product innovation in market information systems

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• product innovation in market information systems

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A short journey

• Getting started
• Version 1.0
• Version 2.0
• Lessons learned

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Responding to a need

• 2004 meetings technoserve FAO
• Research visit with FoodNET in Uganda

Conclusion - agric people are not software
people- better new tools needed- a potential
business opportunity
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TradeNet v1.0

• Online content management system customized for
  agriculture
• A commercial software product
• Available to anyone

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LISTINGS
NEWS
PRICES
DOCUMENTS
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1.0 innovation

• Realtime SMS uploads from markets
• Database customized for agric data (data
  assigned to commodities, people, places other
  content management systems not viable)
• Multi-currency multi-country
• Powerful analytic tools

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Specific software designed for market
information... Other content management systems
cant provide this level of control...
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Unique views across regions
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requesting price data...
Any country, any currency, 4 languages...
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Challenges of version 1.0

• Classic top-down approach of a centrally-managed
  national MIS system
• Is the data accurate relevant?
• No obvious revenue model
• We needed to understand the market itself and
  not just the NGOs needs

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Version 2.0 refocus to provide community
toolset (web 2.0?)

• Commercial deals between users (p2p)
• Group extension services
• User-supplied content public MIS!
• Challenge to give them compelling toolset

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GROUPS
OFFERS
USERS
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focus on basic group communication needs
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Interactive SMS inputs...
Automatic SMS outputs... peer2peer
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Powerful personal spaces for EVERY registered user

• My friends
• My groups
• My offers
• My profile
• My services
• My photos
• My files
• My notificationpreferences

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How far have we come?

• 13 countries in east, south, west Africa
• 650,000 prices uploaded
• 439 commodity varieties online
• Over 5,000 users registered
• 60,250 SMSes sent
• GSM partnerships setup and business models
  contracts developed
• Toolset partnerships just maturing

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You must be active in the markets... Not
isolated in the labs

• Software NOT enough
• Help partners understand the social challenges
• Help partners see the business opportunities
• Ongoing impact assessments required
• Ongoing product development required

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Respond to market needs

• Large buyers (maize, barley, sorghum) revert to
  international markets not just for price, but
  also dependability
• Local markets are opaque and poorly organized
  information is lacking. Quantities are small,
  quality unknown.

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Easy to extend tradenet to capture crop data...

• Setup a tradenet group of users
• Receive SMS inputs on planting, maturing,
  harvesting (met/disease etc)
• Generate crop production forecast reports for
  buyers
• Encourage collaboration communication between
  big buyers and many producer groups

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Our model

• Group toolset same model as web personals (free
  upgrades) (50)
• User SMS subscriptions traffic (40)
• Advertising sponsorship (10)
• (country franchises mobile payments gsm
  agreements)

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Lessons learned

• extensive marketing training required
• GSM operators are key to revenue models
• Data profiling valuable opportunities
• Its about anthropology, not technology!
• Trust is a critical factor takes time
• Most current web2.0 tools not relevant
• Public/private partnership required
• Mobile has changed everythingreal opportunities
  do exist to improve livelihoods

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Thank you

• info_at_busylab.com
• mark_at_busylab.com
• 233 21 258803