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Who are the clients of microfinance? FAQ

Written by: Microfinance Gateway

Article Overview: The typical microfinance clients are low-income persons that do not have access to formal financial institutions. Microfinance clients are typically self-employed, often household-based entrepreneurs. In rural areas, they are usually small farmers and others who are engaged in small income-generating activities such as food processing and petty trade. In urban areas, microfinance activities are more diverse and include shopkeepers, service providers, artisans, street vendors, etc. Microfinance clients are poor and vulnerable non-poor who have a relatively stable source of income.

Who are the clients of microfinance? FAQ

The typical microfinance clients are low-income persons that do not have access to formal financial institutions. Microfinance clients are typically self-employed, often household-based entrepreneurs. In rural areas, they are usually small farmers and others who are engaged in small income-generating activities such as food processing and petty trade. In urban areas, microfinance activities are more diverse and include shopkeepers, service providers, artisans, street vendors, etc. Microfinance clients are poor and vulnerable non-poor who have a relatively stable source of income.

Access to conventional formal financial institutions, for many reasons, is directly related to income: the poorer you are, the less likely that you have access. On the other hand, the chances are that, the poorer you are, the more expensive or onerous informal financial arrangements. Moreover, informal arrangements may not suitably meet certain financial service needs or may exclude you anyway. Individuals in this excluded and under-served market segment are the clients of microfinance.

As we broaden the notion of the types of services microfinance encompasses, the potential market of microfinance clients also expands. For instance, microcredit might have a far more limited market scope than, say, a more diversified range of financial services which includes various types of savings products, payment and remittance services, and various insurance products. For example, many very poor farmers may not really wish to borrow, but rather, would like a safer place to save the proceeds from their harvest as these are consumed over several months by the requirements of daily living.

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Article Tags: financial institutions, financial institutions, financial service, financial services, food processing, microfinance, microfinance, microfinance clients, Microfinance clients, Microfinance clients, microfinance clients, rural areas, urban areas microfinance



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How do you get your clients? - Different people have different ways of getting clients for their business as thats what will determine the success of such venture Some get websites for their business to get clients online. Others do media marketing, use sales personels to go out and canvass. Community projects, promotions, expos, competitions etc are other ways to go... What do you think are the best options to get clients to your busines and make them stay loyal?
Re: Invoicing - [quote:20rontgj]Honest small business owners will do a good job, while honest clients will honor their commitment to pay their invoices on time [/quote:20rontgj] True words indeed, 9 times out of 10, All my clients seem to pay up, its sometimes the ones that Im more friendly with take a while! How would you go about setting something like this up? Do you know if there are any examples online? Or just create a simple T & C s contract? Not sure how to do this but as Im getting more and more clients on board I maybe should cover myself?
Re: How do you get your clients? - I think staying away from gathering clients strictly online when first starting out is probably a good idea. Your first few clients could maybe be people you know, or know through somebody that may require some of your services. Another good way of gaining new clientel is offering your first few clients completely free service in exchange for placing your business card or promotional material in their business if you're doing b2b sales. Referrals are the lifeblood of many small businesses.
Re: Men don't wear ties (necktie: US) like before! - Time and place. Some places of business really do require a tie. Depending on your business, you're often dressing for your client's comfort more than your own. When I meet with clients at a big corporate office downtown, I of course wear a suit. But when I meet clients in less formal settings, such as a restaurant in The East Village or Lower East Side (and I know my client is going to be wearing jeans), then I wear a stylish outfit that matches my environment, but is just slightly dressier than my surroundings. So I really dress for the setting I'll be in and also for my clients comfort. I noticed that when I started to wear dressier clothing, my clients actually matched me and upped the level of their own dress which I found interesting.
Re: Question of the week: Does free work? - "free" in my business usually refers to when we do work for the client that we wont charge them for part of it(which we do a lot as we believe in looking after the client). Some of my clients are very grateful for this and as a result we have permanent clients who we receive constant work from (and also referrals). However, you would be amazed at how some of the clients react when we charge them the regular price and don't give them the discount. We have one client who we always give some kind of discount to as they are very good clients, however for the last invoice we had to charge them at the normal price and they were not very happy about it. Unfortunately, some times "free" can create a greedy customer who will expect everything for nothing.


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