TradeNet has 3 Core Characteristics:
- Market Intelligence
- Business Monitoring
- Profiles & Advertising
TradeNet has a unique network of enumerators who collect data from the field and make it instantly available... And because businesses use TradeNet as a tool, there is plenty of content submitted by the ‘users’ themselves.
Country Operators run TradeNet as a franchisebusiness. They get business models, deployment strategies, marketing documents, contracts, annual workshops etc. (In return for a 10% payment to TradeNet intl.). In Africa the targetted countries are: Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Cameroon, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, Madagascar. Projected countries in the near future are Kenya and Sudan.
Business Model: Countries can customize TradeNet to deploy how they want. A budget of $3m is anticipated per country. With 50% in grant funding, a country can be profitable in year 4, and make a return of 53%, attracting the private sector to run and operate the business, and remain profitable.
Roll-out strategy: 200.000 subscribers per country after 5 or 6 years
Video clip about Tradenet on CNN’s Inside Africa (broadcasted a few months ago).
TradeNet began development in 2005, but officially launched in 2007. TradeNet’s BusyLab has spent three years building an openAPIstructure which allows any entrepreneur to leverage their network of users and mobile operators and get a service launched quickly. To date, most licensees have been donor projects. TradeNet projects 25 countries by 2011.
References:
- http://www.tradenet.biz/ Homepage for tradenetthat lists the countries and sections that you can find online
- www.tradenet.biz/press Press releases, stories, videos, and blogs, all covering the latest developments on TradeNet
- http://tradenetvoices.blogspot.com/ Tradenetblog featuring profiles of brokers, traders, farmers and developers
- www.tradenet.biz/codes The various codes you need for your country to send in a text and get the right response
- www.tradenet.biz/help Help section on tradenetwhich has various online tutorials and can show you how to quicklyand easily get started
- www.tradenet.biz/help Download these PDF tipsheetswhich go through various tutorials to get you used to using the platform