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Unit 8: Rural Product Strategy

market linkages, rural producers can participate in the benefits of globalization and will also Notes
develop their capacity to maintain global quality standard. Nonetheless, it creates new
stakeholders for the industry sector. And subsequently, they become part of the firms’ core
businesses. The involvement of the private/industry sector at the rural product and market
development can also provide opportunities for the development of new services and values to
the customers, which will find application in the developed markets. It will be worth mentioning
that building a sustainable market linkage through industry’s intervention will also empower
the rural mass (producers, farmers & entrepreneurs) to cope with socio-economic problems in
the rural society and will ensure economic self–reliance.

8.10 Building Brands in Rural India

In a market where life has revolved around deep rooted community values, joint families, and
social customs and taboos (women, for example, are not allowed to wear trousers), marketers
realize that the traditional routes of market entry and brand building employed in urban India
are often not feasible. As Adi Godrej, Chairman of the Godrej Group, says, “The challenge [for
brands] is to understand the [psyche] of the rural consumer, create better distribution, and
[appreciate] the heterogeneity.”
Figure 8.6: Medimix Building Brand in Rural India

In recent times, rural India has witnessed a wave of change. Dinesh Malhotra, general manager
of Linterland (rural arm of Lintas), points out, “With media exposure and increasing literacy
levels, people in rural India are now demanding a better lifestyle.” The educated “rural yuppie”
(males in the 15-34 age group) is moving out to work in nearby towns and cities, and sending
money home to his family. This has created an indirect increase in disposable incomes and a
surge in demand for consumer goods. The rural youth are slowly evolving as “opinion leaders”
in influencing brand and product decisions in a market that was swayed by village elders for
centuries.
When building a brand in rural India, word-of-mouth is a huge motivator. Focused
brand-building initiatives—like participation at community events such as “melas” (village
fairs), “haats” (markets), street theater, van campaigns, and puppet shows—generate positive
word-of-mouth and influence buying decisions.
Cholayil Ltd., a purveyor of the herbal soap “Medimix,” campaigned in mobile vans to promote
its brand. “We run a van campaign which visits the interior villages where there are no distributors.
We halt the van at specific points [where village folks congregate and watch videos shown on
these vans] and give out product samples.” However, contrary to claims of Medimix’s success,
Malhotra believes that “van campaigns can be very expensive. [Alternatively, promoting one’s
brand] in large congregation points like village markets and fairs has a far wider reach, and is
more cost effective.”
Direct media promotions have helped build knowledge of product categories and change long-
entrenched living habits. Colgate-Palmolive, a leading oral hygiene product manufacturer,
entered the rural market at a time when “Neem” twigs (the Neem tree has herbal properties)

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