Rural marketing is the process of developing, pricing, promoting and distributing rural specific products and services leading to consumer satisfaction and achievement of organizational objectives. [1] It aims to improve standard of living of rural consumers by providing them greater awareness and accessibility to new products and services.
There were four phases of rural marketing: [2]
Phase I (before the mid-1960s): Before the mid-1960s, rural marketing focused on agricultural products (such as food grains) and industrial inputs (such as cotton and sugarcane), while excluding heavy and durable products such as tractors, electric motors, and harvesters. [2]
Phase II (mid 1960s-mid 1990s): During this period, it was influenced by Green Revolution, which enabled rural areas to have better irrigation facilities, high yielding seeds, soil testing, and application of implements such as power tillers and harvesters. [2]
Phase III (after the mid-1990s): In the 1980s, the industrial sector of many developing countries like India became increasingly important and its contribution to Gross National Product increased substantially. After the Indian economic reforms of 1991-1992 competition in rural markets increased significantly. [2]
Phase IV (around 2015): This phase marks the emergence of the global market. Globalization resulted in factors such as the information revolution, creation of appropriate technology, increasing urbanization promoted by greater focus on cities leading to the development of rural markets. [2]
Because rural markets are in high demand, a range of different businesses are looking to them for growth support. A marketing mix framework focuses on delivering the right product, at the right price, using the right promotion strategy, choosing an appropriate distribution channel, and fostering long-term relationships with customers. Traditional literature in the field focused on 4P's (Product, Price, Place, and Promotion) as the drivers of marketing.[ citation needed ] Rural marketing is nowadays understood through the axes of 4As: Availability, Affordability, Acceptability, and Awareness. [3]
Availability: In remote rural settings, providing consistent product availability is a fundamental aspect of rural marketing as rural population are known to be daily wage earners who spend money on their basic needs on a regular basis. Thus, they go for other substitute product.
Affordability: Targeting rural consumers who are more price-sensitive, marketers introduced smaller packages at cheaper rates in order to capture their attention.
Acceptability: To derive some value from the product to satisfy the need of the consumer, much emphasis is given to product design. It shows their acceptance towards the brand if the rural consumers are willing to pay more for the product.
Awareness: Keeping in mind the low accessibility of the media (such as television and smartphones) among the rural population, marketers need to grab the attention of rural consumers and their focal point is to opt for that medium of communication and entertainment that are readily available in rural areas.
As a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), [18] companies operating in metropolitan markets also participate in rural development operations. Some prominent examples are:
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