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The Influence of Bayer-branded GeoPotato Alerts on Farmers’ Behavior and Perceptions
BAN -18 -1721Last modified on November 7th, 2025 at 9:31 am
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Abstract
PxD and mPower partnered with Bayer, a commercial input supplier, to test branded SMS alerts in the GeoPotato advisory service provided to potato farmers in Bangladesh. The partnership aimed to explore sustainable models for delivering digital advisory services, by testing how branded content affects farmers’ behavior and perceptions.
This trial assessed whether Bayer-branded GeoPotato alerts influence farmers’ recognition of the brand, use of fungicide, and trust in the GeoPotato service, as well as farmers’ willingness to adopt recommendations. Farmers were randomly assigned to receive either standard alerts or alerts that included Bayer branding. The study measured outcomes related to brand recall, fungicide use, and trust in the service.
Branded messages led to an 18% increase in the use of Bayer products, without undermining farmers’ trust in the GeoPotato service or their willingness to adopt its recommendations. However, the branded alerts did not have a significant impact on farmers’ ability to recall the Bayer brand or recognize its products. These findings support the potential of NGO partnerships with commercial input suppliers to sustain digital advisory services while boosting their product-uptake. -
Status
Completed
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Start date
Q4 Dec 2018
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Experiment Location
Bangladesh
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Partner Organization
mPower
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Agricultural season
_N/A
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Experiment type
A/B test
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Sample frame / target population
Potato farmers who owned a mobile phone in the Rangpur district
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Sample size
1,547
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Outcome type
Input adoption
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Mode of data collection
Phone survey
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Research question(s)
Do recommendations of Bayer-branded fungicides in the GeoPotato advisory service increase the use of Bayer products without undermining farmers’ trust in the service?
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Research theme
Extension agents, Input markets, Social learning
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Research Design
A total of 1,547 farmers were randomly assigned to the treatment group or the control group. Both groups received the same core GeoPotato service, with the key difference being whether the fungicide advice included a brand reference.
Farmers in the control group (n = 839) received standard alerts that recommended only the chemical composition of fungicides, without reference to any specific brand. Farmers in the treatment group (n = 708) received branded alerts that explicitly recommended fungicides from Bayer.
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Results
The branded messages resulted in an 18% increase in the use of Bayer products (64.1% of treatment group farmers reported Bayer product use compared to 54.5% of farmers in the control group) without undermining the trust of farmers in the GeoPotato advice or their willingness to adopt its recommendations. These findings support the model of a partnership between the GeoPotato service and commercial input suppliers, such as Bayer, to ensure a sustainable source of funding for the service while increasing the exposure and sales of the supplier’s products.
Farmers’ ability to recall the Bayer brand and their recognition of Bayer products were not significantly impacted by the Bayer-branded alerts.