BoP (Bottom of the Pyramid)

QUESTIONS

  1. As a junior member of your company’s committee to explore new markets, you have received a memo from the chairperson telling you to be prepared at
    the next meeting to discuss key questions that need to be addressed if the company decides to look further into the possibility of marketing to the BOP
    segment. The ultimate goal of this meeting will be to establish a set of general guidelines to use in developing a market strategy for any one of the
    company’s products to be marketed to the “aspirational poor.” These guidelines need not be company or product specific at this time. In fact, think of the final
    guideline as a checklist—a series of questions that a company could use as a start in evaluating the potential of a specific BOP market segment for one of its
    products. (500 words)
  2. Marketing to the BOP raises a number of issues revolving around the social responsibility of marketing efforts. Write a position paper either pro or con on
    one of the following: (500 words)
    Is it exploitation for a company to profit from selling soaps, shampoo, personal computers, and ice cream, and so on, to people with little disposable income?
    If no, in what ways a consumer product could be adapted? Give at least 2 specific examples.
    Can making loans to customers whose income is less than $100 monthly at interest rates of 20 percent to purchase TVs, cell phones, and other consumer
    durables be justified?
    One authority argues that squeezing profits from people with little disposable income—and often not enough to eat—is not capitalist exploitation but rather
    that it stimulates economic growth.
    Provide citations and at least 5 references.

Sample Solution