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Attracting and Retaining Clients

Language

English

Programs:

Boulder MFT

Description

Attracting and retaining clients are on going challenges for MFIs. This course presents tools and strategies that can help a financial service provider become more client responsive. The course is designed for practitioners who work on product design and interface with clients as well as staff or experts who are concerned with the social benefits of microfinance.


Objectives

The objective of the course is to provide participants with knowledge and tools which can be used to assess client preferences for goods and services and enable clients to become more informed consumers of their financial products. This information will help MFIs to increase their understanding of their clients and to use a diverse range of client information operationally.

By the end of the course participants will have:

  • Reviewed the dynamics associated with changing client preferences for financial services, and how this information can be used to inform operational decisions.
  • Practiced using components of the MFI client assessment toolbox, including the AIMS/SEEP Client Assessment tools and the MicroSave Market Research for Microfinance, to answer research questions surrounding good product design and refinement.
  • Learned how financial education can be a link between the product and the client to improve both client and institutional financial performance.
  • Explored marketing and other client-led strategies for increasing client attraction and retention.

Methodology

This is a hands-on “how-to” course. A combination of participatory exercises, small group work,debate, lectures and discussion will be used. The content will also be conveyed using a range of tools that demonstrate how to collect and use client information.


Prerequisites

Practical experience working with an MFI.

Outline

This course is comprised of four modules:

 

Module I:

  • Financial Strategies of Low Income Households. Who are our clients? What is the the mix of formal and informal financial services (credit, savings, insurance and money transfers) in their portfolios? Key questions to be considered in product design and refinement.

Module II:

  • Using Microfinance Market Research Tools. Participants will apply the ‘Listening to Clients’ Toolkit (based on the AIMS/SEEP Client Assessment Tools and MicroSave’s Market Research for Microfinance) to produce development and refinement questions.

Module III:

  • Strategies for Client Attraction and Retention I: Informed Customers are Good for Business. Understanding financial education, why it is a win-win for MFIs and their customers and using learning sessions from the Global Financial Education Curriculum.

Module IV:

  • Strategies for Client Attraction and Retention II: Bringing in the ‘Unbanked’ Understanding why people stay ‘unbanked’ and how to attract them.