From Zambia: Prospective Customers for SMART Lighting

At a near half-way point for Bryan and myself here in Zambia, we are beginning to really take a look into the long-term plan of SMART Light, all the while reflecting on our time here so far.

This week we have really moved full steam ahead in meeting with local NGO’s during the day, getting to better know our team at Disacare, and actually going out into local communities and meeting with residents. The visits to the communities, or "compounds" as they call it, have been very interesting in that we are actually seeing what a night in the compound can be like. This is a great opportunity to show the SMART Llight, and gather market research.

Photo courtesy Edward Silva. Prospective Lusaka customers trying out the SMART Light.

In addition, from a business perspective, seeing the consumer in their own environment really gives us a lot of information about how to position the SMART Light effectively. We have also been able to meet with some local organizations, and some larger NGO’s as well.

Among these organizations, we met with TICO (Tokushima International Cooperation) and Plan International. Both were excited about possibly collaborating with SMART Light, and came up with different ideas about how they may use the light.

These meetings also gave us some different perspectives on the product, and more importantly, stressed the importance of product positioning. Overall, things are progressing nicely and we hope to have some more meetings to pack into our busy days soon. From a bustling Lusaka, farewell.

Edward Silva with Bryan Pon, UC Davis

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Welcome to the UC Davis Blum Center Blog!

Here you will find updates on our organization, and blog posts written by each of our Blum Fellows about their experiences abroad. Make sure to check out our website at blumcenter.ucdavis.edu, and like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/UCDavisBlumCenter to get regular updates and see our upcoming events.

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