ACIARINTERNSHIPREPORT

DAKLAK,VIETNAMBY:LONGLEMBAInternClassof2017MelbourneBusinessSchool

FOR:DR.RODDDYERResearchProgramManager,Agribusiness

AustralianCentreforInternationalAgriculturalResearch

DR.DOMINICSMITHSeniorResearchFellowSchoolofAgricultureandFoodSciencesUniversityofQueensland

2017

Sponsor Partners

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TABLEOFCONTENTSExecutiveSummary...........................................................................................................4

Introduction..............................................................................................................................................4

Rootcauses...............................................................................................................................................4

Strengthenthecassavavaluechain...........................................................................................................5

WhereChợKhoaiMìisatthemoment......................................................................................................5

Vision........................................................................................................................................................6

Overview...........................................................................................................................7

Objective...................................................................................................................................................7

Startingidea..............................................................................................................................................7

Milestones................................................................................................................................................7

1. Product-marketfit................................................................................................................................7

2. Scaling...................................................................................................................................................8

ValueChainProblemAnalysis...........................................................................................8

Background...............................................................................................................................................8

RootCauseAnalysis..................................................................................................................................9

Rootcauses.............................................................................................................................................10

Currentprogress.............................................................................................................11

Milestone1:Product-marketfit..............................................................................................................11

Milestone2:Execution............................................................................................................................15

Marketingcommunicationchannel.............................................................................................................15

Implementingautomation...........................................................................................................................16

Seedfundingrequired.................................................................................................................................16

Roadmap.........................................................................................................................17

Seedfundingphase|6month................................................................................................................17

Growthphase|2.5years........................................................................................................................18

Appendix1:Productiterations........................................................................................19

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Appendix1a:SystemSpecifications.........................................................................................................24

Appendix2:Financialmodel............................................................................................26

Appendix3:Keycontacts................................................................................................27

Appendix4:Meetingminutes.........................................................................................28

Appendix5:TechnicalAssets...........................................................................................34

Appendix6:MarketResearchBrief.................................................................................35

Appendix7:BrandStrategy.............................................................................................37

LocalbrandinVietnam............................................................................................................................37

Otherbrandelements.............................................................................................................................37

Appendix8:Internalmanagementtools..........................................................................39

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EXECUTIVESUMMARY

INTRODUCTIONCassavavaluechaininDakLakprovincealoneseesatransactionvolumeofA$242million1.Itaffectsthelivesofthousandsofemployeesin11localfactories,hundredsoftradersandhundredsofthousandsofcassavafarmers.More importantly,this largepopulationoffarmerscompriseofmostlypoorfarmerswhocouldn’totherwisegrowmoresophisticated,morecapitalintensivecropssuchascoffeeorpepper.

In2004,Dakfocam–thelargestcassavafactoryintheregion,previouslystate-owned–becameprivatized.Sincethen,morefactorieswerealsobuiltintheregion.Inthepast13years,factoryworkers’salariesgraduallywentdownfromA$800/monthtoaboutA$270/month.Fraudsbecamemoreprevalent.Previouslyclosepartnershipsbetweenthefactoryanditsfarmerswerebroken.Coupledwithrecentlydepressmarketforcassavaproducts,muchof theseproblemswereburdenedby farmers.Nowwhen theexportmarket is justabout to recover,however, there issuchabigshortageofrawmaterials thatmanyfactoriesaretemporarilyshutdown.Eachindividual farmer, due to their extreme financial constraints, limited education and disconnect from otherfarmers,isalwaysatthedifficultendofthebargain.Incontrast,cassavavaluechaininQuangTriprovince,ledbySepongroup–largestcassavafactoryintheregion,remainsverysustainable2.

Chợ Khoai Mì (Online Cassava Marketplace) represents an opportunity not only tosignificantlyimprovethevaluechaininDakLakusingInformationTechnology,butalsotoimprovethelivelihoodofalotofpeople.Andthiscanallbedoneeconomically.Thefirststep istodeeplyunderstandtherootcauseofall thevisibleproblemsbeforeplottinganappropriatestrategytosolveit.

ROOTCAUSESThe2rootcausesofvisibleproblemsintheDakLakcassavavaluechainarefoundtobe:

v Thereisnogoverningsystemtoguidebehaviourinthecassavavaluechainandtohelpitrecoverfromacrisis,suchasthatcausedbyashort-termdrivenfactoryowner.Becauseoftheabsenceofagoverningbody,alltransactionsareorganicanddrivenbyeachactor’sself-interests.Thisorganicstructurerelieson human factor to work well, much like how Sepongroup in Quang Tri province is providing abenevolent,far-sightedleadershipforthelocalcassavacommunity.However,evenwhenitworkswell,anorganic structure is susceptible toanegative changeof leadership, causingdamage to the localcassavacommunity.

v Informationinthevaluechain,priceaswellasreputation,iseithersilo-ed,protectedornotcapturedatall.Collectively,farmersshouldhavesufficientinformationtoidentifybadtraders/factoriestoavoid,but this information is silo-ed at individual farmer level. Price at factory gate canmake thepricingprocessbetween traderand farmereasier,but isprotected topromote the trader’s interests.Eachtransaction, on the other hand, isn’t recorded to aggregate later to inform actors’ decisions.Withsufficientinformation,logisticalchallengesandpricingprocesscanbefixed.

1Estimated2.9milliontonsofcassavatradedperyearbetweenfactoriesandtraders/farmers,atarateofVND1500VND/kg.ThistranslatestoA$242million/year.

2See“Appendix4c:MeetingwithMr.SinhPhan”

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STRENGTHENTHECASSAVAVALUECHAINIt’snecessarytoestablishaformal,robustmarketplaceforactorstoworkunder.Thiswillmakethevaluechainmoreresilient.Suchanonlinemarketplaceisstraightforward,withavarietyoftechnicaloptionstocombineinthemosteffectiveway.However,thehumanfactorinestablishinganOnlineCassavaMarketplace(ChợKhoaiMì)ismuchmorechallenging.ThemostchallengingaspectistopullinallthehumanactorsintotheITsystemandchangetheireconomicbehaviour,withlimitedbudgetandpoliticalpower.

Todothis,ChợKhoaiMìcanfirstdeployvalue-addedservicessuchasBroadcastandConsultationtopullandkeepcassavafarmersinChợKhoaiMìecosystem,thenleveragethisfarmernetworktopullfactoriesandtradersinto the system for effective, transparent communication. The transaction information gathered in this ITecosystemwillfixinformationdeficiencyinthevaluechain.Theecosystem,onceembeddedinthevaluechain,can then grow into a trusted endorsement platform to reward good actors, prevent/punish bad actors tostrengthenthevaluechainfurther.Alongtheway,it’simportanttomonetizetheecosystemaseffectivelyaspossibleandattractfinancialdonationstopayforthecosts.

ThenextstepistopullinalargenumberoffarmersintoChợKhoaiMì’sBroadcastandConsultationservices.There is a lot of valuable information regarding plant diseases, prices, market news, etc. that can bringimmediatevaluetothefarmerpopulation.Theseoftencomeintheformoflongarticles(onlinenewspapers),inobscureplacesonremotewebsites(VietnamNationalCassavaAssociation),orbehindpaywall(Agromonitor).Theyneedtobecurated,re-designedforfarmerstoreadandenjoyreadingonasmartphone.IfChợKhoaiMìdeliversthisvaluepropositionsuccessfully,itnotonlybuildsbrandequityamongfarmers,butalsoestablishesthecommunicationchannelthatcanbere-usedforfarmerstoseamlesslyinteractwiththecoremarketplace.

What,then,mightfailtogoaccordingtoplan?

• Cassavafarmershavereally lowproductivity, lowincomeandare lesseducated.Eachfarmergrowsonlyasmallsegmentoflandwithlimitedtechnologyadoption.Besides,90%ofthefarmerpopulationisnottechnologicallyreadytoparticipateinatechnology-drivenmarketplace.

• Overhead cost is also high given the small expected revenue per farmer, making it even moreuneconomical.

• Buildingateamthatiscapableanduniquelysuitabletoexecutethisplanwillbechallenging.

Toovercometheseobstacles,afewkeyinitiativesare:

• Thereneedstobesufficientproductinnovationtoallowuseradoptiontobeviral,tolowertheFarmerAcquisitionCostsubstantially.

• Thereneedstobesufficientautomationtolowerongoingcostofacquiringandinteractingwithalargebaseoffarmersonaregularbasis.

• Partnerwithprojectsofsimilarnatureonotheragriculturalproductstoshareresources.• Servebeyondjustcassavacommunity.It’smorecostefficientforamanagementteamtomanagemore

thanoneplants,especiallywhentheseplantshavesimilarvaluechains.• Mostimportantly,ChợKhoaiMìneedstogainmarketpowerwithinthecassavavaluechaininorderto

extractvaluethatitcreates.Ifitcanbecomethedefactotransactionmethodandcapturejust0.1%oftransactionvalueascommissionfees(thetypicalratefoundinthestockmarketismuchhigher),thetotaladdressablerevenueinDakLakaloneisA$242,000peryear,enoughtosustainitself.Thereisalsopotentialforsimilarrevenuestreamsinotherprovinces,countries.

WHERECHỢKHOAIMÌISATTHEMOMENT

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• Alltherelevanttechnologyoptionshavebeeninvestigatedtogivearealisticlookofwhatispossible,howmuchitcosts,howtobuildit.Severalproofsofconceptweremade.Thelatestprototypeshouldbefairlyclosetowhattheeventualonlinemarketplacewillbe.

• PrototypedanddemoedBroadcastandConsultationservices.Acquiredandhad6interactionswithabaseof10usersviaZalooveraperiodof2weeks,amountingto60pointsofcontact.3interactionsresulted inengagement fromusers:1 toask forconsultationhelp,1 to inquireaboutplantdiseasedevelopment,1toexpressconcernsaboutthepricethisfarmerhasbeenpaidrelativetothemarketpriceinformationdeliveredfromChợKhoaiMì.

• Multiple marketing channels were investigated and substantiated regarding its costs and likelyeffectiveness.AmorefeasiblechannelviaZalowasfound.

• Multiplestakeholdershaveconsistentlybeenengagedintheprocesstoprovideabasefromwhichtogofurtherifnecessary.

In short, there is now a deeper understanding of the problems facing the value chain from a businessperspective, and a blueprint to go forward, including product, marketing, financial model, backed by fairlysubstantialevidence.

VISIONWith sufficient funding to provide a runwayof 6months (estimated atA$33,000), a steady rate of 50 newusers/dayappearstobefeasible.First,theBroadcastandConsultationservicesneedtobewellrefinedtodeliverthe news and consultation that farmers find valuable to receive. This growth rate translates into valuableservicesdelivereddailyto7500farmers.Afterthat,newdevelopmentislikelytochangeexpectationsforthefollowingphase.However,ifeverythinggoesaccordingtoplan,3yearsmightseeanestablishedITsystem,withparticipationof45,000+farmersandmultiplefactories,toserveasthebackboneforthecassavavaluechaininDakLak.

Justasimportant,atthisscale,itwillbepossibleforChợKhoaiMìtoinfluenceproductiondecisionofalargeenoughfarmerpopulationthroughitsnewsserviceinordertobettermatchproductionwithdemand.Thisisanopportunitythatwilladdhugeamountofvalueintothevaluechain,perhapsrivalingthatofstrengtheningtherelationshipsamongactors.

Thissystemandtheoperationstructurecanthenbeutilisedtoserveotherregions,countriesandagricultureproductsatthesametime.

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OVERVIEW

OBJECTIVEThis business case describes a blueprint to build a successfulbusinessmodelthatwillstrengthenlinkagesinthecassavavalue-chain in Dak Lak, Vietnam. Once such a blueprint is well-constructed,itcanbeusedtoreplicatesimilarbusinessmodelsinother provinces of Vietnam, neighbouring countries such asIndonesia and Cambodia, and potentially other agricultureproducts. The main challenge is that the business case is theconsequenceofactuallybuildingasuccessfulbusinessmodel.Asuccessful businessmodel takesmultiple iterations and shouldbecomemoresolidaftereach iteration. It’sawork-in-progress.Theendgoal is to improvethe livelihoodofdifferentactorsinthevaluechain:farmers,traders,cassavaprocessingcompanies,etc.

STARTINGIDEAThestartingideaistoutiliseasmartphoneappthatallowsdifferentactorsinthevalue chain to post buying/selling prices and quantity of cassava. There are,however,manyfactorsthatwouldcontributetowhethertheappcansucceedinthemarketplace.Afewimportantquestionsare:

1. Howmuchwillitcosttobuildsuchatechnicalsolutionandkeepitgoing(hosting,customersupport,admin,legal,marketingetc.)?

2. Wherewillthemoneycomefrom?3. Whatgoesintothesolution?Justpostingprices,orfollowmarketnews,

interact with other actors? Do users have smartphones? Are thesesmartphonescapable?Isthe3Ginternetsufficientandsufficientlycheap?

4. Whatpartnerswillhelpbuildsuchasolutionandbringittomarket?5. Whatarethekeyactivitiestodoandwhowillperformthese?6. What are ways to maintain relationships with customers and key

partners?7. Whichchannelsaremoreeffectivetorolltheappouttousers(e.g.incentivisedreferrals,salespeople,

TVadvertisement,flyersetc.)?

Answeringthesequestionsrequirealotofmarketinformationandplanning,alongwithactualexecutionstoiteratethebusinesscaseseveraltimes.

MILESTONESThereare2separatemilestonestoachievethisblueprint:Product-marketfitandScaling

1. PRODUCT-MARKETFITModifyandvalidate that the technical solution is fit for targetusers.Thismay includenot just theapp,butpossiblydigitalpanelstoshowpricesincommunityspaces,awebsiteversionoftheappforpeoplewhoonlyusedesktopcomputers,priceinquiriesviaSMS,etc.

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Factorsthatinfluencethetechnicaldesignare:numberofuserswithsmartphones,frequencywhicheachuserisexpectedtointeractwiththeonlinemarketplace,performanceofthelocalInternetreceptivity,users’fluencywithcreatinganewaccount/log-in,handlingerrorsduringtheregistrationprocess,comfortabilitywithanewinteractionmethodetc.Therearemanywaystoreconciletheseissuesifrequired,suchascreatingaguestmodetopostpricestoeaseregistration,displaywrittenaddressinsteadofthegraphicalmaptosavebandwidthetc.

Beforebuyingadvertisingandpushingforwidespreadadoption,seekingfeedbackfromvaluechainactorswillbeessentialtoimprovethedesign.Thiscanbedoneviadoor-to-doorvisitsorholdinguserfocusgroups.Thismilestone involves market research, technical development and needs a lot of precision because it’s thefoundationfromwhichtoscalethesolutiontomoreusers.

Timeline:2weekstoreachaproductconceptthatiseffective

2. SCALINGOncetheproductisproventofitthemarket,thecorevaluepropositiononlythenisconsideredsolid.Afterthat,astringofoperationswillberequiredtoiteratetherestofthebusinesscase.Thisincludeshiringpart-time/full-timestaff,advertising,customersupporttoscaletomoreusers.Theunknownsinthismilestonemayinclude:whichchannelsaremostcosteffectivetoreachtargetusers,whatlevelofcustomersupportisrequired,howmuchtheseoperationscost,etc.

This2ndmilestonecaninvolvemorecomplexoperationsbutmayencounterlessuncertainty.Achievingthis2ndmilestonewithreasonablesuccessmeansthebusinesscase iscompleteandwellsupported.Therestof theworkwillinvolvepullingtogetherandorganisedocumentationsaccumulatedduringtheentireprocess.

Timeline:3weekstoprojectthescalingroadmapandfinancialneeds

VALUECHAINPROBLEMANALYSIS

BACKGROUNDTheproblem facing the cassava value chain inDak Lak ismulti-faceted. Stories fromdifferent stakeholders’perspectiveswereoftendifferentandevencontradictory.Forexample, farmersreportedbeingsqueezedorcheatedbythetraders/factoriesthroughthescalingprocess.Factoriesreportedbeingcheatedbyfarmerswhomixcassavarootswithdirtbeforethescalingprocess.Someinsiderssayitwasthetraders,notthefarmers,whomixcassavawithdirtafterthefarm-gatetransactionsandbeforethescalingprocess3.Tradersreportedbeinghard-bargainedbyfactorieswhensupplywasplenty,andthatfactoryexecutivespaythetraderslessthanwhattheyreportonthecompany’sincomestatement,pocketingthedifferenceforpersonalgains4.Tradersclaimtobeontopofcurrentpriceandyetonlyhavealimitednumberofcontactstocallperiodicallytoaskforpricinginformation.Farmerssaidtherewasnomorecompetitionamongfactoriesforsupply,thusdepressingtheprice5.Factories denied these claims, saying that the competition was stronger than ever and few factories wereprofitableanymore.Thelistgoesonandon.

Therealityislikelytobeamixofalltheseconflictingstories.Thefacts,however,arethat:

3SeeAppendix4a:MeetingwithMr.MaiNguyen

4SeeAppendix4h:FieldtriptoEaSar

5SeeAppendix4b:MeetingwithMr.NgocNguyen

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• Therearemanycassavafactoriesintheregionnow,yetnoneprovidesdeepsupportandrelationshipswithfarmersanylonger.Withoutthisdeepcoordination,productionproductivitystagnatesordeclineswhilesoilisgraduallyeroded,hurtingallactorsespeciallyfarmersinthelong-term.

• Farmersneedquality information.Currentlytheyonlyhaveahandfultraderstocall toqueryaboutprices, have limited access to internet and limited research skills to follow market development,governmentplanningdirectivesetc.

• Regardlessofwhichsideishard-bargainingagainstwhichandwhoisdefraudingagainstwho,thereisoverwhelmingevidencethatsystematic,recurringfraudsexistinthisvaluechain.

• Themismatchbetweencassavaplantingamountandactualfactories’needsisrecurring,severeandhurtallparties.Atthemoment(September2017),manyfactoriescompletelyshutdownduetolackofrawmaterials.Othertimes,excessiveplantinghurtpricesandcauseslossesagainstfarmers.

ROOTCAUSEANALYSISFromabusinessperspective,manycriticalproblemsexistinthevaluechain.Eachoftheseproblemsisrootedinamoresystemicunderlyingcause.

AnoverviewofvisibleproblemsinDakLak’scassavavaluechain:

Examplesforeachofthe8problemsabove:

1. Factorysupplymanagerscuttingunder-tabledealstogivepreferential treatmenttocertaintraders.Theymayinflatequalityindex,underestimateforeignmattercontent,orgivepreferentialaccesstothescalingprocess.Factoriesusemodifiedequipment/evaluatingprocesstomisrepresentstarchcontentofcassavaroots.Or tradersputmoredirt in the truckduring thescalingprocess.Or farmersbreakcontractualagreementswithtraders/factoriestosellforhigherpricestootherparties.

2. LeadingfactoriesinDakLakusetheirmarketpowertoimposequestionablerulesonthevaluechain.Starchcontentindexusedtoberoundedtothenearestwholenumber.Now,it’salwaysroundeddown.Forexample,29.7%isroundeddownto29%.Orthesefactorieshardbargainagainstcassavafarmersandtraderswhensupply isplenty.Thisabuseofmarketpowercausesserious financialdamagestolocalfarmersandunstableswingsincassavasuppliesintheensuingyears.

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a. These actors can chip away at an estimate of A$690,000/year 6 , virtually all of which isburdenedbyfarmers.

3. DakLak’svaluechainroutinelymissesopportunitiestomeetmarketdemand,oroversupply,duetocoordinationproblems. Incurrentmonths,somefactoriesproduceonlyuptohalfof theircapacity.Farmers,ontheotherhand,lackinformationtotakeadvantageofhigherpricestomeetthisneed.

a. DakLak’splannedcropin2017isestimatedtoovershootgovernment’sguidanceby113%7.When this happens, it will almost certainly bring down farm-gate price, causing losses tofarmers.

4. Withoutanenforcementsystem, foreignactorscancome in,offeringshort-termhighprices tobuycassavafromfarmers,creatingfalseoptimismanddisruptingtheexistingvaluechain.Thishappenedafewyearsbeforeandisstillhappeningtootheragricultureproducts.

5. Withoutsufficientcoordination,factoriesfromEaSarroutinelybuycassavafromEaKarandviceversa,simultaneously.Thedistancecanbeasmuchas50-100km,causingalotofunnecessarytransportationcosts.

6. Withoutsufficientcoordination,harvestedcassavarootscansitoutsideovernightwhilewaitingtobeprocessed,causingitsqualityandthebuyingpricetodrop.Again,thisinefficiencyisbornbyfarmers.

7. Uncoordinatedinflowofcassavadeliveriesmeansfactory’slinesstayidlesomedayswhilenotbeingabletokeepupwithproductiononotherdays.

8. Pricingprocess is frequentlymentionedas apainpoint, especially from farmers,due to its ad-hoc,uninformed nature. This causes frictional costs on each transaction in the form of the negotiationprocess.

Whilethesearevisibleproblemsofthevaluechain,the3underlyingcausesseemtobe:

1. Thereisnoreputationrecordforeachactorinthevaluechain.Overalongtime,thisdoesaccumulate,such as the current boycott sentiment among farmers and traders against the cassava factories.However,bythistime,thedamagecausedbythetoxicactorsisalreadydone.It’salsodifficultforthevaluechaintorecoverwithoutthisreputationtransparencyoncethetoxicactorsareidentified.Strong,positiveactorsneedtobeidentifiedtotaketheleadgoingforward.

2. Theuncertainpricingprocessreflectsasystematicdeficiencyofquality informationandestablishedrulesinthevaluechain.

3. Thelogisticalchallengesbetweenactorscausewastesandweakenthevaluechain.

ROOTCAUSESTogoonestepfurther,therootcausesoftheseproblemsappeartobe:

v Thereisnogoverningsystemtoguidebehaviourinthecassavavaluechainandtohelpitrecoverfromacrisis,suchasthatcausedbyamaliciousfactoryowner.Becauseoftheabsenceofagoverningbody,all transactionsareorganicanddrivenbyeachactor’sself interests.Thisorganicstructurereliesonhumanfactortoworkwell,muchlikehowSepongroupinQuangTriprovinceisprovidingabenevolent,far-sightedleadershipforthelocalcassavacommunity.However,evenwhenitworkswell,anorganic

6Dakfocambuysabout210,000tonsofcassavaperyear.PriceofeachkgofcassavaisestimatedtobeA$0.0033lowerthanwhatitshouldbe,duetofraudulenttactics.ThistranslatestoaboutA$670,000/year.

7 http://www.nhandan.com.vn/chinhtri/item/33827202-kiem-soat-viec-mo-rong-dien-tich-trong-san-o-tay-nguyen.html

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structureissusceptibletoanegativechangeofleadership,muchliketheincomingofthenewownerofDakfocamfactory13yearsago,causingdamagetothelocalcassavacommunitytillnow.

v Informationinthevaluechain,priceaswellasreputation,iseithersilo-ed,protectedornotcapturedatall.Collectively,farmersshouldhavesufficientinformationtoidentifybadtraders/factoriestoavoid,but this information is silo-ed at individual farmer level. Price at factory gate canmake thepricingprocessbetween traderand farmereasier,but isprotected topromote the trader’s interests.Eachtransaction, on the other hand, isn’t recorded to aggregate later to inform actors’ decisions.Withsufficientinformation,logisticalchallengesandpricingprocesscanbefixed.

CURRENTPROGRESS

MILESTONE1:PRODUCT-MARKETFITFollowingisthelatestproductblueprint,whichtakesintoaccounttheconstraintsanddifferentneedsfromeachusergroup.Frommultiplesignals,thisiterationbestfitsmarketreality.Forexample,thefarmergroup,whilepreviously thought as peoplewho own smartphone andwould like to advertise their crops, turn out to becompletelyprice-taking,don’townsmartphone,onlyneedtotransactonceortwiceperyear,andareotherwiseverytechnologicallychallenged.Inotherwords,farmergroupismoresuitabletobeonthereceivingendoftheinformationflow.Pleasereferto“Appendix1:Productiterations”forpreviousversionsoftheproduct.

WhiletheorangecircleistheheartofChợKhoaiMìmarketplaceandisintheformofasmartphoneapp,therearemorecomponentstoaddressthechallengesofconnectingfarmersintothesystem.

1. Currentapp

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Thewebsiteandapparedesignedasaclassifiedadmarketplacewherebuyersandsellersadvertisetheirneeds.

• Website:www.chokhoaimi.com• Androidapp:Link

Thebiggestchallengeistoestablishthecommunicationrelationshipswithalargenumberofpotentialfarmers.Theseusersonlyhavetheneedto interactwith themarketplace1-2 times/year.Thetimingofsuchneed isuniqueandunpredictableforeachuser(drivenbyurgentfinancialneeds,currentmarketprice,relationshipswithtraders,etc.).60-70%8oftheseusersalsoreceivesomeinvestmentfromtraders/factoriesandthusarelessmotivatedtoparticipateintheopenmarketplace.Therest30-40%(stillaverysignificantnumber)aredifficulttoidentifyandtarget.Mostnotably,alargenumberofthesefarmersdon’thaveasmartphone,don’tknowhowtouse it,ordon’tevenknowhow to readSMS that comes to their featurephones.Yet, thesehundredsofthousandsoffarmersinVietnamwillbeabletoreaphugebenefitsfromparticipationinthemarketplace.

Currently,thefarmersarevulnerableagainstdiseasesaffectingcassavaplants,notknowingwhensuchriskiscoming, how to respond, how to mitigate risk at the start, how to predict price fluctuations to manageproduction, or when demand is high to bargain for better deals, which traders/factories are reliable asinvestmentpartners,wheretosellforthemostmoneyshouldtheyneedurgentcash,etc.

Assuch,pulling farmers intotheecosystemandprovidingtheright levelof technicalsupportat lowestcostpossibleisarealchallengebutveryvaluable.

2. “ChợKhoaiMì”BROADCASTservice

This is both a value-added service for the value chain and amarketing tactic to form initialrelationshipswithalargenumberoffarmersatonce.Oncethebrandname“ChợKhoaiMì”isknownandtrusted,thisbrandcanusethesamechanneltocommunicatebuy/sellordersintheOnlineCassavaMarketplace(“ChợKhoaiMì”).Therearesomepositiveinitialsignalsfromusers:

• Nearlyall farmers (sampleof8),after receivingChợKhoaiMìBroadcastservice for2days,wanttoremainsubscribedtotheservice.2casesdon’tknowhowtoreadSMSmessageandsodidn’tknownewswascomingin.

8SeeAppendix4a:MeetingminuteswithMr.MaiNguyen

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• CassavaDiseaseUpdatesseemtobethekindofnewstheseusersaremostexcitedabout.GeneralMarketNewsisalsowellreceived.

Examples(collectionofactualscreenshotsaresavedinDropbox):

• Servicedescription:Senddaily/weeklymarketinformationviaSMSorZalotofarmers.Mostofthesefarmersdon’thavesmartphonesand/ordon’tknowhowto search, follow,aggregatemarketnewsfromdifferentsourcesonGoogle.Thehypothesisisthatthisisavalue-addedservicetoestablishinitialrelationshipswithalargenumberoffarmersatonce,evenifmostofthemaren’tsellingcassavarightatthemoment.GraduallyconvertthesecustomerstoZalo,smartphoneappplatformtosaveonSMScostsanddeliverbettervalue.

• Implementation:o SMStocustomerswhodon’thavesmartphones.Needtobuyandmanageonephonenumber

for each major telecom network in Vietnam (Vinaphone, Mobifone, Viettel) to send tocustomersoneachofthesecarriers.It’scheapertosendwithinthesametelecomnetwork.

o Zalo to users with smartphone, text and rich media information (graph, chart). Messagecustomisedforsmartphone.

3. TechnicalConsultationservice

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1/40farmersrequestedTechnicalConsultationService,andseemstobeindireneedforhelp.Toprovidethisservice,ChợKhoaiMìwillneedacassavaspecialisttohelp.Theconsultationprocesscangraduallybeautomatedwithcommonquestions&answers.

4. StrengthentheFarmerNetworks

Thereare2differentnetworksoffarmers:

• FarmersNetworkPREMIUM:thosewhouseZalooratleastownasmartphone• FarmersNetworkBASIC:thosewhodon’thaveasmartphoneordon’tevenknowhowtoreadincoming

SMS

Currentlyanestimated90%offarmersstillresideintheBASICnetwork,whichisveryproblematictodelivertothesefarmersanykindofvalueovertheInternet.FarmersintheBASICnetworkcurrentlyreceiveserviceviaSMSonlyandneedtogothroughaliaisonfarmerinthePREMIUMnetworktoaccessmuchoftherestoftheservice.Overtime,processneedstobeinplacetoconverttheseBASICfarmersintoPREMIUMtosaveonSMScostsanddeliverbettervalue.SMSisexpectedtobeanimportantbuttransitorychannel.

5. Matchbuyersandsellersinthemarketplace

Buyingorderscominginshouldberoutedtotheappropriatesellersbasedonquantity,quality,location,etc.andviceversa.Thisprocess canbedonemanuallyat first andprogrammatically laterwhen the transactionvolumeishigher.

6. Endorsementsystem

Thisisahighlyimportantcomponentof“ChợKhoaiMì”systembutcanonlybeimplementedafterasufficientnumber of actors already participate in the Online Cassava Marketplace. The goal is to record the

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trustworthinessofeachactorinthevaluechainovertimeandmakeitvisibletoallactorsinthemarketplace.Thiswillrewardgoodbehaviour,punishbadbehaviour,removebadagentsandpreventdisruptiveagentsfromenteringthevaluechain(suchastemporaryforeigntraders).

7. MarketInsights

Oncethemarketplace is liveforsometime,ChợKhoaiMìwillhavesufficientdataandrelationshipswithallactorsinthevaluechaintoleverageasasourceofrevenueandtoprovideevenmorevalueto3rdpartiessuchasuniversities,governmentsandmarketresearchagencies.

MILESTONE2:EXECUTIONTherewere2importantquestionstoserveasthefoundationforthisphase:

1. Isitsustainabletoprovidethegivenproducttothespecifiedusersatscale?2. Howmuchfinancialresourcesareneededbeforeembarkingonthescalingjourney?

Whetheraproduct/serviceissustainableisalsorelatedtohowit’sbeingmarketedtousersandtheinternalcomponentsitwasmadeof.Forexample,ifamarketingcommunicationchannelistooexpensive,thecostofreachingeachfarmermaybehigherthanthebenefitsChợKhoaiMìcanextractfromthefarmer.Oriftheserviceisprovidedprimarilybyhumanemployees,costofprovidingtheservicemaybeexcessivelyhighcomparedtoacomputerisedautomationsystem.

MARKETINGCOMMUNICATIONCHANNELThefirst3channelsbeinginvestigatedinclude:

1. Directphonecall:CallingtogetfarmerstosignupforChợKhoaiMìserviceonZaloplatform2. Conference9:RunningtrainingsessionsforfarmersandsignthemupforChợKhoaiMìservice3. Government-assisted10:UtilisegovernmentsupporttosignfarmersupforChợKhoaiMìservice

All3ofthesechannels,asshownbelow,areeithernoteffectiveenough(1&2)ornotviable(3).Pleasesee“Appendix2:FinancialModel”formoredetailedcalculations.

9See“Appendix4e:MeetingwithMr.MinhNguyen”

10See“Appendix4d:MeetingwithMr.TuanAnhDang”

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OnechannelthatseemstoworkisviaZaloscanfeaturetoconnectwithstrangersinagivenarea,combinedwithGPSfixingtechniquetoteleportasmartphone’sGPSlocationtoatargetcassavagrowingarea.ThiswillsignificantlyreduceFarmerAcquisitionCost,buthaveinherentlimitations:

• OneZaloaccountcanonlyscan for~15otherusersperday.ThismeansChợKhoaiMìwillneedtomanage ~20 such Zalo accounts in order to acquire new users more quickly. There are potentialtechnicalimplicationsdowntheline,suchasZaloblockingunusualactivities.It’slikelyavoidable,butstillhassomeimplementationrisks.

• ThischannelcanonlyreachfarmerswhoalreadyownanduseZaloontheirsmartphones.Therest90%offarmerswillneedtobereachedeventually,thoughgradualsmartphonepenetrationwilleasethisproblemovertime.

While using Zalo scan feature along with GPS fixing is a necessary innovation, the full-featured marketingcommunication strategy will need to be more sophisticated, such as giving away cheap goodies, placingbillboards,partneringwithlocalhouseholdbusinessesetc.Someofthesemediawillbemorecost-effectivethanothersandsomewillworkbetterincombination.

IMPLEMENTINGAUTOMATIONInformation Technology cost is predictably low. For example, running the app costs about A$40/month viaGoogleCloud,whilebeingfreeinthefirst12monthsviapromotion11.ThemessagingplatformviaZaloisfree.However,hiringemployeestoruntheserviceswillbeexpensive.Assuch,muchoftheinformationserviceswillneedtobeautomated12.

SEEDFUNDINGREQUIREDSeedfundingbelowiscalculatedbasedoncurrentmarketsalariesforcomparablepositionsandskillsrequired.TheobjectiveofthisseedfundingroundistobringChợKhoaiMìBroadcastandConsulataionservicestoalargenumberoffarmerswithin6months.Thisisonlypartofthevisionforthelargercassavaonlinemarketplace,butachievingthiswillbothvalidatetheexecutionpathasbeingeffectiveandgainnew,invaluableinsightsintotheyearsahead.

11See“Appendix5:TechnicalAssets”forlogincredentials

12See“Appendix3:Keycontacts”forMr.DanPhantodevelopsuchanautomationsystem

Revenue per farmer per month 1.0AUD Marketingchannel Direct Phone Call Conference Government-assistedCOGs - Service cost/farmer/month 1.0AUD FarmerAcquisitionCost 22.00AUD 8.67AUD 4.38AUD# of years farmers stay in system 5.0AUD Lifetimecontribution/farmer (22.00)AUD (8.67)AUD (4.38)AUDNominalfarmerlifetimevalue(FLV) -AUDInterestrate 10%Actual FLV after interest -AUD # farmers Lifetime overhead cost/farmer Direct Phone Call Conference Government-assisted

5000 (65.37)AUD (87.37)AUD (74.04)AUD (69.75)AUD10000 (32.68)AUD (54.68)AUD (41.35)AUD (37.07)AUD15000 (21.79)AUD (43.79)AUD (30.46)AUD (26.17)AUD20000 (16.34)AUD (38.34)AUD (25.01)AUD (20.72)AUD40000 (8.17)AUD (30.17)AUD (16.84)AUD (12.55)AUD60000 (5.45)AUD (27.45)AUD (14.11)AUD (9.83)AUD80000 (4.09)AUD (26.09)AUD (12.75)AUD (8.47)AUD100000 (3.27)AUD (25.27)AUD (11.94)AUD (7.65)AUD

Projected net profit/loss per farmer

An overview of how much revenue a farmer is expected to bring in for Chợ Khoai Mì as a member, how much it costs to acquire this farmer at the beginning, and at what scale Chợ Khoai Mì becomes sustainable

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ROADMAPIn3years,it’snecessarytoestablishaformal,robustmarketplaceforactorstoworkunder.Thiswillmakethevaluechainmoreresilient.Suchamarketplaceisstraightforward,provenandrelativelyinexpensivetomake:an online platform to facilitate, capture transactions and to enforce an endorsement system. Effect of theendorsementsystemissimilartohowUber’s,Grab’sratingsystemchangedVietnamesetaxidrivers’behaviourdramatically for thebetter in thepast few years.Or how Lazada, Tiki.vn successfully promotes trustworthysellersandkeepsoutmaliciousactorsontheire-commerceplatformsinVietnam.

ThehumanfactorinestablishinganOnlineCassavaMarketplace(ChợKhoaiMì)ismuchmorechallenging.ThemostchallengingaspectistopullinallthehumanactorsintotheITsystem,withlimitedbudgetandpoliticalpower.Todothis,ChợKhoaiMìcanfirstdeployvalue-addedservicessuchasBroadcastandConsultationtopullandkeepcassavafarmersinChợKhoaiMìecosystem,thenleveragethisfarmernetworktopullfactoriesandtradersintothesystemforeffective,transparentcommunication.ThetransactioninformationgatheredinthisITecosystemwill fix informationdeficiency in thevaluechain.Theecosystem,onceembedded in thevaluechain,canthengrowintoatrustedendorsementplatformtorewardgoodactors,prevent/punishbadactorstostrengthenthevaluechainfurther.Alongtheway,it’simportanttomonetizetheecosystemaseffectivelyaspossibleandattractfinancialdonationstopayforthecosts.

Assuch,theroadmapcanbeplannedin2phases.Theseedfundingphasewillworkouttheimportantunknownssuchasteamforming,actualmarketingexpenses,buildingpartnernetworketc.Fromthisstrongerfoundation,ChợKhoaiMìcanthengrowfasterandmoresustainably.

SEEDFUNDINGPHASE|6MONTHWiththeseedfunding,alocalteamof3canbeformedtoexecutethe6-monthplan.ThisteamwillworktopullinalargenumberoffarmersintoChợKhoaiMì’sBroadcastandConsultationservices.Thereisalotofvaluableinformationregardingplantdiseases,prices,marketnews,etc.thatcanbringimmediatevaluetothefarmerpopulation. These often come in the formof long, difficult-to-read articles (online newspapers), in obscureplacesonremotewebsites(VietnamNationalCassavaAssociation),orbehindpaywall(Agromonitor).Theyneedtobecurated,re-designedforfarmerstoreadandenjoyreadingonasmartphone.IfChợKhoaiMìdeliversthisvalue proposition successfully, it not only builds brand equity among farmers, but also establishes thecommunicationchannelthatcanbere-usedforfarmerstoseamlesslyinteractwiththecoremarketplace.

ChợKhoaiMì

MonthlyCostProjection2017-2018|Basedonamoresimplifiedoperation

MonthlyExpense Projected Actual Variance

ITinfrastracture(GoDaddy,GoogleCloud) 45 0 45Marketingcommunicationagency 500 0 500Technicalagency 500 0 500Legal,design&otheragencies 400 0 400Salary:CEO 1,500 0 1,500Salary:MarketingHead 1,000 0 1,000Salary:ProductHead 1,000 0 1,000Officespace 500 0 500Total 5,445 0 5,445

TOTAL6MONTHS 32,670AUD

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With1monthofpreparationandthenachievingatargetacquisitionrateof50farmers/day,apopulationof7,500farmersmaybepartofChợKhoaiMìecosystembytheendof6month.Somegroundworkwaslaidoutforteamtooperate,including:

• Corebrandelements(“Appendix7:Brandelements”fordetails)• FacebookWorkplace, Zohoemail for team communication and coordination (“Appendix 8: Internal

managementtools”fordetails)• Waveforaccountingpurposes(“Appendix8:Internalmanagementtools”fordetails)

GROWTHPHASE|2.5YEARSGrowthphasewilllargelybebasedonwhatwasachievedintheSeedFundingPhase.Ifallgoasplanned,ChợKhoaiMìecosystemwillbytheendof3yearhaveanetworkof45,000farmersengagedinitsdigitalplatform,makingitarobustandviableplatformforfactoriesandtraderstoparticipate.Besides,atthisscale,itwillbepossibleforChợKhoaiMìto influenceproductiondecisionofa largeenoughfarmerpopulationvia itsnewsserviceinordertobettermatchproductionwithdemand.Thisisanopportunitythatwilladdhugeamountofvalue into thevalue chain,perhaps rivaling thatof strengthening the relationshipsamongactors.Currently,everyyearfarmerhouseholdseitherproducetoomuch,incurringlossesasaresult,ortoolittle,causingmanyfactoriestoclosetheproductionlines.However,thereareavarietyoffactorsthatwillcontributetothesuccessofthisphase.

Afewfactorsthatmaycausethingsnottogoaccordingtoplan:

• Cassavafarmershavereally lowproductivity, lowincomeandare lesseducated.Eachfarmergrowsonlyasmallsegmentoflandwithlimitedtechnologyadoption.Besides,90%ofthefarmerpopulationisnottechnologicallyreadytoparticipateinatechnology-drivenmarketplace.Asaresult,costofpullingafarmerintothesystemandprovidingservicestothisfarmerislikelygreaterthanrevenuethatcanbemadefromthisfarmer.Itappearsuneconomicalattheunitlevel.

• Overhead cost is also high given the small expected revenue per farmer, making it even moreuneconomical.Atabaseof10,000farmer,overheadmayworkoutatA$0.8/farmer,whichisreallyhighconsideringthesefarmershaveverylittlepurchasingpowerandawareness.

• Buildingateamthatiscapableanduniquelysuitabletoexecutethisplanwillbechallenging.

Toovercometheseobstacles,afewkeyinitiativesare:

• Thereneedstobesufficientproductinnovationtoallowuseradoptiontobeviral,tolowertheFarmerAcquisitionCostsubstantially.ThenewscontentoverBroadcastservice,forexample,maybedesignedtoencouragediscussions,thusmakinguserreferralmorelikely.

• Thereneedstobesufficientautomationtolowerongoingcostofacquiringandinteractingwithalargebaseoffarmersonaregularbasis.UseofZalo’sscanningfeatureincombinationwithGPSfixing,forexample,isanovelapproachtoreachouttomorefarmersmorecheaply.

• Partnerwithprojectsofsimilarnatureonotheragriculturalproductstoshareresources.Forexample,theseprojectscansharetheiruserbase,thusexpandingeachother’suserbaseatlittlecost.

• Servebeyondjustcassavacommunity.It’smorecostefficientforamanagementteamtomanagemorethanoneplants,especiallywhentheseplantshavesimilarvaluechains.

• Mostimportantly,ChợKhoaiMìneedstogainmarketpowerwithinthecassavavaluechaininordertoextractvaluethatitcreates.Ifitcanbecomethedefactotransactionmethodandcapturejust0.1%oftransactionvalueascommissionfees(thetypicalratefoundinthestockmarketismuchhigher),thetotaladdressablerevenueinDakLakaloneisA$242,000peryear,enoughtosustainitself.Thereisalsopotentialforsimilarrevenuestreamsinotherprovinces,countries.

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APPENDIX1:PRODUCTITERATIONSProductIterationNo.5

Valueproposition:Aclassifiedadsystemforfactoriestopostorders.Farmerscanadvertisesellingpricefortheircrops(minorusecasebutmaybeimportantinthelongterm).AcombinationofsmartphoneappandZalopersonalaccounttobroadcasttheseorderstotraders,farmers.

Valuepropositionandtechnicaldesigncomeshandinhandbecause:

ü Valuepropositionrepresentstheendgoalofwhatthetechnicaldesignshouldbeü Inturn,whatistechnicallyfeasibleconstrainswhatthevaluepropositioncanbe

Guidingcriteriaforthisiteration:

• Thisdesign isa scalable solutionexpected to successfully fit into the incentive structurewithin thecassavavaluechain(factorieswanttoreachoutdirectlytofarmers).

• Aclassifiedadsystemissufficientlylight-weighttoworkwithfarmers’devicesandslowInternet.• Zalopersonalaccountcanutilise3rdpartysoftware(ZaloPlus)tosendoutmassmessagestodifferent

segmentsofusers.• Thiscommunicationchannelalsohaslowerlearningcurveforusers,scalableperformance,andlower

adoptionbarriertoadoptionbecauseanestimated70%ofusersalreadyhaveZaloappontheirphone.Zalousersthencanbegraduallymigratedintousingthesmartphoneapp.

Inshort, thiscombinationsystem(Osclassbackend+smartphoneappfrontend+Zalo) isabletodelivertheessentialrequirementsandmostoftheimportantrequirements.SeeSystemSpecificationsfordetails.

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ProductIterationNo.4

Value proposition: An e-commerce platform for factories to post orders and manage backend logistics. AseparateZalo(‘VietnameseWhatsApp’)communitychanneltobroadcasttheseorderstotraders,farmers.

Thisdesignisascalablesolutionexpectedtosuccessfullyfitintotheincentivestructurewithinthecassavavaluechain (factorieswant to reach out directly to farmers). Backend logistics is a nice-to-have hook to increaseproductadoptionamongfactories.Zalochannelisaninexpensivewaytocommunicatetofarmers,whichalsoincursalowerlearningcurve.

Failedassumptions:

1. E-commercesoftwaresolutions(MagentoandOpenCart)arefeature-richbutrelativelyslow.2. Initialdevelopmentandconfigurationwasprohibitivelydifficult.Unabletohiretechnicalhelpatlow

cost.3. Doesn’tsupportratingforusersorstores4. Permissionstructuredoesn’tallowindividualuserstoownandmanageasinglestore5. Zalochannelcan’tsegmentgroupsofusersandhaverestrictionsonoutgoingmessages.

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ProductIterationNo.3

Value proposition: Real-time cassava market information delivered straight to farmers, and a separateinteractionplatformforfactoriestobroadcastpricestofarmers/tradersinthelocalregion.

Failedassumptions:

1. LEDpanelsarerelativelyinexpensive(~A$100/each),butaddingwirelesscapabilitytoreceivemarketinformationovertheInternetwillmakeitquiteexpensive(~A$700/each)

2. SendingSMSatvolumewillbequiteexpensive3. Integrating the Airtable database system with app is more development-intensive than previously

thought

There are 4 components to this product(builtonAirtableandShoutem):

1. Anonlineservertoreceive,holdandprocessinformation

2. LED panels that display real-timecassava market information incommunityspaces

3. Smartphoneappsforuserswithasmartphonetoreceive/postprices

4. SMS gateway for users to receive/post pricesviaSMS

These4componentsarechosenbecause:

• Informationisexpectedtobeupdated,processedandsentoutvery frequently,soaserverwithsufficientcomputingpower isneeded.

• Veryfewusershaveasmartphone.UsingLEDpanels isacost-effectivemethodtodeliverreal-timemarket informationtoallactors. LED panels are durable and large enough to be left unattended in

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communityspacesoronthesideoftheroadforconsumption.Theyaresufficientlycheapandeachcanservealargeportionofpopulation.Theyalsoserveasbillboardadvertisementfor“ChợKhoaiMì”.

• Userswithsmartphonescangetricherinformationaboutthemarket,suchaspriceateachlocation.However,only10%ofactorshaveasmartphoneandtheymaypostpricesonlyonceayear,havingonlysmartphoneasagatewaytopostpriceswon’tbesufficient.Technicalsupportforthesmartphoneappisalsoexpectedtobeexpensivegivenitscomplexity.

• In theshort tomediumterm,becausevirtuallyeveryonehasanon-smartphoneandknowshowtosend/receiveSMS,SMSmaybecomeamoredominantmeansforuserstointeractwiththemarket.Inthelong-term,smartphoneswillinevitablybethemoredominantgateway.

Theassumptionsare:

1. Consumptionofthisreal-timemarketinformationisofvaluetoactorsinthecassavavaluechain2. Actorsareabletointeractwiththismarketunderminimaltechnicalsupport3. Actors proactively interact with this market to keep the market information up-to-date (weakest

assumptionatthemoment)

ProductIterationNo.2

ValueProposition:Farmerscanadvertisesellingpricetofactorieswithageolocationmarkeronthemap,alongwithpictures.Factories/traderscanlookatthemaptolookfornearbyfarmsofferinggoodpricestobuyfrom.

Failedassumptions:

1. Exact geolocations are of little value, as long as the name of specific area is written out in text.Meanwhile,processingmapdataisresource-intensive,makingtheappslowerandisalsomoredifficulttouse.

2. Farmersareprimarilyprice-getters.Manyalsohaveexistingcontractswithcertaintradersandrelyonthese traders for financing, transportationof goods. The ability topost prices is of little value to amajorityofthesefarmers.

3. Farmersalsoparticipateinthemarketonlyonceayear.Moreoften,they’reonthereceivingendofinformation.Assuch,identifyafarmerwhocurrentlyhastheneedtosendoutsellingpriceandgettothisspecificfarmerwillbedifficultandexpensive.

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ProductIterationNo.1

Valueproposition:Farmers,traderscancrowd-sourcepricedataoftheircassavaproductsonamap.Thismapwillbeasourceofvaluableinformationforallparticipants,showingaveragemarketpriceinreal-timeandthelocationscurrentlyselling.Factoriescanlookuppricesandreachouttobuyfromfarmerswithbestoffers.

Failedassumptions:

1. Authenticationofeachpieceofdataisimportant.There’stoomuchincentiveforagentsinthevaluechaintoposterroneouspriceinformationtodistortmarketrealities(suchastraders,factories,etc.).Socrowd-sourcingwilllikelyfailwhenithitsthemarket.

2. Therearealotofnegativeincentivesforallagentsinthevaluechaintowithholdinformation.Tradersdon’twantfarmerstoknowwhatthefactory-gatepriceis,sotheyhavemorebargainingpoweroverfarmers. Factories don’t want traders to know what the whole-sale price is, so they have morebargaining power over traders. Although market information will benefit everyone, altruism likelywon’tworkinthiscase.

Productprototype(built-onUshahidi):

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APPENDIX1A:SYSTEMSPECIFICATIONSEssentials:

• Rating system for Factories, Traders, Farmers: highly valuable to nudge cassava value chain actorstowards goodbehaviour, discouragebadbehaviour, gradually removenegative agents in the valuechain.

• Light weight:Most devices among farmers are low-end Android phones, along with slow Internetconnection. Product needs tobe very light-weight, lowonmedia consumption such as photos andbackendprocessing.

• Broadcastnews toa specific groupofusers: Factories setprice for anorder. It’shighly valuable tobroadcasttheordertoagivengroupofusers.

• Customisable fields: Transactions in the cassava value chain are highly specific (e.g. supporttransportationornot,discountbasedonqualityetc.)andarehighlyregional.Eachtransactioninthesystemneedstobeabletorecordallthesedifferentpiecesofinformation.

• Login with Facebook: Very few farmers use emails at all (even though they use it once to setupFacebook).Alongregistrationformwillcertainlybeahighbarriertoappadoption.

• SupportVietnameselanguage.

Important:

• Supportmultiplelanguages(includingIndonesianandKhmer)inthesamesystem:Thesamebackendandfront-endsmartphoneappshouldworkacrosscountriessothatthetechnicalframeworkdoesn’thavetobeduplicated.Duplicatingsystemswillleadtoinefficientuseofcomputingserversandmoreexpensivemaintenance.

• Canbepackagedasasmartphoneapp,notjustamobilewebsite:Farmersarenotaccustomedtousingawebbrowseronasmartphone.Anappinstallbasewillalsoallowforlong-termdevelopmentflexibility(in-appmessagingbetweenusers,notifications,etc.).

• Messagingcapability:Notcriticalinshort-term,butnecessaryinthelongtermasameansforuserstoeasilycommunicatefromwithinthesmartphoneapp.

• Loginwithphonenumber:Thisisthemostintuitivewayforfarmerstologin,butquitedifficulttosetupbecauseitinteractswithtelecommunicationnetworks,notjusttheInternet.

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• Catalogmanagement:User/companyneedstohavearecordoforderstheyplaceinthesysteminthepast.

Nicetohave:

• Logisticsmanagement:Fromacompanyperspective, ifthisorderingsystemcanintegratewiththeirbackendlogisticssystem,itwillhaveefficiencyvalue.

Note:It’sunlikelythatasinglesystemcantickalltheboxes.Morelikelythesystemwillbeacombinationofmorethan1components.

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APPENDIX2:FINANCIALMODELPleasefindthedynamicfinancialmodelinaseparateExceldocument.Thefollowingisafewkeyinformation:

Forthefirst6months,pleasesee“FinancialModel–0to6months.xlsx”:

For6monthsto3years,usetheattached“FinancialModel–6monthsto6years.xlsx” toestimate fundingrequired,projectedincome,balancesheetandcashflowstatements.

ChợKhoaiMì

MonthlyCostProjection2017-2018|Basedonamoresimplifiedoperation

MonthlyExpense Projected Actual Variance

ITinfrastracture(GoDaddy,GoogleCloud) 45 0 45Marketingcommunicationagency 500 0 500Technicalagency 500 0 500Legal,design&otheragencies 400 0 400Salary:CEO 1,500 0 1,500Salary:MarketingHead 1,000 0 1,000Salary:ProductHead 1,000 0 1,000Officespace 500 0 500Total 5,445 0 5,445

TOTAL6MONTHS 32,670AUD

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APPENDIX3:KEYCONTACTSMr.MaiNguyenFormerVicePresidentatDakofam(+84)982477797

Mr.TanCurrentSupplyManageratDakofam(+84)905155909

Mr.SinhPhanChairmanofSepongroup,QuangTri(+84)903500571

Mr.TuanAnhDangFarmerrelationshipspecialistatDepartmentofForeignAffairs,QuangTriProvince(+84)915639329

Mr.MinhNguyenCassavatrainingspecialist,FacultyatTayNguyenUniveristy,DepartmentofAgriculture(+84)913484315

Mr.ThangTranViceDirectorGeneralatInstituteofPolicyandStrategyforAgricultureandRuralDevelopment(+84)939968686

Mr.DanPhanDB/WebDeveloperatInformationCenterforAgricultureandRuralDevelopment(+84)977773612

Ms.HoangAnhNguyenQualitativeMarketResearchDivisionManageratNielsenVietnam(+84)909226010

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APPENDIX4:MEETINGMINUTESAppendix4a:Mr.MaiNguyen

FormerVicePresidentatDakofam

Purpose:Learnmorein-depthaboutthevaluechainintheregionanditsproblems.

Time:1.5hour|25.8.2017

• Cassavapriceatanygiventimevariesalotfromonetransactiontoanotherduetovaluechainfactorsinsteadofactualqualityfactor.Thisvariationisestimatedatabout30-40%dependingonlocationofthecrop,howmuchcompetitionisbuyingfromeachsource,quantityetc.Thisisasignalthatthevaluechainisweakandunstable.

• 50%offactoriesinthearea(3readytoadopttheservice,1ontheline,3don'twanttoadopt)willingtopilotsendingoutorderstofarmersviaChợKhoaiMìITsystem.Thesearefactorieslocatedoutsideofthe“supplyzone”(vùngnguyênliệu)andstrugglingtosecuresupplytoensuresmoothoperation.Theyarewillingtoofferbettertermstoattractmoresupplybuthaven’tbeenabletodoit.Theother50%who don’twant to participate in Chợ KhoaiMì are locatedwithin the “supply zone” and areunderstandablyskepticalaboutthisbecauseitpotentiallydisruptstheirsourceofsupply.

• Logisticscoordinationisagainmentionedasabigpainpoint.Thelossinvalueisupto50%forcassavarootssittingovernightafterbeingharvestedbutnotyetprocessed.

• Factoriesreallyneedstablesupplybecause70-80%ofthecoststructureisforrawmaterial(i.e.cassavaroot).Pricefluctuationsareverydamagingtoprofits.

• Tradersgetbettertermsbyprovidinglargesupplyquantitytofactories.• Manyproblemsexistatfactorygate:causedbypriorrelationships/undertabledealingbetweenthe

factorysupplymanagerandthe trader.A fewtypicalproblemsare: factorysupplymanagerslightlyinflate cassava content for a given trader, factory supply manager slightly prioritised entrance forcertaintraders.

• Farmersrequireveryflexiblelogisticsservice,thusindividualtraderservesthemwell• Cross-regiontransportationofcropshappensalot(e.g.factoryinregionAbuysfromregionBwhileat

the same time factory in region B buys from region A). This is highly inefficient and indicates anuncoordinatedvaluechain.

• AMai’sestimateabout60-70%offarmersreceiveinvestmentfromtraders.Tradernetworkishighlyvaluableasalogisticserviceproviderandsometimesstorageprovider.

• About2millionpeopleinDakLak,1/3ofwhicharefarmersandabout1/6ofwhicharecassavafarmers(roughestimate).Thistranslatestoabout100,000farmersinDakLak.Eachhouseholdhasabout3.3farmers(averageof50householdsinEaSar).Thistranslatestoabout33,000pointsofcontactsinDakLak

• Reputationmanagementinthevaluechainisagainmentionedasabigpainpoint.Factoriessometimesbegfarmerstosupplymaterialswhenthey’reinneedbutlaterontreatthesesamefarmersverybadly.Thiscallsfortheneedofanendorsementsystem(asmentionedmanytimesbefore).

• Rightatthemomentsomefactoriesneed800tons/daybutcouldsecureonly~400tons/day.Thisisthetimewhenthebuysidehasabiggerpainpoint.ThiswilllikelyreverseinNovember-December.

Theinsighthereisthatwhiletheproblemsinvaluechainarehighlycomplex,ChợKhoaiMìcanaimtobethemarketmakerbybeing theonlineplacewherebuyers canmeet sellers, andvice versa. There’snoneed tointerveneintheactualnegotiationprocess.

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Appendix4b:Mr.NgocNguyen

TayNguyenUniversityFaculty|DepartmentofEconomics

Purpose:Getfeedbackontheapp,learnmoreaboutpastresearchandlookfornewideas

Time:1hour|23.8.2017

Valuechainproblemhypotheses:

• Hypothesis 1: Cassava factories holdmonopoly power over farmers in the past few years. In fact,competitionamongtradersandfactoriestosecurecassavasupplyseemstohavedisappeared.Thisispotentiallycausedbyoversupply,butmayalsopointtocartelbehaviouramongexistingfactories.Thisneedsmoreinvestigation.

• Hypothesis2:Uncoordinatedinflowofcassavadeliveriesatfactorygatecausesbottleneckattimesandidlecapacityinothertimes(sameproblemthatwaspreviouslymentionedbyaMai).Thisweakensthevaluechainin2ways:

o harvestedcassavasittingoutsideforlongwilllowerinstarchcontent,o farmersperceivethisasatacticdonebythefactorytolowertheprice(whetherthisistrue

willneedmoreinvestigation)• Hypothesis3:lackofinformationregardingreliabilityofeachactorisaprobleminthevaluechain.On

theonehand,theseactorshaveworkedwitheachotherforyearsandpotentiallyknoweachother’sreliabilityverywell.Ontheotherhand,there’snorecordofreliabilityofeachtransactionandnomeansofmakinganactor’s reputationtransparentthroughoutthevaluechain. If this lackof transparencyallowsbadactorstoexistinthevaluechain,thisweakensthevaluechainin2ways:

o trustisdamaged,causingmorefrictionandcostinfuturetransactionso badactorstakeawaybusinessesofthegoodactors,preventingthemfromgrowing

§ Forexample:Chinesetraderscameinanddamagedtheexistingrelationshipsinthelocalvaluechainafewfearsbefore.Byofferinghighprices,theyencouragedlocalfarmerstobreakexistingcontractualrelationshipswith localtradersandfactories.Factories,inturn,stoppedfinancingthesefarmersafterthat.Thishasn’thappenedsincetheoverallcassavamarketbecamedepressed.However,it’sstillanimminentweakpointinthevaluechainthatmayhappenagaininthefuture.

Segmentations:

• Hypothesize3segmentsoffarmers:(1)Thosewhoreceivefinancingfromtrader/factorythuswhosepricebargainingislow(2)Thosewhodon’treceiveexternalfinancingandhavethemeanstodirectselltofactory,thuspricebargainingismedium(3)Thosewhodon’treceiveexternalfinancinganddon’thavethemeans(i.e.transportation/scale)todirectselltofactory,thusselltotraders.

• Hypothesize2segmentsoftraders:(1)traderswhoprovidefinancingthusactmorelikeaninvestor(2)traderswhodon’tprovidefinancingthusactmorelikeanarbitrager

• 5localcassavafactoriesseemtobeverysimilar,thuspotentiallyhaveverysimilarneeds

Appendix4c:Mr.SinhPhan

ChairmanofSepongroup

Purpose:Todiscussinsightsaboutthedifferencesbetweenthevaluechainsinthese2provinces

Time:1hour|1.9.2017

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• UnlikethatinDakLak,cassavavaluechaininQuangTriisworkingverywell.Sepongroupenjoyedstrongprofitsfromcassavainthepastfewyears,thoughalsoaffectedbythefallingmarketprices

• Sepongroupwasprivatisedafewyearsago,butisstill51%ownedbythegovernment.~35billionVND(A$2million),about5%revenues,arecontributedasValueAddedTaxtothegovernmenteveryyear,thusasignificantsourceofincomeforlocalgovernment.(Thisinformationwascross-checkedwiththepubliclyavailablefinancialstatementsofthecompany)

• Internalmanagementdedicatesasignificantportiontogiveoutasbenefitstoworkersatendofyear.• Havemanyinitiativestoconnectwithfarmerstoeducateaboutcassavagrowingtechniques.Strong

relationshipswithfarmers.• Everyone,frommanagementtoworkers,farmers,governmentofficials,shareholders,isinterrelated.

Internalmanagementappreciatesthisrealityandactsaccordingly.

Appendix4d:Mr.TuanAnhDang

Farmerrelationshipspecialist,DepartmentofForeignAffairs,QuangTriProvince

Purpose:DiscusstheviabilityofgettinggovernmentresourcesupportforChợKhoaiMì

Time:30mins|6.9.2017

• Departmentof ForeignAffairs inQuangTriProvincemaintains relationshipswithmultipleoverseasnon-profit,mostofwhichhaveinitiativesupto5yearsfromnow.It’sunclearabouttheprospectafterthe5-yearmark,givenVietnamisgraduallybecomingamiddle-incomecountry.

• PLAN-asomewhatsimilargroup-hadbudgettogivefreecomputertabletstogroupsoffarmersinQuangTri.Maycollaboratewiththeminsteadoforganisingfarmergroupsourselves.

• He specialised in organising and leading farmers groups and oftenworkedwith overseas NGOs ascontractor.

• Governmentdepartmentsdon’thaveresourcestospendonthiskindofproject,moreoftenonlargerprojects

Appendix4e:Mr.MinhNguyen

Cassavatrainingspecialist,FacultyatTayNguyenUniversity,DepartmentofAgriculture

Purpose:DiscusstheviabilityofrunningtrainingsessionsforfarmersandsignthemupforChợKhoaiMìservice

Time:1.5hour|8.9.2017

• IntroducedcurrentZalo-basedserviceconcept• Wentthroughalltheexpensespaidforatypicaltrainingsessionandlikelihoodofsigningupfarmers

fortheservice• Result:Thisisnotaviablemarketingcommunicationchannel

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Appendix4f:Mr.ThangTran

ViceDirectorGeneralatInstituteofPolicyandStrategyforAgricultureandRuralDevelopment

Purpose:DiscussaboutuseofSMSsystemtoconnectwithfarmers,andsimilarpastinitiativesfromIPSAR

Time:30minutesviaSkype|30.8.2017

• IPSARusedtoprovideservicessimilartoChợKhoaiMìBroadcast,thoughonlylimitedtomarketprice,weatherinformationandtargetingallkindsofplantsinsteadofjustcassava.Eachagricultureproductisassignedanumericcodetocommunicate.

• Haveanetworkoftraderswhosendinpriceinformationacrossarangeofagricultureproducts.UtilisesoftwaretointerpretincomingdataandconvertintoreadableExcelspreadsheet.

• Some3rd-party(Agrimedia)providestechnicalassistancetofarmersviaphonecall,butnotyetproventobeeffectivebecauseoflackofvisualinformation.

• Togetoverlowadoptionofsmartphonesamongfarmers,itmaybefeasibletoorganisefarmersintogroupswithonededicatedpointofcontact. It’s likelynecessarytopaythiscontactpersonfinancialincentivetoserveasabridge.

• IntroducedaDan,apersonal friendofaThangandasoftwaredeveloperat InformationCenter forAgricultureandRuralDevelopmentinHanoi,todeveloptheSMSautomationsystem.

• Follow upwith a Dan suggests that an efficient, partially automated,Q&A system to interactwithfarmersviaSMSandZaloisfeasibleandisn’ttoodifficult.ADanwillbeagoodresourceshouldthisneedtobedeveloped.

ThechallengesIPSARfacedinpastattemptstodelivertechnologybenefitstofarmersspeakforthesimilarchallengesthatChợKhoaiMìisfacing.However,ChợKhoaiMìalsohasamuchnarrowerfocusandisbuiltonastrongerunderstandingofveryspecificgroupsofactorsinasinglevaluechain.

Appendix4g:Ms.HoangAnhNguyen

QualitativeMarketResearchDivisionManageratNielsenVietnam

Purpose:DiscussafieldtripforMs.HoangAnhtocometoDakLaktorunamarketresearchfocusgroup

Time:1hour|1.9.2017

• Plannedfortheweekendof17-18/9

# of farmers 50 75 100Participation financial incentive 5,000,000VND 7,500,000VND 10,000,000VNDCompensation for event cleaner, staff 400,000VND 400,000VND 400,000VNDCompensation for gov officers to recruit participants 400,000VND 400,000VND 400,000VNDCompensation for gov leader to direct the gov officers 300,000VND 300,000VND 300,000VNDCompensation for cassava specialist to 2,000,000VND 2,000,000VND 2,000,000VNDTransportation cost 1,000,000VND 1,000,000VND 1,000,000VNDOther team member 500,000VND 500,000VND 500,000VNDTotal event cost 9,600,000VND 12,100,000VND 14,600,000VNDCost/farmer 192,000VND 161,333VND 146,000VNDSign up rate 50% 50% 50%Farmer Acquisition Cost 384,000VND 322,667VND 292,000VNDFAC in AUD 21.33AUD 17.93AUD 16.22AUD

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• Plannedtorun3groupsof8farmereach,dividedbyquantityproducedand/orincomelevel

See“Appendix6:MarketResearchBrief”formoredetails

Appendix4h:Mr.Tan&Mr.Tinh

CurrentsupplymanageratDakofam&ProfessionalCassavaTrader

Purpose:Observecassavafactories’operationson-siteandgetatrader’sperspectiveaboutthevaluechain

Time:6hours|19.09.2017

MrTan:

• Pointedtocassavarootsmixedwithdirtonthefactorygroundasevidencethatfarmerscheatedonthefactory.

• Hisincomedramaticallyreducedinthepastfewyearsduetolowertransactionvolume(volume-basedcompensation)

• Hisworkersandcolleaguesalsohadtheirincomereduceddrasticallyandalreadyquit.Hehimselfwaslookingtoquitsoonifthesituationwouldn’timprove.

• Reportedthatthefactoryownersweregainingalotofprofitsbyhavingtightcontroloverexpenses• Went on a tour to observe other local factories that were either closed or undersupplied due to

shortagesofrawmaterials

MrTinh:

• Currentlyadifficultperiodforallbecauserawmaterialsaren’tenough,lesstradingthanusual• Sometimesreceivedorderfromneighbouringareas• Claimedtobewellconnectedwithallothertradersandalwaysbeontopofcurrentmarketprice(yet

everythingwasdonethroughphonecallswithinpersonalnetwork,sothisisunlikelytobetrue)• Claimedthatfarmersaretypicallyupdatedaboutcurrentprices(previousACIARresearchinDakLak

suggeststheopposite,however)• Thoughtthatthefactoryexecutivescheatbypayinghimandothertraderslessthanwhatwouldbe

recordedinthecompany’saccountingbook,pocketingthedifference.

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Afewphotosfromtheon-sitevisits:

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APPENDIX5:TECHNICALASSETSLog with muabansan@gmail.com (password will be communicated separately for security reason) viawww.lastpass.comtoseealistoflogincredentialstothefollowingtechnicalassets:

• FacebookWorkplace• ZohoMail• Zalo• Apple(topublishlateroniOSAppStore)• Chokhoaimi.comAdmin• GoDaddy• GoogleMail• Osclass(softwarepurchasestomakechokhoaimi.com)• WaveAccounting• Dropbox

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APPENDIX6:MARKETRESEARCHBRIEFWhile the followingbrief hasnot yet beenexecuted, it couldbe reused toperform themarket research.Aprofessionallydonemarketresearchcanprovidevaluableinsightsintothelong-termproject,guidingproductdevelopmentandmarketingactivities.

Farmerinsights

InitialExploration

Dear…,

ChợKhoaiMìisaresearchaidprojectcomingfromAustralia,withthesupportofagroupofresearchersfromUniversityofQueensland,TayNguyenUniversity,andleadersatAustralianCenterforInternationalAgricultureResearch.Cassava isavery special crop,whosegrowersareprimarilypoor farmerpopulation indevelopingcountriessuchasVietnam,IndonesiaandCambodia.ThisindustryintheSoutheastAsiaregionhasundergonetremendouschallengesinthepastfewyearsduetofallingpricesandbrokensupplychainlinkages,affectinglivelihoodofmillionsofthesefarmersandtheirfamilies.Yet,there’saverybigpotentialincassavaasthecropofthecentury,withhighnutritionalandeconomicvalue.Workingonthisvaluechainatthesametimemeanshelpingpeoplewhoneedhelpthemost.

Chợ KhoaiMì is looking for relevant insights about the farmers population to guide our long-term productdevelopmentandmarketingcommunicationinitiatives.MarketresearchatthisstagewillbehighlyimpactfulonfuturesuccessofChợKhoaiMìandpotentiallycontributetothelivelihoodofmillionsoffarmersinVietnam.ThankyoufromChợKhoaiMìteam!

Inthisexplorationphase,there’snoneedyetforquantifiedmarketnumbersbutratheradeeperunderstandingoftheunmetneedsandsmartphoneproficiencyofthefarmerspopulation. IfChợKhoaiMì isafeasibleandsustainablebusiness,there’sapotentialforfurtherfinancialinvestment,atwhichstagetherewillbeaneedformorequantitativeresearch.

• Targetfarmerpopulation:DakLakarea• WhatChợKhoaiMìknowsaboutthispopulation:

1.Onlyabout10%usesasmartphone

2.Alargerpercentagelikelyhavesmartphones(fortheirkids)and/orcomputerinthehouse

3.Mostlikelyhavesmartphoneaccessthroughafarmerfriendinthearea

4.ThereseemstobeastrongdemandforChợKhoaiMìConsultationandBroadcastservice,

though interaction is challenging. Consultation provides technical assistant for growers when theyencounterissueswiththeircrop.Broadcastprovidesusefultips,marketnews,spreadofplantdiseases.

• Whatisunknownaboutthispopulation:

1.Smartphoneadoptionfactorsandcosts:Thisisanopen-endedquestion,butafew

questionscameupduringinitialcontactswiththesefarmersare:

a.HowmucheffortswillittaketotrainonefarmertoregisterforChợKhoaiMì

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serviceandinteractviaZalob.Whatinfluencethesefarmers’decisiontoadoptthisnewtechnology-drivenservicec.Willre-trainingbenecessaryd.Istherewillingnesstopayfortheseservices

e.What,ifany,wouldmakeadoptionoftechnologyviralwithinthispopulationandhowmuchwoulditcosttocreate,maintainthisvirality

2.Usersegmentswithinthispopulation:

a.ArethereseparategroupswhodemanddifferentthingsfromChợKhoaiMì,e.g.

informationvs.technicalhelp

b.Arethereanyotherunmetneedsaboutfarmers’cassavabusinessnotyetdiscovered

Theseinsightsareimportanttodesignaproductthatfarmerscanuseandtoreachouttoalotoffarmerswithaverylimitedmarketingbudget.

ChợKhoaiMì’sbigchallengeistherelationshipswithalargenumberofpotentialfarmers(estimatedat100,000inDakLakalone).Theseusersonlyhavetheneedtointeractwiththemarketplace1-2times/year.Thetimingofsuchneedisuniqueandunpredictableforeachuser(drivenbyurgentfinancialneeds,currentmarketprice,relationshipswithtraders,etc.).60-70%oftheseusersalsoreceivesomeinvestmentfromtraders/factoriesandthusarelessmotivatedtoparticipateintheopenmarketplace.Therest30-40%(stillaverysignificantnumber)aredifficultto identifyandtarget.Mostnotably,a largenumberofthesefarmersdon’thaveasmartphone,don’tknowhowtouseit,ordon’tevenknowhowtoreadSMSthatcomestotheirfeaturephones.Yet,thesemillionsof farmers inVietnamwill beable to reaphugebenefits fromparticipation inChợKhoaiMìonlinemarketplace.

Currently,thefarmersarevulnerableagainstdiseasesaffectingcassavaplants,notknowingwhensuchriskiscoming, how to respond, how to mitigate risk at the start, how to predict price fluctuations to manageproduction, or when demand is high to bargain for better deals, which traders/factories are reliable asinvestmentpartners,wheretosellforthemostmoneyshouldtheyneedurgentcash,etc.

Assuch,pulling farmers intotheecosystemandprovidingtheright levelof technicalsupportat lowestcostpossibleisarealchallengebutveryvaluable.

Hopefully this background information will be useful for your work. Please don’t hesitate to ask for moreclarifications.Andmanythanksagainforyourinvaluabletimeandexpertisecontribution!

Sincerelyyours,

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APPENDIX7:BRANDSTRATEGYBrand isoneessentialelementof thebusiness casebecause it is the focalpoint forallmarketingactivities,including internal and external communication, product design, advertising, promotion, customer support,partnerships,publicrelations,andpotentiallyhiring,companyculturelateron.Theexistenceofabrandalsoallowsuserstorememberabouttheapp,tryit,communicatetoothersaboutit,anddeveloptrusttowardsthebrandidentityovertime.Thisbrandequityifsuccessfullydevelopedwillbeveryusefulforanyfuturerelatedprojectsviabrandextension.

Inthelongerterm,notjustone,butanarchitectureofbrandsisneeded.Foreachcountrythattheapprunsin,abrandnamefortheappinlocallanguageisneededfortheapptorelatewithlocalfarmers.Atthesametime,aparentbrandinEnglishlanguageisneededtokeepalltheselocalappsrootedinasingleprojectandthuscanshare resources, suchascomputingpower to run theapps,personnel, internal IT infrastructure.TheparentbrandalsoallowsthelocalprojectstofundraiseinAustralia,asanadditional,importantsourceofrevenuesinthefuture.

LOCALBRANDINVIETNAM

“Chợ Khoai Mì” (i.e. ‘Cassava Market’) was chosen as the brand name for the app and the project. Thecorrespondingchokhoaimi.comdomainwaspurchasedviaGoDaddy.Multipleothernameswereconsideredsuchas“BạnNhàNông”,“ChợNôngSản”,etc.butthesebroadernameswerealltaken.Besides,thewiderthescopeofthebrand,theweakeritwillbe.“MuaBánSắn”wasalsoregisteredasasecondarybrandnamefortheprojectalongwithmuabansan.comdomainandcanpotentiallybeusedtoexpandappusagebeyondDakLakwhere“sắn”isamorecommonlyusedwordforcassava.

Thesenameswereintentionallycraftedtobeeasyforfarmerstounderstand,anddown-to-earthenoughforthem to relate to. Themessagebehind thebrand is “Thân thiện.Nhanh. Kết nối bền vững” (Friendly. Fast.Sustainableconnections).These3keywordsarechosentoconveyasefficientlyaspossiblewhatChợKhoaiMìdoesandwhyit’srelatable,trustworthy.

Elifepartners–agroupofgraphicdesignersinVietnam–wascommissionedtodevelopthebasicvisualelementsofthebrand/app.Thissuppliercanpotentiallybelong-termpartnertotakecareofallvisualworkfortheprojectsuchasflyers,advertising,animationetc.

OTHERBRANDELEMENTSSignature

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Businesscard

Letterhead

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APPENDIX8:INTERNALMANAGEMENTTOOLSThefollowingtoolswerefoundtobefreefornon-profituseandessentialforteamcommunication,accountingpurposes

FacebookWorkplace

Agreattoolforkeepingrecordsofonlineinteractionsbetweenteammembers,includingvideoconferencing,projectmanagementtool,eventorganisationetc.Thisissetupasafreeaccountfornon-profituseonly.

WaveAccounting

Freeandversatilesolutiontokeeptrackofexpensesandincome.ItcanalsoautomaticallyproducefinancialstatementssuchasBalanceSheet,IncomeStatement,Cashflowatanygiventime.