Business development and marketing within communities of social service clients

Many users of social services in the United States live on low incomes. Those who receive Social Security disability benefits or who qualify for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits have incomes below the poverty line. Social service users often also face social and economic exclusion because of stigmatized conditions, disabling limitations, and skill and knowledge deficits. They are like other low-income consumers in some ways, but face additional challenges. This article views specific social service user populations as identity communities. In identity communities, community members share salient identities. Shared identity also may result from social and economic exclusion, and/or social stigma. Identity communities may be geographically bounded or unbounded. In either case, they have their own economies, which may or may not be recognized and developed. Focusing on the identity community of people with severe mental-health conditions, this article describes a methodology for designing business development projects within that community. The study describes the development of a replicable and potentially scalable business model, and how it was implemented in one case. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of this market-based approach to meeting the needs of poor social service populations.