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Customer-centricity at the Base of the Pyramid

Key insights from inclusive business practitioners

GRAPHIC SUMMARY

A visual summary of key challenges and opportunities for entrepreneurs when addressing the topic of customer-centricity. Learn more about all these aspects by reading this first edition of the newly developed online magazine on Inclusive Business! The illustration was developed by Christopher Malapitan, a visual practitioner and trainer based in Brussels. Through the use of visual storytelling methods he empowers individuals and organizations “see” what they mean.

editorial

THE END OF THE BENEFICIARY, THE RETURN OF THE CUSTOMER

Why a shift from ‘beneficiary’ to ‘customer’ has the potential to be one of the greatest paradigm shifts facing the development industry 

Alexis Bonnell

Table of contents

graphic summary

GRAPHIC SUMMARY

A visual summary of key challenges and opportunities for entrepreneurs when addressing the topic of customer-centricity. Learn more about all these aspects by reading this first edition of the newly developed online magazine on Inclusive Business! The...

editorial

THE END OF THE BENEFICIARY, THE RETURN OF THE CUSTOMER

Why a shift from ‘beneficiary’ to ‘customer’ has the potential to be one of the greatest paradigm shifts facing the development industry 

Alexis Bonnell

feature story

Customer-centricity at the Base of the Pyramid: Key Insights from Inclusive Business Practitioners

In this issue of iBAN’s online magazine, practitioners from the inclusive business world share their insights about challenges and best practices in the realm of customer-centricity. Entrepreneurs tackling wide-ranging issues, from energy access to affordable eye care, all weighed in to share how they view – and act on – “customer-centricity.” Here are their key findings and thoughts.

Dana Gulley

Profitably serving the modest-income consumer takes forward, not backward, thinking

Designing profitable businesses for modest-income consumers has been a major challenge for companies for the past thirty years, yet new growth in world consumption will come from this population.

How to put the customer first at the base of the pyramid

The base of the pyramid (BoP) has long been recognised as an untapped market, but the question has now shifted to the more complicated how do we tap into it?.

Putting needs at the centre of product development: lessons learned from a forest honey filter prototype

There is a common phenomenon in product development. A particular product might pass all assessments and quality control, but struggle to be adopted by the intended users, leaving us wondering where it went wrong.

Who are you designing for? Using human-centred design to create inclusive value

Niti Bhan brings a multidisciplinary and multicultural perspective to innovation for the informal economies of the emerging markets of the developing world.

Financial inclusion begins with understanding what drives customers and partners, from individuals and financial institutions to governments and funders

Introduction

Fundación Capital is a social enterprise working to improve the financial lives of millions of people in poverty by designing and delivering solutions that make families more resilient to economic stress.