Improving Digital Marketing Uptake Among Kenya Farmers Using Social Media

Last registered on August 18, 2026
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Improving Digital Marketing Uptake Among Kenya Farmers Using Social Media
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015521
Initial registration date
August 23, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
September 01, 2025, 2:54 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
August 18, 2026, 7:05 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country
Kenya
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Peter Opeyemi James
Affiliation
University of Exeter
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2025-08-04
End date
2026-02-28
Keywords
Agriculture, Behavior, Firms & Productivity
Additional Keywords
Technology, Development
JEL code(s)
0130
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
Low farmer revenues and high consumer food prices characterize African agricultural markets, with high search costs hampering market integration in low- and middle-income countries (Berquist & McIntosh, 2021; Bergquist & Michael, 2020). Digital marketplaces could have major benefits for farmers (Berquist & McIntosh, 2021; Romero-Lopez & Ramos, 2017), but take-up remains too low for them to currently have a large effect. In this project, I will experiment with variations of targeted social media adverts to identify the key factors that drive farmers away from what should be a highly profitable novel ICT platform.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
James, Peter Opeyemi. 2026. "Improving Digital Marketing Uptake Among Kenya Farmers Using Social Media." AEA RCT Registry. August 18. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15521-1.1
Sponsors & Partners

Partner

Name
Digital Shamba Limited (Mkulima Digital)
Type
private_company
URL
https://mkulimadigital.com
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Interventins are in the form information on the expected benefits of a an existing digital marketing platform. Each particiapnt will get only one information from a selected pool of information.
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2025-08-04
Intervention End Date
2025-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1. Intention to Signup
2. Signed up (verified registration)
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
1. Intended and Signed up
2. Not decided, but signed up
3. Not interested, but signed up
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Online field experiment. Providing information on aspects of the digital marketplace to farmers who might use the platform.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization is done by a simple algorithm built with LimeSurvey. There are five different types of information - four of them are targetted and individuals who recieve any of these four are considered to be treated. The fifth information is not targetted and those who recieve this information are considered to be in the control group.
Randomization Unit
Randomization is at individual level.
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
No clusters
Sample size: planned number of observations
Up to 10,000 impressions on Facebook advert and 500 farmers to complete survey used for experiment.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Up to 100 farmers per treatment arm
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
University of Exeter
IRB Approval Date
2025-08-12
IRB Approval Number
8713590
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials