Advancing the Business Development and Sales of Fabretto Youth Centers in Nicaragua

By -
By Andrés F. Varona, Farmer-to-Farmer Program Officer 
 

In September 2017, Johnson Ndi traveled to Nicaragua, to support our Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) host, Fabretto Foundation, with multiple seminars on business development and sales. As part of this F2F assignment, Mr. Ndi visited and led trainings at several of Fabretto’ youth centers in Managua as well as in northern town of San Jose de Cusmapa. At these centers, he delivered a series of youth-focused workshops meant to train Fabretto staff, tutors, and students on various aspects of merchandising and e-marking for small agricultural enterprises. He also led some hands on trainings on effective sales techniques and strategies, negotiation skills, and the use of digital tools to increase the market presence and customer base.

The key goal of this assignment was to strengthen ability of participants to launch successful sales operations tailored to agricultural crops and value-added products in the Nicaraguan market. In addition to training Fabretto youth, over his two week visit, Mr. Ndi also had the chance to work with Fabretto in order to strengthen their organizational systems and programs related to business development and sales. As part of his efforts, he supported Fabretto’s commercial manager in putting together a realistic and actionable business and marketing plan. This document will serve as a blueprint that the organization can use when promoting their various agricultural products at trade fairs and exhibitions within and outside Nicaragua.

Mr. Ndi concluded the assignment by developing a series of recommendations that Fabretto Foundation can use to make their business development and sales-related activities more impactful and far-reaching. These practical suggestions include:

- Enhancing coordination among Fabretto’s various units (e.g. Coffee crop and beekeeping, and the three strategic program areas: Early Education, Primary Education, and Technical Vocational Education) so their activities complement one another.
- Leveraging exhibitions as fundraising platforms for the Fabretto youth center in San Jose de Cusmapa. Profits from exhibitions can be used to organize more activities for students and promote hard work, as well as expanding and improving the facilities of the center.
- Using the Fabretto website to cross-sell and cross-promote all the other resources that the foundation currently offers. The website should highlight the most recent issue of Fabretto’s monthly e-newsletter, annual report, survey results, press releases, articles, statistics, benchmarks, information about upcoming events and other data that is critical to the organization’s audience. The more information provided, and the more current it is, the more likely it will be that visitors will be encouraged to return.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Better Marketing and Communications to Showcase the Work of our Hosts in Colombia

By -
Image
Salva Terra Foundation has focused on supporting vulnerable communities through sustainable agriculture. They work with impoverished populations and victims of violence in Medellin and aim to promote farming and develop local skills to work in the agricultural industry in an ecological manner. This process of bringing together concepts such as social impact, sustainable development, environmental protection, and food security requires excellent outreach and promotion. Therefore, they requested a F2F volunteer to help them develop a communication and marketing plan. The chosen volunteer for this assignment was Dr. Sindy Chapa. She has a B.A. in Mass Media Communications, with a Minor in Television and Art Design, an MBA, and Ph.D. in International Business/Marketing. She is the Director and Associate Professor at the Center for Hispanic Marketing Communication at Florida State University and has won several communications awards. Dr. Chapa decided to use Salva Terra as one of the case ...
Read more

Digital Marketing in Colombia

By -
Image
Digital Marketing is one way that entrepreneurs and producers across the globe can reach new markets and increase sales. But what is digital marketing and how can a small Colombian business use it to maximize the number of people who come across its brand? These are the questions that Zen Naturals was asking itself. Zen Naturals is a natural cosmetic manufacturing company based in Cali, Colombia. Zen Naturals develops natural cosmetics made from exotic ingredients from Colombia’s outstanding biodiversity. Through ethical manufacturing and fair trade practices, they are also taking a leadership role in re-investing in the communities that grow the ingredients used in their products. Currently, Zen Naturals supports more than 95 Colombian quinoa farming communities through Fair-Trade Practices and technical assistance on their production. Zen Naturals is preparing to launch their quinoa facial care products in Whole Foods Markets in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. in 2017....
Read more

Supporting Anti-Child Labor Projects in Ecuador and Panama

By -
Image
EducaFuturo is a program currently being implemented by Partners of the Americas in Ecuador and Panama. Funded by the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL), EducaFuturo seeks to combat child labor in both countries through educational programs, vocational training, and livelihood services. F2F has partnered with EducaFuturo on numerous occasions over the past 5 years, sending 7 volunteers to support their efforts in improving the educational outcomes of youth involved in child labor, while also increasing the income opportunities of households to reduce reliance on child labor. Volunteers have provided training on a range of topics, including sustainable production practices, processing, business management, and marketing. In January 2016, F2F volunteer Carmen Pacheco-Borden traveled to Panama to work with native Ngabe-Bugle women’s groups in the tomato farming communities of Hato Chami and Boca de Monte to make value-added products from their harvests and consequently increase their hous...
Read more