RURAL MARKETING (RUMA)

SESSION - 2
PROF. SUPRATIM PRATIHAR
IMIS
RURAL MARKETING
OPPORTUNITIES
PROF. SUPRATIM PRATIHAR, IMIS

THE CALL OF RURAL INDIA

 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Classification of the rural market

• Factors influencing the decisions to enter a rural market

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 CLASSIFICATION OF THE RURAL MARKET

• Rural markets can be classified into:

A. Consumer markets

B. Industrial markets

C. Services markets

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 CLASSIFICATION OF THE RURAL MARKET

A. CONSUMER MARKETS:

– Constituents : Individuals & households.

– Products :

• Consumables : Food Products, Toiletries, Cosmetics, Textiles & Garments, Footwear

etc.

• Durables : Watches, Bi-cycles, Radios, TV, Kitchen appliances, Furniture, Sewing

machines, Two wheelers and so on.

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 CLASSIFICATION OF THE RURAL MARKET

B. INDUSTRIAL MARKETS:

– Constituents : Agricultural & Allied activities, Poultry farming, fishing,

animal husbandry, Cottage industries, Health Centers, Schools, Co-

operatives, Panchayat Office etc.

– Products :

• Consumables : Seeds, Fertilizers, Pesticides, Animal Feeds, Fishnets, Medicines,

Petrol / Diesel etc.

• Durables : Tillers, Tractors, Pump Sets , Generators, Harvesters, Boats etc.

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 CLASSIFICATION OF THE RURAL MARKET

C. SERVICES MARKETS:

– Constituents : Individuals, Households, Offices & Production firms.

– Services : Repairs, Transport, Banking, Credit, Insurance, Healthcare,

Education, Communication and Power etc.

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 GO RURAL DECISION

• The factors influencing the decision to enter a rural market

can be divided into three categories:
A. Urban push factors (Positive influence)

B. Rural pull factors (Positive influence)

C. Rural inhibiting factors (Negative influence)

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 GO RURAL DECISION

A. URBAN PUSH FACTORS (POSITIVE INFLUENCE):

• Companies that have so far successfully operated in the urban markets
have found them no longer attractive for the following reasons:

– Saturation stage

– Fierce competition

– Changing lifestyle (Trysumers)

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 GO RURAL DECISION
B. RURAL PULL FACTORS (POSITIVE INFLUENCE):
• The factors that make rural markets attractive are as follows:
– Rising affordability
• Population, Occupation, Income, Consumption, Disposable income
– Growing acceptance
• Increasing literacy, Lifestyle changes, Growing education, Media explosion, Shifts in
decision making
– Increasing availability needs / Increasing demands
• Growing usage and demand for products, Upgrading of purchases, Growing brand
consciousness
– Improving accessibility
• Better infrastructure viz. road connectivity, phone connectivity, electricity, internet
etc.
– Success stories of corporations
• HUL (Project Shakti), ITC (E - Choupals), Nirma, Dabur, Godrej, Maruti, Coca-Cola etc.

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 GO RURAL DECISION
C. RURAL INHIBITING FACTORS (NEGATIVE INFLUENCE):
• Problems (caution while taking entry decisions) that inhibit the successful
operations of corporations in the rural market:
– Uneven development
– Fragmented market
– Diversity in occupations
– Heterogeneity in lifestyle
– Low income streams
– Lack of steady and sustainable consumption
– Promotional agencies lack marketing skills
– Access difficulty
– Limited awareness and acceptance
– Low level of education
– Low budget for promotion
– Intensifying competition
– Failure of few companies
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 GO RURAL DECISION - SUMMARY
Summary of many and divergent factors that
influence the go rural decision
Urban push factors Rural pull factors Rural inhibiting factors

Saturation stage Rising affordability Uneven development

Fierce competition Growing acceptance Fragmented market
Changing lifestyles Increasing availability needs Diversity in occupations
Improving accessibility Heterogeneity in lifestyles
Success stories of Low-income streams
corporations Lack of steady and sustainable
consumption
Promotional agencies lack
marketing skills
Access difficulty
Limited awareness and acceptance
Low level of education
Low budget for promotion
Intensifying competition
Failure of some companies

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 WHAT RURAL MARKET IS NOT

• Rural market is not:

– Large virgin markets waiting to be tapped

– Simply marketing goods and services to villages

– A savior for companies that face saturation in urban markets

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 THANK YOU
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