Page 13 - DMGT509_RURAL MARKETING

Rural Marketing

Notes Firms face the challenges of new competition, both local and global, and of new technologies as
they cater to consumers in business-to-business areas and as individuals. In order to ascertain
the product needed by the consumers, market research is undertaken, which offers information
about the product, price, placement, i.e., distribution system needed and the methods of
communicating information about the product to, the consumers, i.e., by advertising and
promotion, that are among the famous 4 Ps of marketing.
In order to prepare the right 4 Ps, firms define their market segment in which the product would
be best accepted. The firms try to understand the exact needs of the segment in order to be able
to meet the same. In order to build loyal customers firms are trying relationship marketing, to
ensure that consumers feel obligated to buy the same product again and again. Quantity discounts,
free gifts are some of the means to build relationships with the consumers. Since the competition
is doing exactly the same, it is the firm with better strategy, which wins. Changes from the
earlier concepts of production orientation, to product orientation and later on to market
orientation has helped firms in fine tuning their marketing strategies to suit the consumers
from their chosen market segment. The concept of providing socially acceptable products, which
do not affect the biodiversity, and which are not ecologically degrading the environment is
gaining ground rapidly.

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Caselet Bharat Strategy: An attempt to win Rural India

wo major telecom companies of the country, Reliance Communications and Idea
Cellular entered into two unusual partnership – Krishak Bharati Cooperatives Ltd.
Tand the department of Posts. While Kribhco’s 25,000 co-operatives will market
RCom’s telecom products and services, the post offices in Kerala will sell Idea’s specially
designed stamp sized recharge vouchers.

A few months earlier, Airtel entered into a joint venture with the Indian Farmers Fertilizers
Cooperatives Ltd. (IFFCO) to offer specifically designed products and services. The target
consumers are the 55 million farmers under Iffco’s fold. Airtel has already enrolled over
60,000 farmers under this scheme.
Mobile phone manufacturer Nokia, which had earlier launched a basic handset with a
torch and a alarm clock, has now gone a step further with Nokia.
Life Tools – a range of agriculture, education and entertainment services designed especially
for consumers in small towns and rural areas. The life tools provide basic information on
weather, mandi prices and crops.
The efforts of Indian telecom companies to woo Bharat have finally started bearing fruits.
Airtel gets more than half of its new subscribers from rural and semi urban areas. Similarly
with Vodafone – Essar (50 percent), Idea Cellular (56 percent) and Reliance Communications
(50 percent). The Indian telecom sector adds an average 10 million subscribers every
month, of which rural areas account for over five million.

And Nokia sells over 1.6 million phones yearly in rural areas.
As per an Assocham Report on rural consumption, in three years the per capita income in
rural areas will double. Considering that rural households form 72 per cent of the total,
the rural market roughly comprises 720 million customers. The Indian telecom market
woke up to the potential about three years ago and the moves are paying off now. Airtel’s
president, Atul Bindal said, the company was finally seeing its rural strategy yielding
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