Does a Picture Paint a Thousand Words? Evidence from a Microcredit Marketing Experiment

Female entrepreneurship is low in many developing economies partly because of constraints on women's time and mobility, which are often reinforced by social norms. This paper analyzes a marketing experiment designed to encourage women to adopt a new microcredit product. A brochure with the same content but two different covers was randomly distributed among male and female borrowing groups. One cover featured five businesses run by men, while the other showed identical businesses run by women. Men and women responded to psychological cues. Among men who were not business owners, had lower measured ability and whose wives were less educated, the responses to the female brochure were more negative, as did female business owners with low autonomy within the household. Women with relatively high levels of autonomy had a similar negative response to the male brochure, while there was no effect on female business owners with autonomy. Overall, these results suggest that women's response to psychological cues, such as positive role models, may be affected by their level of autonomy at home, and more intensive interventions may be required for more disadvantaged women.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Picón, Mario, Giné, Xavier, Mansuri, Ghazala
Language:	English
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2012-04
Subjects:	ACCESS TO CAPITAL, ACCESS TO FINANCE, ACCESS TO FINANCIAL SERVICES, ACCOUNT, ACCOUNTING, ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS, ADVERTISING, AGRICULTURAL FINANCE, AGRICULTURAL SECTOR, AMOUNT OF LOAN, APPLICATION PROCESS, ATTITUDES TOWARDS WOMEN, AUTONOMY, BAD CREDIT, BANK OFFICE, BANKING SECTOR, BANKS, BORROWER, BORROWING, BRIBES, BUSINESS ACTIVITY, BUSINESS EXPERIENCE, BUSINESS NETWORKS, BUSINESS OWNER, BUSINESS OWNERS, BUSINESS OWNERSHIP, BUSINESS TRAINING, BUSINESS WOMAN, BUSINESSWOMEN, CAPITALS, COMMERCIAL BANK, COMMERCIAL BANKS, CONSUMER DURABLES, CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES, CREDIT CONSTRAINT, CREDIT CONSTRAINTS, CREDIT HISTORY, CREDIT INFORMATION, CREDIT OFFICERS, CREDIT PRODUCT, CREDIT PRODUCTS, CREDIT SOURCE, CULTURAL NORMS, CURRENCY, DEMAND FOR CREDIT, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DEVELOPMENT FINANCE, DISADVANTAGED WOMEN, DISBURSEMENT, DUMMY VARIABLES, ECONOMETRICS, ELIGIBLE BORROWERS, EMPOWERMENT, ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT, ENTREPRENEURS, EQUIPMENT, EXCLUSION, EXPENDITURES, FACE VALUE, FEMALE BUSINESS, FEMALE BUSINESSES, FEMALE CLIENTS, FEMALE ENTREPRENEUR, FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS, FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP, FINANCIAL ACCESS, FINANCIAL PRODUCT, FINANCIAL SECTOR REFORMS, FINANCIAL SYSTEM, FORMAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTION, GENDER, GENDER DEVELOPMENT, GROUP OF WOMEN, GROUP SAVINGS, GUARANTORS, HANDICRAFT, HANDICRAFTS, HOLDING, HOUSEHOLD BUSINESSES, HOUSEHOLD INCOME, HOUSEHOLDS, HOUSING, HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, HUSBANDS, IMAGE, IMPACT EVALUATION, INFORMAL LENDERS, INSTALLMENT, INSTALLMENTS, INSURANCE, INTEREST RATES, INTERNATIONAL BANK, INVENTORIES, JOINT LIABILITY, LACK OF COLLATERAL, LACK OF CREDIT, LENDER, LENDERS, LIMITED ACCESS, LOAN, LOAN AMOUNT, LOAN AMOUNTS, LOAN APPLICANTS, LOAN APPLICATION, LOAN APPLICATION PROCEDURES, LOAN APPLICATIONS, LOAN DEMAND, LOAN FUNDS, LOAN PRICE, LOAN PROCEEDS, LOAN PRODUCT, LOAN REPAYMENT, LOAN REQUEST, LOAN SIZE, LOAN SIZES, LOAN TERMS, MARKETING, MARKETING TECHNIQUES, MATURITY, MATURITY PERIOD, MFI, MICRO-ENTREPRENEURSHIP, MICROCREDIT, MICROENTERPRISES, MICROFINANCE, MICROFINANCE INSTITUTION, MICROFINANCE INSTITUTIONS, MICROFINANCE SECTOR, MONEYLENDERS, OUTREACH, OUTSTANDING DEBT, OUTSTANDING LOAN, PEER PRESSURE, PREJUDICE, PRIVATE BANKS, PRIVATIZATION, PROFITABILITY, PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS, PURCHASING, RECEIPT, REGULATORY FRAMEWORK, REMITTANCE, REMITTANCE SERVICES, REPAYMENT, REPAYMENT CAPACITY, REPAYMENT SCHEDULE, RETAIL BUSINESSES, RETURN, RETURNS, RURAL CREDIT, SALES, SAVINGS, SELLING, SMALL BUSINESSES, SMALL ENTERPRISES, SMALL LOAN, SOURCES OF CREDIT, SOURCES OF INCOME, STATE BANK, STATE BANK OF PAKISTAN, TRANSPARENCY, VILLAGE, VILLAGES, WOMAN, WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS, WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS, WORKING CAPITAL,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/04/16197256/picture-paint-thousand-words-evidence-microcredit-marketing-experiment https://hdl.handle.net/10986/6023
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