Every winter, we find ourselves complaining of the cold. We just aren’t winter people in Botswana! I cannot help but wonder, then, how cold must it be for those who are homeless? Could you imagine it? So often, sitting in the comfort of our cars and with the heating turned up high, we fail to give those less fortunate than ourselves, out in the cold a second thought.You may have heard or read about a campaign in South Africa that challenged CEOs to spend a night on the streets in freezing Johannesburg. All the CEOs get is a cardboard box to sleep on, a light sleeping bag and a cup of soup. These small comforts were considered a luxury by “authentically” homeless Jozi dwellers. Besides this slight reality check, I believe the campaign sent the right message home, as I now do not gaze into the distance when a beggar comes up to my window. I have started observing these ladies and gentlemen on the streets, and I have made some genuinely interesting observations. If one takes the time to observe beggars from a business perspective, some very interesting facts can be found.Let us start with the end in mind, shall we? For a beggar, the burning platform is clear. If one does not get money from begging, one goes hungry that night. This is a glaringly clear target to achieve. It ranks highest on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Why, then, would it be any different here? In order to achieve this goal, the ‘successful’ beggar deploys some cunning marketing principles. You see, ultimately you handing over change to a beggar is a transaction; a sale, if you may. You pay to feel better about yourself; about doing something good and selfless… You are paying to keep your conscience clean for the day.The beggar needs to evoke that emotion from us in order to make his ‘sale.’ After all, if we all had poverty top of mind, I wonder how many would go hungry in the world today? I digress a little here, and this is a topic for another day. Let me get back to the marketing and sales tactics that beggars deploy to get those lifesaving ‘transactions.’You will not find a beggar begging in a poor neighbourhood. The beggar understands a key pillar of marketing is location and, indeed, access to market. Sandton is where it’s happening for the discerning beggar, for instance. You will see poverty in Alex but you will not find beggars there. Rather, they will follow the market. Location is historically one of the most powerful principles of marketing, after all..You will not find a beggar begging in a poor neighbourhood. The beggar understands a key pillar of marketing is location and, indeed, access to market. Sandton is where it’s happening for the discerning beggar, for instance. You will see poverty in Alex but you will not find beggars there. Rather, they will follow the market. Location is historically one of the most powerful principles of marketing, after all.Another powerful example presented itself to me was one of my travels into East Africa; a true, albeit frightening, testament to the marketing principles employed in beggary. In a taxi in downtown Nairobi, a lady carrying a baby comes to my window and says, “Money please, sir.” The sight is simply too sad to describe here. The lady has a smile on her face, but you can see that smile is for show. Her eyes are distant; they are dull. There is no glitter in them, and yet she smiles.The baby needs to have his nose wiped. There is something off about this baby; something just seems out of place. As I reach into my pocket to retrieve some change, the lady’s eye follows my hand… much like a crow might follow the movement of a mouse before snapping it up. Before I can get my hand out, the driver closes my window. Her eyes suddenly turn from anticipation to immediate panic. The driver calls her over and hands her his half eaten lunch. She takes it with clear disappointment on her face. She walks away with her baby over her shoulder.The baby kept his eyes on me, staring at me blankly. There was something very strange about that baby, I thought once more. As we pull off, I can’t help but ask the driver what that was all about. He explains that she was a regular beggar on that street and only wanted money for alcohol. He gave her food, as she needs this more than she needs money. Understandably. “And better for her baby,” I say. He chuckled. That was not her baby, it turned out. The beggars ‘rent’ babies as a form of “prop” when they go begging. Yes, really. She effectively ‘babysits’ for free in exchange to be able you use the baby as a prop. The real mother will most likely be a full-time employee somewhere who cannot afford a real sitter. Marketing innovation in Africa is rife.The lady understood the need to have a compelling proposition, one that had me digging deep into my pocket. A hungry baby is as compelling a position as any I’ve ever seen. Any up-and-coming marketer could learn a thing or two from this lady, no doubt…If you’ve ever watched the movie Slumdog Millionaire, you will see that this tactic of ‘props’ can result in some incredibly horrific things being done to children. Beggar children having their feet cut off or eyes removed to have them look the part to get the most sympathy on the streets of India is common practice… Heart-wrenching as it is (and though I certainly don’t condone such harm being done), these are clear demonstrations of the principles of marketing being used. And they’re being used as a means towards survival.The next time you see a beggar, out the window of your warm and comfortable car, please help them out a little. The reality is, they need those ‘sales’ more than you can believe…
Every winter, we find ourselves complaining of the cold. We just aren’t winter people in Botswana! I cannot help but wonder, then, how cold must it be for those who are homeless? Could you imagine it? So often, sitting in the comfort of our cars and with the heating turned up high, we fail to give those less fortunate than ourselves, out in the cold a second thought.You may have heard or read about a campaign in South Africa that challenged CEOs to spend a night on the streets in freezing Johannesburg. All the CEOs get is a cardboard box to sleep on, a light sleeping bag and a cup of soup. These small comforts were considered a luxury by “authentically” homeless Jozi dwellers. Besides this slight reality check, I believe the campaign sent the right message home, as I now do not gaze into the distance when a beggar comes up to my window. I have started observing these ladies and gentlemen on the streets, and I have made some genuinely interesting observations. If one takes the time to observe beggars from a business perspective, some very interesting facts can be found.Let us start with the end in mind, shall we? For a beggar, the burning platform is clear. If one does not get money from begging, one goes hungry that night. This is a glaringly clear target to achieve. It ranks highest on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Why, then, would it be any different here? In order to achieve this goal, the ‘successful’ beggar deploys some cunning marketing principles. You see, ultimately you handing over change to a beggar is a transaction; a sale, if you may. You pay to feel better about yourself; about doing something good and selfless… You are paying to keep your conscience clean for the day.The beggar needs to evoke that emotion from us in order to make his ‘sale.’ After all, if we all had poverty top of mind, I wonder how many would go hungry in the world today? I digress a little here, and this is a topic for another day. Let me get back to the marketing and sales tactics that beggars deploy to get those lifesaving ‘transactions.’You will not find a beggar begging in a poor neighbourhood. The beggar understands a key pillar of marketing is location and, indeed, access to market. Sandton is where it’s happening for the discerning beggar, for instance. You will see poverty in Alex but you will not find beggars there. Rather, they will follow the market. Location is historically one of the most powerful principles of marketing, after all..You will not find a beggar begging in a poor neighbourhood. The beggar understands a key pillar of marketing is location and, indeed, access to market. Sandton is where it’s happening for the discerning beggar, for instance. You will see poverty in Alex but you will not find beggars there. Rather, they will follow the market. Location is historically one of the most powerful principles of marketing, after all.Another powerful example presented itself to me was one of my travels into East Africa; a true, albeit frightening, testament to the marketing principles employed in beggary. In a taxi in downtown Nairobi, a lady carrying a baby comes to my window and says, “Money please, sir.” The sight is simply too sad to describe here. The lady has a smile on her face, but you can see that smile is for show. Her eyes are distant; they are dull. There is no glitter in them, and yet she smiles.The baby needs to have his nose wiped. There is something off about this baby; something just seems out of place. As I reach into my pocket to retrieve some change, the lady’s eye follows my hand… much like a crow might follow the movement of a mouse before snapping it up. Before I can get my hand out, the driver closes my window. Her eyes suddenly turn from anticipation to immediate panic. The driver calls her over and hands her his half eaten lunch. She takes it with clear disappointment on her face. She walks away with her baby over her shoulder.The baby kept his eyes on me, staring at me blankly. There was something very strange about that baby, I thought once more. As we pull off, I can’t help but ask the driver what that was all about. He explains that she was a regular beggar on that street and only wanted money for alcohol. He gave her food, as she needs this more than she needs money. Understandably. “And better for her baby,” I say. He chuckled. That was not her baby, it turned out. The beggars ‘rent’ babies as a form of “prop” when they go begging. Yes, really. She effectively ‘babysits’ for free in exchange to be able you use the baby as a prop. The real mother will most likely be a full-time employee somewhere who cannot afford a real sitter. Marketing innovation in Africa is rife.The lady understood the need to have a compelling proposition, one that had me digging deep into my pocket. A hungry baby is as compelling a position as any I’ve ever seen. Any up-and-coming marketer could learn a thing or two from this lady, no doubt…If you’ve ever watched the movie Slumdog Millionaire, you will see that this tactic of ‘props’ can result in some incredibly horrific things being done to children. Beggar children having their feet cut off or eyes removed to have them look the part to get the most sympathy on the streets of India is common practice… Heart-wrenching as it is (and though I certainly don’t condone such harm being done), these are clear demonstrations of the principles of marketing being used. And they’re being used as a means towards survival.The next time you see a beggar, out the window of your warm and comfortable car, please help them out a little. The reality is, they need those ‘sales’ more than you can believe…
