Revealing Demand for Pro-Poor Innovations, n.d.
Authors: USAID
Social scientists and engineers have begun using new techniques to capture user preferences and market information from underserved communities. These include behavioral experiments, sensing devices, big data analytics, participatory data collection methods, and qualitative approaches. This white paper seeks to provide an overview of the many different tools used for unveiling the demand for new products and services in developing countries.
Section 1 focuses on advances in the field of empirical economics, including techniques for estimating people’s willingness to pay for new products and services. Sensors and meters are the topic of Section 2, which examines how electronic devices are being applied to monitor the use of new technologies, measure the impacts of interventions, and improve product design. Section 3 lays out pioneering initiatives in the field of Big Data, leveraging the fast expansion of high-frequency data streams to identify areas of unmet demand for innovation. Finally, Sections 4 and 5 review more traditional methods used for revealing demand, and highlight how recent advances—like participatory assessments and textual analysis—have been used to overcome limitations.
