NetMark: A Case Study In Sustainable Malaria Prevention Through Partnership with Business

This 26-page case study shares the experience of NetMark, a programme to increase demand for and expand the availability of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) to prevent malaria, to develop business models for ITN promotion and distribution. As part of its programming, NetMARK developed a market-based approach of shared risk and investment dubbed Full Market Impact™ (FMI™), based on the premise that as demand grows within a competitive market, consumers will benefit from improved quality, lower prices, and wider availability. NetMark was initiated by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and developed under the management of the Academy for Educational Development (AED), now FHI 360. According to the case study, NetMark's matching funds and public education campaigns built awareness about malaria and ITN use, enhancing the commercial sector's marketing efforts.

The case study explains that NetMark’s FMI model was intentionally designed to reflect the way businesses thought about the market, thus the model’s convergence with the classic "4 Ps" of marketing: product, place, price, and promotion. In this way, FMI demonstrates how meeting the needs of the poor can translate into good business that promotes expansion into new market segments. Data from household surveys conducted by NetMark in 2004 showed considerable gains since the baseline research in 2000 and the first country launch in late 2001. In all NetMark countries, awareness and use of nets and ITNs increased dramatically, and more nets are being treated or purchased pre-treated.

According to the case study, demand creation was successful in building awareness of ITNs. The marketing campaign included mass media - TV and outdoor billboards, as well as traditional promotional and social marketing techniques such as road shows geared toward building awareness and behaviour change. One TV spot won a prestigious international industry award for best "benefit communication". In addition, NetMark created awareness for its "seal of quality" which assured consumers that products carrying the seal met international standards, including use of WHO-recommended insecticides. Partners incorporated the seal into their packaging designs, which served to link their brand with the generic marketing campaign.

In terms of lessons learned, the case study notes that NetMark's matching funds and public education campaigns built awareness about malaria and ITN use, enhancing the commercial sector's marketing efforts. Partners are leveraging NetMark’s seal of quality on product packaging and piggy-backing generic demand creation funded by NetMark onto advertising and promotions for their commercial brands. A new hybrid communication capacity is developing in the African region. Partners can deliver a dual message, building consumer demand while creating behaviour change in the interest of public health. Finally, while promotion is important, NetMark has learned the importance of balancing investment in supply- and demand-side activities.

The case study concludes that the key lessons presented in the document will help inform future partnerships, whether for malaria prevention or for tackling other public health or social problems. FHI 360 is leveraging its core competencies by applying the Full Market Impact™ (FMI™) model in hygiene and reproductive health partnerships. Capitalising on its knowledge of behaviour change communications and design and management of
development programmes, FHI 360 hopes to continue to partner with the commercial sector to grow new markets while addressing global public health issues and serving the needs of the poor.