Page 185 - DMGT509_RURAL MARKETING

Rural Marketing

Notes
Role and
Retailer Products Promotion Price
Influence
Urban* (city or Global and Wide range. Informative and MRP. One price for all. Select
town) national brands. Intensive suggestive. discounts at the local retail
Few local brands Help identify level usually on informal
alternatives basis. Packaging, billing and
other related
Semi-urban National and Limited. Informative and MRP in case of branded
(small towns) local brands. Mostly POP, suggestive. products, improper display
feeder points Few global discounts and Help identify of prices for essential
for villages brands and large incentive alternatives commodities.
number of offers, Products sold in local
unbranded packaging too, referred to as
products. loose sales. Weights and
measures less accurate.
Selective credit policy.
Rural (village Largely local Marginal. Helps in Mark-up on all items.
selling points) and unbranded Mostly purchase No display of prices.
products POP and road decisions Different prices to different
signage customers based on customer
knowledge and type of
purchase (barter or cash).
Improper weights,
adulteration.

Source: Rural Marketing by C.S.G. Krishnamacharyulu and Lalitha Ramakrishnan, Pearson Education,
2002
Self Assessment

State whether the following statements are true or false:
6. Haats and melas form an integral part of the rural consumer's shopping patterns.
7. Marketers on the other hand have felt that the rural markets will fetch them higher prices.
8. International farm produce prices could depend on the relative balance of payment situation
with a particular country.
9. A key concern facing marketers in respect of Urban pricing is issue the branded versus
unbranded goods.
10. Inventory clearing discount is given when the firm has large inventory and the discount
acts as incentive for the dealer to buy more.

11. Firms resort to penetrating pricing in order to increase their market share.

9.6 Pricing and Income Levels

Another issue critical to the rural markets is the large income disparity that results in the
consumption patterns being not so regular. In fact, between the urban and rural consumers the
income disparity is fairly large and hence prices for average products remain different. As a
result the basic price differentials are fairly large between these markets. Per capita income in
rural India ( 9481 per annum) is almost half of that of urban India ( 19,407 per annum) indicating
the level of income disparity between urban and rural areas.

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