have -- accept that it is a starting point, but commit to developing it through local knowledge, experience, and maybe technology or science.

 

Build enough for one community. By maybe injecting some start-up $$$, some training and support so the locals can build the house. The builders (and families etc) I would suggest, then occupy the houses, and start a small business building and selling such (evolving) houses to other peoples.

 

So, start with some support – choose a community – some external inputs – build some  houses – create a small business.

 

 

Obviously I am not including many elements needed to make such a simple idea work – for example you need a Big Brother Organisation close-by to drive and guide and advise. This business model is too simplistic.

 

I am a great fan of the TATA Group in India – maybe they will “support” such a venture if they can see the house as a suitable “”product in development”” which might eventually give them a new business aimed at Low-Low income people. Remember they already sell a flat pack house for $700 I hear – a car for $2000 and a tablet for $35. They are actively explring and addressing the market among low, low, income groups.

 

So, is there a suitable design?

 

Anybody on here related to Ratan Tata – owing family of the multi-billion dollar TATA Group

 

Anybody on here know the current chairman of the Tata group is Cyrus Pallonji Mistry

 

Anybody on here live in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

 

Cheers

 

IF

 

 

 

 

 

From: 300h...@googlegroups.com [mailto:300h...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Arturs
Sent: Thursday, 7 February 2013 6:57 PM
To: 300h...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [$300 House] Re: 300$ House brand value

 

hi, Ian,

great you helped to refresh the activity here. You have given good points to discuss.

 

I see you do not like to discuss BrandValue of 300$House. It can be so that the brand value of 300$House does not represent any value to you/ your business and so to many other entrepreneurs who already have their own brand to care about. But there may be a few others who do not have established own name, yet, and some, may be, not intending to do that. 

 

Our attitude to what’s going on depends, among other things, on how much we have got of that we expected. I cannot speak for others but I can tell what I expected when I joined this group and how satisfied I am with that.

1.     $300 House - as a convenient source of relevant information - I am fully satisfied, credit to Christian;

2.     $300 House / Jovoto contest - as an opportunity to develop and test my own design idea - almost fully satisfied. Principles of scoring/evaluation were not ideal (but they were OK);

3.     $300 House blog - communication platform to meet other people with similar goals and values, opening opportunities to collaborate - this possibility depends on own and other’s activity and on publicity of 300$House. The reflection of the activity was not satisfactory for quite some time, raising a question - is this the end of story for us (who were not initiators and not Jovoto winners)?

4.     $300 House as a branded community - being a part of it may serve a good reference when approaching potential customers, investors, partners. I don’t know is “community” the right word, what-ever it is, it has to have a recognized brand-name. 

[Christian]

Working on all of the "below" Ian!  

I left you a message, but I know you are on the road...

Let's chat soon!

cheers,

C

On Wednesday, February 6, 2013 3:08:14 AM UTC-6, Arturs wrote:

[Toby Cumberbatch]

On 02/08/13 02:06 , "Ian Fraser" <ianf...@sydney.net> wrote:

My ultra simplistic suggestion would be pick a house design – the best you have -- accept that it is a starting point, but commit to developing it through local knowledge, experience, and maybe technology or science.

 

Build enough for one community. By maybe injecting some start-up $$$, some training and support so the locals can build the house. The builders (and families etc) I would suggest, then occupy the houses, and start a small business building and selling such (evolving) houses to other peoples.

Well said - hits the nail on the had

--

Toby Cumberbatch (to...@cooper.edu)

Electrical Engineering Dept,

The Cooper Union,

41 Cooper Square, New York, NY 10003-7102