You could be forgiven for not knowing what The People’s Operator (TPO) is. The mobile network quietly launched in 2012, claiming an industry first with a business model that not only lets customers automatically donate 10 per cent of their phone bill to a cause of their choice, but as a whole commits 25 per cent of its profits to charity.
Despite backing from internet entrepreneur and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, and a £100m flotation on the London Stock Exchange, it remains a widely unknown player in the telco sector.
The brand is now on a mission to get more people on board in 2015, but it will not be venturing down the costly above-the-line avenue. Indeed, only by eschewing traditional marketing can the model remain viable.
Instead it will look to grow awareness virally with the imminent launch of a social network akin to Facebook, which will allow anyone to use it to update people about the charities they support through TPO with pictures and videos, raise money, chat, and, crucially, invite others to join.
Wales – who was initially involved with the company in an advisory capacity as co-chair – tells The Drum the concept has drawn him deeper into the business than he first anticipated. He now serves full time as executive director of strategy and digital community.
“I’m personally designing the social networking platform to let people recruit to their causes, and that’s fun. It’s been a long time since I’ve been actively involved in development and design,” he says.
Emotional engagement
It seems no one is in a better position to help TPO woo more customers than Wales. His last project, which set out to establish a group of engaged, loyal and dedicated users, grew to become one of the largest and most frequently visited websites in the world, with a community of thousands who update and edit its pages regularly. And while other websites of Wikipedia’s size have succumbed to the lucrative prospect of monetising audiences through paywalls and advertising, Wales’ venture remains open and ad-free.
“Wikipedia was an idea that spread because people liked to talk about it and communities of people can accomplish great things. When you get people together with an idea that matters to them they can go out and do something about it. That’s something that the internet should be about more often,” he says.
He wants the TPO network to be similarly accessible with people able to support local charities, initiatives and even individuals.
“It’s almost like a Kickstarter model where you can support a traditional charity, like Oxfam for example, but you can also support your local school, kids club or poet if you like."
