The rural population is scattered in over 6 lakhs villages. The rural population is highly scattered, but holds a big promise for the marketers. Higher purchasing capacity: Purchasing power of the rural people is on rise. Marketers have realized the potential of rural markets, and thus are expanding their operations in rural India. Selling a house in a rural area is different than selling a house in an urban area. If you want to sell your rural house, there are some things you can do to make it sell easier. Clean up the property. Tear down old barbed wire fence and trim weedy fence lines and ditches. Get rid of old farm equipment or junk lying around the property.

Definition: Rural marketing refers to the framing and application of various marketing principles and strategies along with the marketing mix by the companies to capture the potential market and satisfy the needs of the people living in the remote areas of the country.

Example: One of the prominent marketing strategy adopted was Nokia’s launch of affordable mobile phones ‘Nokia 1100’, which has a bright torch and an alarm clock. This was done to facilitate the rural population residing in the areas where there is no electricity.

Content: Rural Marketing

Ways of Rural Marketing

The rural marketing involves two primary elements; one is rural and second is urban. The exchange of goods between these two markets can be understood in the following ways:

Urban to Rural: The products manufactured in cities such as the FMCG products, fertilizers, consumer durables, etc. are made available in the remote areas. This is termed as urban to rural marketing.
Rural to Urban: The goods manufactured or grown in rural areas or villages, including crops and other agricultural products, handicraft items, pottery products, etc. are sold to the consumers of urban areas. It is known as rural to urban marketing.
Rural to Rural: When a rural manufacturer sells products like cattle, pottery, carts, etc. to other villages, it is called as rural to rural marketing.

Features of a Rural Market

What do we understand by a rural market? What differentiates it from an urban market?

The rural market can be understood as the selling and distribution or exchange of goods in the village or remote areas. The following characteristics will help us to understand the rural market better:

Low Standard of Living: The village lifestyle is quite conservative and straightforward. People here spend more on necessities instead of luxury goods, making it very different from that of city life.

Large and Scattered Market: A significant percentage of the population resides in villages. There are numerous villages located throughout the country, with a small group of people living in each of them. Thus, the rural market is spread over a vast area.

Traditional Outlook: The village population tend to stick to their traditions and are resistant to change due to low literacy level. However, the rural youth is initiating development though at a slower pace.

Agriculture is Major Source of Income: The village population is highly dependant upon the agricultural income for their living. In the case of crop failure, the rural people have low disposable income.

Development of Infrastructure: The rural areas lack proper infrastructure facilities such as appropriate transportation, cemented roads, communication network, banks, warehouses, etc.

Diverse Socio-Economic Background: Since the fertility of the land is uncertain and covers a large geographical rural area, there is a social-economic diversity in the people of these areas.

Seasonal Demand: The seasons and stages of agriculture, influence the demand for goods and services in rural markets. Hence they have two major seasons, namely kharif and ragi.

Prevalence of Spurious Brands: In rural areas, people are more price-conscious and illiterate. Due to this, several fake brands penetrate these markets with cheap products that look similar to the original ones.

Low Literacy Level: The percentage of illiteracy is quite high in remote areas. Thus, disconnecting them with the print media and therefore, the marketers use another medium such as radio, roadshows and nukkad dramas for rural marketing.

Heterogeneous Market: The people living in the villages belong to different religion, culture, social and economic backgrounds, linguistics, etc. and therefore have disparate perspective and demands.

Rural Marketing Environment

All markets exist in an external environment where the business organizations function. The following are the environmental factors which influence the trade practices in rural marketing:

Political Changes

The government’s intervention in the trade and commerce practices promoting the small scale rural industries and penetration of other business units in the rural areas to enhance the condition of people living in these areas, influence the rural markets to a great extent.

Social Changes

The social environment consists of the following:

sociological factors, i.e., rural consumer’s lifestyle, preference and habits;
anthropological factors determine the culture and the way of living of the consumer and;
psychological factors constitute of the attitude, perception, behaviour, personality and mental soundness of the consumer.

All these factors also influence the rural markets.

Technological Changes

With technological advancement, marketers make use of the latest marketing tools and strategies. Also, the modes of communication and transportation have been improvized to produce the goods or services available to rural consumers in a short period.

Economic Changes

The marketers need to consider economic factors, including a healthy competition, consumer welfare and optimal price to conquer the rural markets.

Physical Changes

Another essential factor is the physical distribution of the goods or services into the rural markets, which can be achieved through the development of infrastructure.

Ethical Changes

Rural Markets Have The Real Money

Business ethics are essential for achieving the long-term goals of the organization. Thus, the moral values of the company play a key role in marketing the products in rural areas.

Reasons for Potential of Rural Market

Why would a business invest resources in the rural market? How does it benefit the organizations?

Let us now understand the various opportunities that a rural market holds for business organizations and companies:

Saturation of Urban Markets: The metropolitan areas are well-equipped with different products and services. Therefore, the companies rescue to the rural markets to increase sales.

Better Employment Opportunities: The government is engaged in developing job prospects other than agricultural activities for the rural population through Jawahar Rozgar Yojana (JRY). It provides an opportunity for the companies for entering the rural markets.

Increase in Rural Income: As modern agricultural practices have emerged in rural areas, the farmers have been able to produce a better harvest and reduce crop failures. This has ultimately increased the disposable income of the villagers.

Change in Rural Consumer Behaviour: The demand for goods or services in rural areas is immensely pricing sensitive. However, consumers are moving towards the purchase of technical products, like mobiles and computers. Thus, expanding the growth scope for the companies.

Favourable Government Policies: The government carry out varied programmes and frames various policies to develop job opportunities and promote the sale of goods and services in rural markets.

Improvement in Infrastructure Facilities: The inf