FRONTIERS Projects | Face-to-Face Complementary Selling of Health Products in Ghana

FRONTIERS PROJECT
Face-to-Face Complementary Selling of Health Products in Ghana

This study tested a strategy to increase the sustainability of the Ghana Social Marketing Foundation (GSMF), one of the country’s largest suppliers of contraceptives. GSMF’s strategy is to use revenues from more profitable products to subsidize condoms and oral contraceptives. FRONTIERS worked with GSMF to test a complementary sales strategy to increase sales of for-profit products. Agents selling the index product (antimalarials, antidiarrheals, antihelmetics [for parasites], and condoms) asked customers whether they would like to buy a second, related (complementary) item (analgesics, nutritional supplements, and a lubricant). Findings showed that average purchases of complementary products increased slightly. However, except for the combination of antimalarials/analgesics and antimalarials/nutritional supplements, the scheme of pairing products did not increase revenues, because the complementary products did not contribute to immediate relief of symptoms. The combination of condoms and the lubricant was the least likely to be sold because neither the clients nor the vendors saw the value of the lubricant. Complementary sales training has been included in training for vendors; but further tests of the technique should focus on pairing products that more directly affect symptoms, such as antiseptics and gauze pads.

Location

Ghana

Duration

September 2004–November 2005

Population Council researcher

Philomena Nyarko

Non-Council collaborator

Ghana Social Marketing Foundation (GSMF)

Donor

US Agency for International Development

Publications/Resources
Council researchers' names appear in boldface type.

2006
Bruce, Egbert, Daniel Mensah, John Idun, Francis Ashabley, James Foreit, and Philomena Nyarko. "Face-to-face complementary selling of health products in Ghana," FRONTIERS Final Report. Washington, DC: Population Council. (PDF, 93 KB)