This marketing analysis was prepared in a large part through ethnographic research with Rev. Fuachie and the other three Ghanaians at IDDS 2008. Their insights were necessary in helping us understand issues that must be addressed in marketing the TVC in rural Ghana.

Market research

We were constrained during IDDS 2008 to performing market research through interviews with Rev. Fuachie and the other Ghanaian participants and statistics that we were able to gather. A thorough market analysis should include trials within Ghana where we attempt to sell TVC units in various market strata (e.g. rural and urban areas). Observational data and feedback from consumers would be invaluable in improving our product design and its marketing plan.

Initial product requirements

The product must meet the following requirements (at minimum):

• Durability: Rural Ghana is highly communal. A typical event is for large extended families to gather at night in their home compounds to watch a single TV. The TV is often brought outside of the house into a courtyard so that there is enough room for everyone to watch. This raises the prospect of many hands on the device and jostling to use it. The electronics would also need to be protected from the dust and moisture in the compound.
• Power sources: Electric service is far from universal in these areas. Families typically power their televisions with car batteries. The TVC is manufactured to be powered with AA batteries in addition to the common AC/DC power converter. A related issue is the need for a lighting source to see the keyboard at night, as many people lack bright lighting in their homes or compounds. The use of kerosene lighting is typical in this region, as was highlighted by Kurt Kornbluth during IDDS 2008.
• Multiple inputs: The communal nature of activities in rural Ghana means that the TVC should be shareable by 2 or even more people concurrently. For example, the Owari board game allows up to 6 people at a time. It currently supports two inputs. Future work might explore expansion to four players.
• Culturally-relevant educational content: General educational content as provided on existing versions of the TV computer would certainly be valuable. It would ideal, however, if content were provided with the TVC that provides a “cultural bridge” for students to computing. This might include the use or adaptation of traditional board games and stories.
• Content for adults: There is a great need for skills development and adult literacy training in Ghana. Thus, it would be ideal if content were developed specifically for adults and if content geared toward children could somehow involve parents so that they can learn alongside their children. Other ideas that have been discussed is the development of video or audio content that can run autonomously while an adult performs chores in the home. This would provide for hands-free enternainment and education.

Characterizing the market segments in rural Ghana

The market in rural Ghana can be characterized as follows:

• Social Structure: Rural Ghanaian society revolves around large extended families having a strong social structure and traditions. Decisions about purchasing a new product would be made through discussion with many family members and friends. Information about new would also be disseminated in this way.
• Economic Activities: The dominant economic activities in rural Ghana are agriculture and fishing. Many families run small farms or have fishing concerns.
• Child labor: Many families pull their children out of school to help with the family farm, fishing, and marketing. While this practice should be halted, it raises the need for complementary education in the home.
• Markets: Communal market days are held for the exchange of products and services. These are open air areas where people set up stalls and offer a wide range of products and services. This is a key area in which the TVC should be marketed.
• Human development: As the statistics in Section 1 detailed, rural Ghana can be also be characterized as having fairly widespread primary school enrollment, but with a significant drop off for pupils who advance after year 5. The ratio for entry into primary school by girls is nearly 1:1, but girls are often pulled out of school to help with family work and to live with aunts when they are older. A significant proportion of adults cannot read. A significant proportion of adults are also unemployed.

A Persona: Kofi – Student in a rural Ghanaian village

We employed the user-centered design process of developing a “persona” (Pruitt and Grudin, 2003) to understand and describe the targeted demographic for the TVC in Ghana. Our persona is a young boy name Kofi. This persona was constructed in close consultation with Rev. Fuachie. Statistics presented in other sections of this document were also used to construct this persona. We anticipate the development of other personas in the future.




Kofi and his family
Kofi Chiu is a 8 year old boy living with his family in a small village named Ntareban close to the Black Volta river in the Kintampo district of Northern Ghana. Kofi’s father Kwabena Chiu supports the family of 7 with his average yearly income of $800 from growing and selling yams and millet on his small 1.3 acre farm. Kofi’s mother Gifty Diabado usually takes care of the kids at home and occasionally grows peanuts in the farms. Kofi has 2 elder brothers who go to school and occasionally help their father in the farm. To make some extra money and provide food to the family, the eldest brother Mathias Chiu accompanies his father in fishing at 4 am in the morning before going to the school. They bring fish back home and the mother cooks some of them and sells the rest to make money. Kofi also has 2 sisters who help their mother with the daily chores like fetching water, washing utensils, and cooking at the home.




Evening activities at Kofi’s house
In the evenings the father returns from the farms while the mother and the girls are busy preparing food for supper. The entire family usually eats together. Kofi’s house also has a small TV that the father bought from the nearby city when he went there to sell some of his yams. The family usually brings the TV outside of the house in the main compound so their neighbours and other relatives can also watch it at the same time. The TV watching time is usually between 7-9 pm in the evening. Sometimes Kofi watches his brothers and sisters play the game of Oware before the bed time. Occasionally the parents tell the ancient Ghanaian stories of Ananzi before the bed time.

Kofi always wants to play with his father’s cell phone when he is not around but the father does not allow that. The father bought the phone for about $40 from the used electronics market in the city. He usually uses the phone to get in touch with the local yam distributors and contact friends and other relatives.




About Kofi’s school
A few years ago the Government of Ghana started providing free education for all primary and junior high schools in Ghana. Since last year they have also started providing free lunch meals to all the students in the primary schools. Because of free education and meals most of the parents send their children to the school. Even though Kwabena and Gifty did not go to school, they really wanted their children, especially Kofi, to get educated.

Kofi is now in second grade at the Methodist Primary School in the neighbouring village of New Longoro. He has to walk about 3 miles one-way everyday to his school. This long walking distance makes it really difficult for young Kofi to get to school during the rainy season.

In the second grade Kofi studies how to read and write in English and some basic mathematics.
Kofi’s school has six small classrooms and usually there are about 35 students in one classroom. The school is trying to set up a computer lab but they haven not managed to get enough funding from the Ministry of Education in Ghana. The school also has a television set that they use for national distance learning sessions.




Kofi’s favourite outdoor activities
During the weekends Kofi usually plays football with his friends or hunt rats in the woods. When needed Kofi sometimes helps his father in the farms. Sometimes he also follows his elder brothers when they go hunting for birds for fun. Kofi also enjoys playing hide and sick with his same-age friends in the village.

About Kofi’s village
The village of Ntareban has about 50 small houses made of mud walls and thatched roofs. There are about 5 houses in one small compound where close relatives live together. There is a small clinic and a church in the village, but there is no school. The village is not on the main electricity grid and everyone uses kerosene lamps as a primary means of lighting. About 30% of the houses in the village have TV which they use it mostly during nights. Due to lack of electricity in the village most of them use the care batteries to power their TVs.

The neighbouring village of New Longoro has a school and a small credit union. This school is shared by 4 surrounding villages including kofi’s. New Longoro is on the electricity grid and people from Ntareban come here to charge their car batteries.




How will TVC help Kofi shape his future?
Kofi’s father earns about $2/day from farming and fishing. Using the TVC with proper educational content Kofi can learn basic computer skills and get supplemental academic education. Kofi can be the person working in an office in the city earning $10-$13/day just by learning typing skills. Kofi can also use the TVC to help him prepare for the standardized test to get into a junior high school. Apart from the educational experience Kofi can also gain business skills and knowledge about farming and fishing (better techniques and market information) to help his father.

Business models

We are evaluating three types of models for disseminating the TVC. Paul Polak has encouraged us – and all IDDS 2008 participants -- to use a for-profit model. He makes a compelling case for this in his book Out of Poverty (2008:186). He contends, in part and in a more nuanced and comprehensive way than we present here, that most NGO models have not been effective in creating sustainable and scalable solutions nor have they been able to demonstrate measurable impacts.

Nonetheless, some in our group argue that while the TVC has survived within a for-profit business model, that model has not produced the hardware extensions nor advanced content development that would be necessary to turn it into a full fledged personal computer. These hardware extensions include adding a general secondary storage mechanism. Some game companies produced their own special cartridges that allowed players to save their scores or game states, but the TVC does not offer a general mechanism for storing content. The TVC also requires data communication capabilities to make it useful in today's networked world. More advanced content development is needed in the areas of: computer-aided learning, exam preparation, skills development software, and culturally-tailored programs and e-Books. One question is whether a non-profit function within the overall TVC project might better facilitate the funding of these extensions.

In the end, a hybrid model which integrates for-profit and non-profit operations might be the best for the TVC project.

For IDDS 2008, we have developed aTVC distribution model that estimates profitability under different price targets specifically for Northern Ghana. These are given in Table 1.




Product distribution

Tariffs
We consider the TVC to be an educational product. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative indicated in 2005 report that a “zero-rate duty” applies to educational materials in Ghana (USTR, 2005). Thus, we would seek an import license from the government of Ghana under this classification.

Distribution channels
Families tend to buy television sets in the larger cities or villages in their districts. A family must contend with transport costs to and from the location where the television are sold.

Shipping and distribution process & costs

Our current understanding of Ghana suggests that the following approach to shipping and distribution should be taken:

(1) TVC units would be purchased from Shanghai. This would be on the scale of 3,200 units based on the volume of a shipping container.
(2) A 40 foot shipping container would be used to transport the TVCs from Shanghai to Accra. This cost is $4350.
(3) TVCs would then be shipped from Accra to Sunyani by truck. The cost is estimated to be between $500 and $5000 dollars. Sunyani is the capital city of the Brong-Ahafo Region. See Figure 3. In 2005, it had a population of approximately 80,000 (http://www.mongabay.com/igapo/2005_world_city_populations/Ghana.html ).
(4) TVCs would then be distributed by taxis and trucks to approximately 250 village centers within the Kintampo North, Tain, and Bole districts where people buy television sets. This cost is estimated to be $2,000. The cost to hire someone to take one load from Sunyani to an individual village center is $4 an extra $3 per load would be required for labor. Taxis and trucks would not have great difficulty during the rainy season (May to the middle of July).
(5) Sellers in villages will demand an estimated 20% profit on all products.




Marketing issues and approaches

We developed two marketing approaches: one for schools and another for homes. The school marketing approach was further divided into separate plans for public and private schools.

For each marketing approach, we present a list of stakeholders. At the end of this section, we also present what is called a “persona,” which is a type of profile describing the primary customer or user of the TVC. This persona indicates relationships to the various stakeholders seen in these three marketing plans.


Marketing to Public Schools
The stakeholders for public schools are the following:

· Minister of Education, Science & Sports for Ghana
· Regional head of education ( over several districts)
· District Director of Education
· Head teacher
· Village officials
· Best students / students
· Teachers
· The Parent Teacher Association (PTA)

Protocol and resource allocation methods dictate that marketing of products to public schools must begin at least at the level of the region minister of education, if not the national Ministry of Education & Sports. It is at the same time necessary to gain buy-in at the school level – from both teachers and students. For these reasons, we decided that a two stage marketing approach was necessary in which all stakeholders are brought together in the second stage. Our proposed process is the following:

• Stage 1 – Engagement with administrators: During this stage, the regional Minister of Education & Sport would be approached. An indepth discussion would be sought with the minister on the potential value of the TVC would have in the schools under his/her jurisdiction. Ideally, the product could be demonstrated with young family members of the minister. An agreement to engage the school community directly would be sought. Unit sales would be attempted at this level.
• Stage 2 – Engagement with the school community: Each school district holds an annual festival which is an opportune time to market the TVC because it brings all the stakeholders together. Officials from the ministry, community leaders, teachers, and students gather for sports and educational events in a festive environment. Several students and teachers would be identified ahead of the festival. They would be trained in the use of the TVC so that they are prepared to demonstrate its use during the festival. The TVC would be demonstrated before the entire gathering in small groups to facilitate proper viewing. A few units would be offered as a prize to the school that wins the traditional festival competition. Unit sales would be attempted at this level.
• Stage 3 – Seeking an agreement: The results of Stage 2 would be discussed with officials and other stakeholders (if permitted by the ministry). An agreement to purchase the TVC would be sought. Terms would be agreed upon.

Marketing to Private Schools
The stakeholders for private schools are the following:

• Minister of Education, Science & Sports for Ghana
• Association for private schools
• Private parent teacher association (PTA)
• Proprietors for private schools
• Students
• Teachers

All private schools are subject to the jurisdiction of the national Ministry of Education & Sport. Most private schools in Ghana belong to the same industry association. Private schools can be engaged directly at the level of the association of private schools. Our proposed process for marketing to private schools is the following:

• Stage 1 – Engage the national association: The private schools association of Ghana must be approached first. Demonstrations of the TVC would be held. Permission to meet with the regional chapters of the association would be sought.
• Stage 2 – Engage the regional association: The regional chapter of the private would then be approached. Demonstrations of the TVC would be held. Proprietors of individual schools would be approached about purchasing units for their schools and for permission to engage their teachers, students and parent teacher associations. Unit sales would also be attempted at this level with individual school proprietors.
• Stage 3 – Engage individual schools: Teachers, students and parent teacher associations would be approached. Demonstrations of the TVC would be held.

Marketing to Families
Three venues for marketing the TVC to families will be explored:

Family Homes: Door-to-door sales could be attempted. The advantage of this approach is might be an ideal setting to initiate social marketing (aka “viral marketing”). Large extended families gather in the evenings, often outdoors, to watch TV in their compounds. Demonstrations of the TVC would then have a relatively large home audience in the context in which the product would be used. There are a number of disadvantages to this approach. The housing density is relatively low in this region making travel between homes more expensive than in an urban setting. Most families are occupied during the day. Thus, the night time is virtually the only time that marketing could be attempted in homes. Many homes in rural area also have no electricity and use kerosene lighting. A low light environment is not conducive to demonstrating this product. A salesperson would have to carry supplemental lighting.

Village Markets: People gather frequently during “market days” in or near their villages. This an ideal setting for displaying a product in front of a large audience. A special van could be outfitted with a number of televisions and TVCs to allow people to have a hands-on experience with the product. One possibility is to train selected local students in using the TVC and have them on hand during market day demonstrations. This local connection would foster social marketing between children and parents and between children in their schools.

Special Community Gatherings: Community members can be called together for special gatherings by sounding a gongon, a traditional Ghanaian percussion instrument. Gatherings could potentially be called to present TVC demonstrations to large numbers of people.


Branding

An initial approach to branding has been developed working in dialogue with Rev. Fuachie during IDDS 2008. In addition, a brief scan of technology branding approaches in Ghana was performed using Web sources. A more indepth study of branding in Ghana is warranted. We have, however, developed the following interim assumptions about branding:

· Lack of brand presence: Brand presence for consumer electronics does not appear to be strong in Ghana. Consumers appear to be attracted to products mainly through identification with general product categories (e.g. PCs as opposed to DELLs or Lenovos), price, and word-of-mouth. More research is necessary to confirm these assumptions.
· Usefulness of cultural bridges: Cultural tie-ins for the TVC are likely to be useful in lieu of a brand. These could be messages or images which show Ghanaians that they can appropriate the TVC for their own needs and cultural settings.

Following these assumptions, we developed a several concepts for packaging the TVC, which incorporated messages and images that would be familiar to across a wide range of geographic strata and ethnic groups in Ghana. Figure 7. depicts a hypothetical box which captures basic elements that might be employed. This is a decidedly less commercial representation than those seen in the market now for Famicom clones.





This box design attempts to link Ghanaian vignettes to the use of the TVC and to a message about education. Here we see photos and drawings of traditional settings in rural Ghana: a school yard, a classroom, a typical home compound, a fishing village, and a family gathered to watch television. These are all centered around a stylized Ghanaian flag in the shape of the country to convey a sense of national pride in the product. A Ghanaian expression about education – which originated in the Ashanti language – is “learning gives knowledge and experience.” This is displayed on the box in English and four of the most common indigenous languages in Ghana (some translations are pending): Ashanti, Ga, Ewe, and Dagomba. The Ashanti phrase is: Adesua ma nimdeƐ ne Suahunu.

The back of the box would give basic information about its contents. A simple example is given in Figure 8.




Advertising

Advertising the TVC in electronic media is also a possibility in rural Ghana. National and local radio and television outlets offer not only advertising, but the possibility to conduct interviews concerning the TVC project. Interviews are ideal for initiating social marketing processes. Further research is necessary to determine actual advertisement costs, but Ghanaian participants of IDDS 2008 think that indivual one minute radio advertisements on regional FM stations can be purchased for less than $5 USD. Additional research is required to determine appropriate advertising styles for the rural Ghana market.