Ind|a: Innovat|on |n kura| Market|ng

rof. anka[ Arora

"kura| Market: Current|y, |t's a b|ack ho|e, there's not enough data, we w||| try to create a know|edge
base," - Mr radeep kashyap
Abstract:
8ural markeLlng ls equaLed wlLh markeLlng by MnC ln rural lndla. 1he exLenL llLeraLure on rural
markeLlng has uncrlLlcally used Lhe same Lheorles, models, concepLs and framework as have been used
ln Lhe markeLlng dlsclpllne. As well as Lhls research also focuses on lnformaLlon Lechnology (l1) and lL's
conLrlbuLe ln rural developmenL. ln Lhls aper researcher also focus on lnnovaLlve approaches ln 8ural
MarkeL for promoLlon and dlsLrlbuLlon of producLs
key Words:
lnnovaLlon, l1, 8ural markeL
Introduct|on:
An analysls of Lhe conLenL of a number of LexLbooks wrlLLen on Lhe sub[ecL ( for example, uogra and
Chuman 2008, Copalswamy 1997, kashyap and 8auL 2006, krlshnamacharyulu and 8amakrlshnan 2002,
8a[agopal 1998, velayudhan 2002) reveals LhaL Lhe meanlng of rural markeL has changed over Lhe pasL
slx decades. kashyap and 8auL (2006) have llsLed Lhree dlsLlncL phase ln Lhe evoluLlon of rural markeLlng
durlng whlch Lhe Lerm change lL meanlng and connoLaLlon.
uurlng Lhe flrsL phase, pre 1960s, rural markeLlng was synonymous wlLh agrlculLural markeLlng.
uurlng 1960s - 1990s Lhe markeLlng of agrlculLure lnpuL and markeLlng of non farm rural producL was
consldered as rural markeLlng.
osL 1990s- WlLh rlslng lncome and mushroomlng mlddle class across Lhe counLry, varlous companles
focused on Lapplng rural markeL poLenLlal. 8ural markeLlng now refer Lo lMCC and Consumer durable
goods ln rural area.
A greaL number of sLudles have shown LhaL yeL Loday approxlmaLely 60 of lndlan opulaLlon llves ln
8ural Areas. 1oday, lmprovemenL ln llvlng condlLlon and enlargemenL of 8ural area ls essenLlal for Lhe
developmenL of Lhe lndlan Lconomy. Many pro[ecLs were underLaken ln rural area and oLher's whlch
are ln plpellne, are llkely Lo be lnLroduced wlLh ln shorL span of Llme. 8ural LlLeracy ls ranked aL Lhe
maln concern. 1rends shows LhaL rural markeLs are comlng up ln blg way and growlng mulLlple fold Llme
as fasLer as urban markeLs. Accordlng Lo a sLudy by NCALk (naLlonal Councll for Applled Lconomlc
8esearch), Lhe number of mlddle and hlgh-lncome households ln rural lndla ls expecLed Lo grow from
130 Mllllon Lo 172 Mllllon by Lhe end of year 2012 as compared Lo urban lndla LhaL ls nearby 71 Mllllon.
[ rof. anka[ Arora, LecLurer, ulMA1, 8alpur (ChhaLLlsgarh)}
L|terature kev|ew:
1he focus of llLeraLure, malnly wrlLLen ln Lhe posL llberallzaLlon perlod, ls on hlghllghLlng poLenLlal of
vasL rural markeL and provldlng descrlpLlon of a few cases of commerclal organlzaLlon of rural areas. 1he
llLeraLure has uncrlLlcally borrowed Lheorles, framework and concepL from Lhe malnsLream markeLlng
dlsclpllne, whlch has shlfLed Lhe growLh of Lhe sub[ecL as an lndependenL fleld of academlc lnvesLlgaLlon.
1here ls an urgenL need Lo bulld a dlsLlncLlve perspecLlve and a sound LheoreLlcal base for rural
markeLlng, whlch would creaLe lLs own concepLs, frameworks, Lheorles and body of knowledge. 1he
lssue needs lmmedlaLe aLLenLlon of Lhe researcher ln rural markeLlng.
Creat|ve Approach 1oward rura| Market:
CreaLlve people do noL always have as speclflc ldea ln mlnd when Lhey begln Lo search for an lnnovaLlon,
whaL Lhey do have ls meLhod or way of golng abouL LhaL search. 1he commerclallzaLlon process ls lLself
a creaLlve process. lrom dlscovery of buslness ldea Lo producL developmenL, feaslblllLy analysls, and
buslness plannlng, Lhe appllcaLlon of creaLlvlLy Lo all of Lhese area ls whaL seL successful enLrepreneur
venLure aparL from Lhelr compeLlLors.
Domest|c Consumer:
lL ls wldely acclalmed LhaL lndla ls one of Lhe largesL consumer markeL ln Lhe world. 8uL Lhe consumer ln
lndla shows wlde varlaLlon ln slze and poLenLlal of varlous consumer markeL segmenL. 1hese dlfference
can be seen ln Lerms of geographlcal dlfference , urban - rural consumer ( Lhere sLyle of llvlng
consumpLlon paLLern eLc.), age and famlly llfe cycle , lncome level, educaLlon level, llngulsLlc and rellglon
dlverslLy , food hablL , fesLlval eLc. revoluLlon ln communlcaLlon Lechnology are forclng markeLer Lo look
beyond Llme LesLed concepL such as brand loyalLy and mass markeLlng . MarkeLer are Lrylng Lo
deLermlne Lhe underlylng need and moLlve of consumer as well as varlous facLor whlch lnfluence Lhe
formaLlon of Lhese need and saLlsfacLlon of Lhese. MarkeLer are also Lrylng Lo undersLand Lhe Learnlng
rocess" adopLed by buyer and consumer.
1he Learnlng process can also be llnked Lo oLher cognlLlve sLrucLure such as (values)aLLlLude and bellefs.
8uylng behavlor ls also lnfluenced by oLher psychologlcal concepL such as personallLy, moLlvaLlon and
percepLlon. knowlng Lhe lmpacL of Lhese concepL on buylng behavlor wlll help markeLer ln Lhe
generaLlon of new producL ldeas and adopLed cusLomlzaLlon for core producL, some addlLlonal feaLure
and by offerlng of addlLlonal servlces, all done wlLh Lhe lnLenLlon Lo add Lhe cusLomer dellghL.






MarkeLer ln order Lo adapL Lo new markeLlng paradlgm shlfL ln consumer LasLe and preference are golng
for fundamenLal shlfL ln Lhe markeLlng research Lechnlque producL developmenL, adverLlslng and
promoLlonal sLraLegles. (19)
Consumer purchase declslon are deLermlned by Lhe level of lnvolvemenL LhaL consumer feel abouL
producL ln quesLlon and as Lo wheLher Lhe producL purchase ls deLermlned predomlnanLly Lhrough Lhe
Lhlnklng or feellng abouL Lhe process. Plgh lnvolvemenL producLs are producL where Lhe consumer sees
a hlgh percelved rlsk moneLarlly or oLherwlse. Low lnvolvemenL purchases are posslbly low prlced and
non rlsky producL purchase. 1hlnklng process call for raLlonal funcLlonal analysls of meLhodlcal Lhlnklng
process. Whereas falllng producL are boughL based on Lhe basls of personallLy facLor and for sensory and
emoLlonal reason. 1aklng Lhe lndlan consumer markeL scenarlo, producL llke 1v and auLomoblle, glven
Lhe naLure of Lhelr purchase would be hlgh lnvolvemenL, where as cooklng oll and baby food would be
hlgh on lnvolvemenL buL mayn'L call for a funcLlonal - raLlonal analysls of daLa. Cn Lhe oLher hand,
soaps, deLergenL, paln balm, sofL drlnk and confecLlonary are purely boughL on emoLlonal reason. (26)




lndenufy
CusLomer need
1hrough
AdverusmenL and
Communlcauon
CusLomer WanL
roper
ulsLrlbuuon and
Sales
lnduce CusLomer
1rlal
Cer
lndlvlduallsed
roducL
CusLomer
Lxperlence WlLh
Lhe rodcuL
8esulL ln
8r|ng|ng techno|ogy to kura| Market:
1he enLlre Lechnology commerclallzaLlon process, from ldea Lo markeL. 1oday as Lechnology drlves
lnnovaLlon and companles seek more effecLlve way Lo explolL Lhe lnLellecLual properLy Lhey creaLe.
1echnology ls dlfferenL from any oLher Lype of new producL. lor one Lhlng, Lhe markeL respond
dlfferenLly Lo Lechnology, cusLomer are slow Lo accepL a new Lechnology wlLh whlch Lhey are noL
famlllar. new Lechnologles are commerclallzed ln a varleLy of ways, buL Lhe underlylng commonallLles ls
an enLrepreneurlal approach LhaL seek Lo creaLe new value.
l1 lnvolves Lhe e- processlng, sLorage and exchange of lnformaLlon, where anyLhlng LhaL can be
represenLed ln dlglLal form ls lncluded ln Lhe Lerm 'lnformaLlon'. 1hus reporLs, amusemenL, personal
communlcaLlons, learnlng maLerlal, blank and fllled-ouL forms, announcemenLs, schedules, and so on
are all lnformaLlon. SofLware programs LhaL process daLa (searchlng, LabulaLlng, and calculaLlng, for
example) are also lnformaLlon ln Lhls sense, represenLlng a parLlcular klnd of lnLermedlaLe good.
1he enLrepreneur who lnLroduce a new Lechnology musL, Lherefore devlse a sLraLegy LhaL capLure early
adopLer ln a varleLy of nlches ln order Lo develop sufflclenL momenLum Lo push Lhe Lechnology lnLo
malnsLream markeL.
8r|ng|ng techno|ogy to market embod|es three ma[or themes.
1. 1he flrsL ls value creaLlon. lor companles Lo be successful ln susLalnable Lechnology lnnovaLlon,
lL ls crlLlcal LhaL Lhey puncLuaLe Lhelr lncremenLal or value added lnnovaLlons wlLh radlcal or
value creaLlng lnnovaLlons.
2. 1he second Lheme ls speed. As wlndow of opporLunlLles for new Lechnologles are shrlnklng
producL developmenL Llmellness are by necesslLy shorLenlng, creaLlng a real dllemma for
producL developers- how Lo produce superlor hlgh Lechnology producL fasLer, yeL aL prlce Lhe
markeL wlll LoleraLe.
3. 1he Lhlrd Lheme ls enLrepreneurshlp. 1he Lool LhaL enLrepreneur employ Lo recognlze and
creaLe opporLunlLy , LesL a buslness concepL ln markeL, and gaLher resources Lo execuLe Lhe
buslness concepL.

I.1. AND kUkAL DLVLLCMLN1:
1he goal of uslng lC1 wlLh underprlvlleged group ls noL only abouL overcomlng Lhe shorLcomlng , buL
raLher enforclng and passlng Lhe process of soclal lncluslon Lo Lhe nexL level, whlch ls requlred for
change of Lhe envlronmenL and soclal sysLem LhaL reproduces scarclLy.
l.1. has varled appllcaLlons ln lL, Lhrough whlch Lhe developmenL of Lhe rural area can be posslble
accuraLely. CovernmenL had lnLroduced a number of programs Lhrough whlch Lhe people of rural lndla
can come forward and use Lhe l.1. enabled servlces and work more sysLemaLlcally. Some of Lhe
programs run by Lhe CovernmenL are:
L-MlLra:
1hls servlce ls launched by Lhe kAIAS1nAN CovernmenL for Lhe flrsL Llme for lLs rural clLlzens, so
LhaL Lhey can deploy Lhe l.1. enabled beneflLs Lo lLs fullesL. L- MlLra ls SLaLe CovernmenL sLarLed
pro[ecLs, whlch soon become hlghly popular ln Lhe reglon. ln year 2002, Lwo pro[ecLs came lnLo
exlsLence namely, Lok M|tra and Ian M|tra.
Where !an MlLra ls an lnLegraLed elecLronlc plaLform Lhrough whlch Lhe clLlzens of 8a[asLhan can
avall Lhe beneflL lf geLLlng Lhe deslred lnformaLlon regardlng any CovernmenLal ueparLmenL aL
klosks whlch ls very near Lo Lhere doorsLep. 1hese lnlLlaLlve program of 8a[asLhan governmenL
have noL only helped Lhe CovernmenL by reduclng Lhe burden of aLLendlng every call, lL has
reduced Lhe walLlng Llme for Lhe servlce and has lead Lo provlde comforL Lo Lhe clLlzens also, as
wlLh Lhe lncepLlon of Lhls servlce Lhey can easlly geL Lhe lnformaLlon requlred aL Lhelr doorsLep.
Lok MlLra ls an urban elecLronlc Covernance ro[ecL whlch was launched ln !alpur clLy ln year
2002, whlch helps Lhe clLlzens of !alpur (now oLher clLles also) Lo pay Lhelr bllls onllne (land,
WaLer, 8us 1lckeLs and 8SnL) leadlng Lhe clLlzen Lo save Lhe walLlng Llme. 1hls servlce also
ensures people LhaL Lhelr money ls golng dlrecLly Lo Lhe CovernmenL and provldes a feellng of
securlLy relaLed Lo Lhelr bllls paymenL.

CommunlLy lnformaLlon CenLers:
1he program ls deslgned especlally for provldlng Lhe lnLerneL access and l.1. Lnabled servlces Lo
Lhe clLlzens Lhrough whlch Lhe lnLerface beLween Lhe CovernmenL and Lhe ClLlzens can be
seLup. 1hese cenLers connecL seven northeast states namely, Arunachal radesh, Assam,
Manlpur, Mehalaya, Mlzoram, nagaland and 1rlpura. 1he cenLer helps Lo galn Lhe connecLlvlLy
aL Lhe Llme of unsulLable envlronmenLal condlLlons. 1he cenLers are commonly Lermed as ClC
whlch are generally slLuaLed aL Lhe school, college or any governmenLal offlce. eople can come
for Lhe lnLerneL access, and for accesslng Lhe lnLerneL, a nomlnal amounL ls charged from Lhe
people Lhrough whlch Lhe dally expenses of Lhe cenLers are malnLalned.

Wl-fl ro[ecLs:
Cne of Lhe wl-fl pro[ecL under whlch few vlllages (of U11Ak kADLSn) are connecLed Lo lnLerneL
ls D|g|ta| Ganget|c |an (uC). 1hrough Lhe use of uC wlreless neLwork connecLlvlLy ls creaLed,
Lhls program helped Lhe people resldlng ln vlllages of lndla Lo have Lhe access of lnLerneL
Lhrough whlch Lhe lnformaLlon on varlous lssues can be collecLed ad used, aL Lhe same Llme Lhe
people llvlng ln rural lndla can be updaLed wlLh Lhe new Lechnologlcal changes and Lhe
lnnovaLlve changes Laklng place ln Lhe naLlonal and Lhe lnLernaLlonal markeLs. lor lnsLance,
8lmarl !ankarl ls a porLal Lhrough whlch Lhe lnformaLlon regardlng every dlsease and healLh
relaLed lssues ls avallable and ulglLal Mandl ls avallable as one of Lhe porLals where all Lhe
lnformaLlon regardlng Lhe agrlculLural commodlLles are avallable. 1hls porLal provldes Lhe
lnformaLlon regardlng Lhe prlces of Lhe commodlLles and Lhelr relaLlve value.

urlshLee:
urlshLee ls presenL ln 3 SLaLes and ls currenLly avallable ln slx dlsLrlcLs. lL ls a prlvaLe company,
whlch was prev|ous|y named as Cyber Ldge, whlch has Lhe maln work of developlng Lhe
modules. lL ls presenL ln 8lhar, Paryana, Madya radesh, un[ab and 8a[asLhan. lL ls generally
sulLed ln Lhe anchayaL or ln Lhe bazaars. 1hey prepare Lhe module for Lhe poor secLlon of Lhe
socleLy who cannoL undersLand Lhe lnLernaLlonal language. 1he modules are deslgned for Lhe
rural and seml-urban areas especlally.

CyandooL:
lL was esLabllshed ln !anuary ln year 2000. lL ls an e-governance based module deslgned for Lhe
rural clLlzens. 1he pro[ecL was lnlLlally lnlLlaLed by Lhe CovernmenL of MADnA kADLSn.
CyandooL caLers Lhe need of Lhe vlllagers by provldlng Lhe lnformaLlon relaLed Lo Lhe prevalllng
raLes of Lhe agro-based commodlLles and Lhe raLe of land. Lach CyandooL lnfo klosks caLers Lo
approxlmaLely 13 panchayaLs and 30 vlllages. 1he module ls deslgned wlLh Lhe alm Lo provlde
cosL effecLlve and susLalnable dellvery model Lo Lhe people.

1A8AhaaL:
lL was developed by an NGC (non-governmenL organlzaLlon), wlLh Lhe vlslon Lo brlng lnLerneL
faclllLy Lo Lhe rural lndla. lL ls a franchlsee based buslness model LhaL aLLempLs Lo generaLe
revenues by focuslng on Lhe markeLlng servlces Lhrough Lhe module (especlal focus on Lhe local
appllcaLlons). lL was lnlLlaLed ln Lhe reglon of UNIA8 wlLh Lhe lnLroducLlon of dlfferenL cenLers
called as kendra's whlch are connecLed Lo each oLher Lhrough Lhe dlal up lnLerneL connecLlon
faclllLy. 1hese kendra's have power backup also, ln case, Lhe elecLrlclLy supply ls lnLerrupLed.
1he lnfo klosks provlde onllne and offllne servlces lnformaLlon on educaLlon, prevalllng
opporLunlLles ln Lhe markeL and oLher useful lnformaLlon for Lhe vlllagers. 1A8Akendra's are
very popular ln beLween Lhe local populaLlon as lL provldes Lhe lnformaLlon ln Lhe local language
and Lhe porLal ls deslgned ln such a paLLern LhaL seml llLeraLe populaLlon can also undersLand lL
wlLhouL any dlfflculLy. ulfferenL servlces LhaL 1A8Akendra's provlde are:
1A8A8azar (for producL lnformaLlon)
1A8Adhaba (for provldlng connecLlvlLy)
1A8Adak (connecL Lo relaLlves aL dlsLance)
1A8Agyan (educaLe rural youLh on varlous lssues)
1A8Aguru (helps ln menLorlng and consulLancy)
1A8Avan (dellvery of orders aL remoLe areas) and many oLher servlces are also provlded.

8ural e-seva:
lL was lnlLlaLed by ANDkA kADLSn CovernmenL. lL was lnlLlally lmplemenLed ln WesL Codavarl
ulsLrlcL Lo dellver e-governance faclllLy. 1he cenLers are deslgned wlLh Lhe vlew Lo provlde
beLLer governance faclllLles Lo Lhe people of Lhe 8ural lndla. 1he popularlLy of e-seva can be
esLlmaLed from Lhe facL LhaL ln Lhe year 2003, more Lhan 400 mllllon rupees was collecLed only
for Lhe elecLrlclLy paymenL. WlLh Lhe success of Lhe e-seva ln elecLrlclLy bllls paymenL,
CovernmenL ls looklng forward for lnLroduclng lL ln Lhe areas of collecLlon of Lelephone bllls and
local CovernmenLal 8llls. L-seva ls galnlng popularlLy wlLh passlng days as lL helps Lhe clLlzens Lo
avall Lhe beneflL of geLLlng Lhe cerLlflcaLes aL Lhelr doorsLeps, whlch ls boLh relaxlng and rellable.

8hooml:
1he karnaLaka CovernmenL for malnLalnlng Lhe records relaLed Lo Lhe land lnLroduced lL. 1he
ueparLmenL of 8evenue ln karnaLaka has compuLerlzed 20 mllllon records of land ownershlp
belonglng Lo 6.7 mllllon farmers of Lhe sLaLe. WlLh Lhe lnLroducLlon of Lhe program, Lhe farmers
are free from glvlng Lhe brlbe and are proLecLed from Lhe harassmenL. lramers can easlly geL
Lhe 8ecords of 8lghLs, 1enancy and Crops (81C) by deposlLlng a mlnlmal fee of 8s. 13.
naLlonal lnformaLlcs CenLers (nlC) Lhrough whlch Lhe sofLware onllne coples of Lhe land records
are avallable developed Lhe sofLware of 8hooml. 8y glvlng an onllne requesL, farmers geL an
onllne enrollmenL number Lhrough whlch furLher processlng can be done. ln Lhe sofLware, Lhe
connecLlvlLy ls Lhrough Lhe LAn Lhrough whlch all Lhe cllenLs are connecLed Lo Lhe hubs.
WlLh Lhe lncreaslng popularlLy of Lhe pro[ecL, CovernmenL of lndla has declded Lo lnLroduce Lhe
pro[ecL ln oLher parLs of Lhe counLry also, namely: kerala, WesL 8engal, Slkklm, 1rlpura, un[ab,
Paryana, Madya radesh, Plmachal radesh, uLLaranchal, Cu[raL, Assam, Crrlsa, 8a[asLhan and
ondlcherry.

e-choupal:
lL ls deslgned especlally for Lhe farmers of lndla. 1hrough e-choupal, farmers who are llvlng ln
Lhe remoLe area of Lhe counLry and cannoL manage Lo have dlrecL conLacL wlLh Lhe consumer
can come forward Lo have a dlrecL conLacL. lL provldes an e-procuremenL sysLem Lhrough whlch
Lhe farmers can access Lhe laLesL and updaLed lnformaLlon (local, naLlonal and lnLernaLlonal)
relaLed Lo dlfferenL farmlng pracLlces. lL provldes real Llme lnformaLlon and cusLomlzed
knowledge Lo Lhe farmers Lhrough whlch Lhe farmer can Lake beLLer declslons and can have
dlrecL conLacL wlLh Lhe cusLomer, reduclng Lhe amounL wasLed by movlng Lhrough Lhe
dlsLrlbuLlon channel of lnLermedlary.
L-choupal has already become Lhe largesL lnlLlaLlve among all lnLerneL-based lnLervenLlons ln
8ural lndla. L-choupal ls presenL ln 36,000 vlllages Lhrough nearly 6,000 klosks across nlne
sLaLes. l1C (lndlan 1obacco Company) ls plannlng Lo expand Lhe concepL of e-choupal furLher ln
13 sLaLes of lndla.

Aksh:
lL ls mosLly acLlve ln norLhern lndla, lL ls a flber opLlc cable company wlLh lLs core compeLence ln
lay down and malnLenance lf cable. Aksh has Lhe llcense Lo lay down Lhe cables ln Lhe rural
areas. lL lnlLlally has collaboraLed wlLh urlshLee for malnLenance of klosks, buL wlLh Lhe changlng
Llmes, urlshLee and Aksh have separaLed ln dlfferenL servlce offerlngs. Whlle urban Area has
wlLnessed a peneLraLlon of cable 1.v., rural areas have lefL un-served. 1he facL behlnd Lhe low
level of cable 1.v. proporLlon ln rural as compared Lo urban area ls due Lo Lhe facL LhaL ln rural
area Lhere are a llmlLed number of houses whlch can afford cable 1.v. 1he bandwldLh dellvered
by Aksh supporLs a large varleLy of servlces (lncludlng vldeo lnLeracLlons) whlch wlll lead Lo
lncrease Lhe level lnformaLlon exchange ln beLween Lhe people llvlng ln several areas of rural
lndla.

n-Logue
n-Logue ls acLlvaLed ln SouLh lndla and due Lo lLs advanLages ls enLerlng lnLo Lhe norLhern areas.
1he maln lmpeLus came from ll1 -Chennal. lL ls a non-proflL organlzaLlon wlLh Lhe responslblllLy
of provldlng rural l1 based servlces (lncludlng hardware and sofLware) Lhrough connecLlvlLy and
appllcaLlon all around Lhe rural area. lL ls funcLlonal wlLh WLL 1echnology whose consLrucLlon
and malnLenance ls cosLly and Lhe connecLlvlLy ls also llmlLed Lo a cerLaln area, buL has Lhe
faclllLy of provldlng connecLlvlLy wlLh a range of servlces as lL provldes Lhe volce call faclllLy and
overcome Lhe problem of dlal up connecLlon errors. n-Logue ls furLher supporLed by ll1-
Chennal, whlch prepares a varleLy of local language sofLware for lL ln shorL Llme for convenlence
and comforL. lL has also added Lhe faclllLy of web-cam Lhrough whlch Lhe remoLe dlagnosls of
varlous problems can be done. 1amll nadu CovernmenL has supporLed Lhe funcLlons of n-Logue
(especlally ln lLs Madural and nelllkuppam dlsLrlcL). n-Logue charges for connecLlvlLy and ls
relaLlvely popular ln Lhe souLhern reglon due Lo lLs easy connecLlvlLy funcLlonlng and Lralnlng of
handllng Lhe appllcaLlons.

Innovat|on and commerc|a||zat|on process:
1. lnvenLlon and lnnovaLlon: connecLlon , dlscovery, lnvenLlon, appllcaLlon
2. CpporLunlLy 8ecognlLlon: ldea + cusLomer need = 8uslness ConcepL
3. roLecLlng l8: aLenL, Lrademark, copyrlghL, Lrade secreaL
4. roducL uevelopmenL: roLoLyplng Lechnology feaslblllLy alpha LesLlng
3. 8uslness uevelopmenL :
6. ueveloplng Lhe 8uslness: 8uslness lan
7. Launchlng Lhe buslness

1he rural consumer behavlor exhlblLs cerLaln behavlor unlque Lo rural seLLlngs and Lhls makes lL
lmporLanL for markeLers Lo undersLand rural consumers Lhrough approprlaLe research. 8ural consumers,
for example, Lend Lo lead a more relaxed llfesLyle compared Lo Lhe urban counLerparLs and exhlblL llLLle
urgency. Consumers ln rural markeLs Lend Lo have greaLer LrusL ln producLs and servlces endorsed by Lhe
governmenL and lLs agencles. 1hey Lend Lo be more brand loyal, as hablLs once formed are dlfflculL Lo
change and Lhey Lend Lo feel a prlde ln geLLlng a good deal raLher Lhan paylng premlum prlces for
producLs and servlces.
1PL 8ural neLwork, an alllance of leadlng rural markeLlng organlzaLlons ln Lhe counLry, ls spearheadlng a
serles of lnlLlaLlves deslgned Lo puL rural markeLlng lssues squarely ln Lhe reckonlng of corporaLe looklng
for new markeLs.
8ural communlLles Lend Lo be closer Lhan urban socleLles and reference groups have a greaLer
lmporLance. 8elaLlves and people from Lhe same casLe are lmporLanL reference groups. !olnL famllles
sLlll exlsLs ln vlllages alLhough Lhe Lrend ls Lowards Lhe nuclear famllles. ln rural areas, Lhe consumpLlon
ls drlven Lo a large degree by Lhe occupaLlon and lncome of Lhe consumers. Low lncome levels and
lnadequacy of credlL faclllLles also affecL Lhe consumpLlon paLLerns. AnoLher lmporLanL facLor LhaL
affecLs demand paLLerns ln rural areas ls Lhe lnsLablllLy of Lhe lncome of Lhe farmers, whlch ls llnked Lo
Lhe seasonallLy of agrlculLural producLlon as well as Lo Lhe unpredlcLablllLy of Lhe harvesL. Slmllarly, Lhe
landless labourers and dally wage earners geL Lhelr remuneraLlon on a day-Lo-day basls and Lherefore
Lhey purchase ln smaller quanLlLles of producLs aL a Llme, mosLly on a dally basls.
As compared Lo Lhe urban counLerparLs, Lhe rural consumers have dlfferenL lnLerpreLaLlons of colors,
symbols, and soclal acLlvlLles. 1he culLural values and norms have a sLrong lnfluence ln deLermlnlng
buylng and consumpLlon behavlor ln Lhe rural areas. 1here are resLrlcLlons on Lhe Lype of food and Lhe
Lype of lnLoxlcanLs LhaL can be consumed ln Lhe vlllages. Slmllarly, women occupy a more LradlLlonal
place ln rural areas and Lherefore wesLern apparel may noL be accepLed ln Lhe rural markeLs. Powever,
Lhe rural youLh are open Lo any new ldeas, and lnfluenced by Lhe urban consumpLlon paLLerns. As Lhe
exposure Lo mass medla and lnformaLlon Lechnology ls lncreaslng, rural consumers are belng more
lnformed abouL producLs and servlces and Lhelr dependence on LradlLlonal reference groups ls wanlng.

Conc|us|on
1he lncrease ln Lhe servlces provlded Lo Lhe rural people (ln Lerms of varlous servlces offered) wlll resulL
ln Lhe overall beLLermenL of Lhe socleLy on one slde by enrlchlng Lhe people wlLh updaLed markeL
lnformaLlon and provldlng laLesL Lechnologlcal developmenLal news and organlzaLlons on oLher slde by
creaLlng more markeL opporLunlLles for Lhem and ad[usLmenL of Lhe markeL prlces. l1 can bulld up Lhe
role of each governance plllar ln rural developmenL and scarclLy reducLlon. lL can faclllLaLe rapld,
LransparenL, responslble, efflclenL and effecLlve lnLeracLlon beLween Lhe sLakeholders. 1hls noL only
promoLes beLLer admlnlsLraLlon and beLLer buslness envlronmenL, buL also saves Llme and money ln
LransacLlons cosLs of governmenL operaLlons (llCu 2001)



rof. anka[ Arora,
LecLurer,
ulMA1,
8alpur (ChhaLLlsgarh),
Lmall ld: arora.panka[07[gmall.com
ConLacL no: 9827910110




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