vritti

rural marketing

Audiowala Bus Stand played a crucial role in stopping the virus in rural Rajasthan

Audiowala Busstand, i-Media Updates, rural marketing / By

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a new virus. This disease causes respiratory illness with symptoms such as a cough, fever, and in more severe cases may cause death. With such a highly contagious virus it becomes imperative for governments across states to reach out to the masses especially to the rural masses about the precautionary measures to be taken to avoid an infection. Doctors globally have advocated for social distancing, hashing hands regularly, avoiding touching eyes & using hand sanitizers. These guidelines were issued by Indian Council of Medical Research.. Heeding to the advice, Rajasthan Govt, through Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation planned on reaching the rural masses with the do’s don’t to avoid coronavirus infection, which was spreading across the globe even before the virus was spreading in India. This campaign was done between 5th March to 25th March 2020, as a precautionary & an advisory message to the rural masses of Rajasthan for prevention of coronavirus. The Rajasthan Govt. needed a medium which has deep rural penetration, which could reach the ‘media dark areas’ and have a local impact. The answer was Vritti iMedia’s Audiowala Bus Stands, it is the largest digital audio network at transit places in India. The audiowala network was used to spread the message of safety & precaution to the rural masses. A total of 35 strategic locations were chosen to spread the message through passenger announcement systems at the Audiowala Bus stands. These locations were selected as they had the maximum number of rural reach in Rajasthan. Above jingle was played across 35 locations to maximize the reach of the campaign. The Audiowala Network reached more than 5 crore people traveling through state transport in Rajasthan. The campaign which was run by Rajasthan govt though the Audiowala Network managed to save educate over 5 crores in Rajasthan & helped prevent a major health crisis.

15 Steps to put Innovative Rural Marketing Ideas into Action

Articles and Opinions, rural marketing / By

It isnt sufficient just to derive innovative rural marketing campaigns. You need to have a structured plan. Here are 15 steps to do it well: Choose a specialist agency that has expertise in handling marketing campaigns in the rural market. It has to be endorsed by the previous clients. Look at the prior experience and profile and the area of specialization. The agency should have a regional presence as well. It is a market that requires patience. Dont be impatient for the output. The creative team of the specialist agency hired by you should have the capability of communicating in vernacular languages. In the rural marketing, language plays a critical role. While deciding marketing strategy, make it clear to the specialist agency about deriving a customized strategy for you. ‘Cut and Paste’ strategy doesnt hold good in the rural market. Make sure your brand is exclusively different from others. Though rural customers are not quite skeptic about the brand. Price is the main motivator, but the brand should get highlighted. Explore technology and make use of it for rural marketing. It is the foundation of the rural growth today. With the availability of the Internet and Smartphones, marketing managers need to plan the innovative use of media in rural market. Dont think that mobile apps, IVR, and mobile internet are used by the urban people only. These things are equally popular in the rural areas as well. In the modern era also, cultural marketing hasnt lost the charm. Particularly, in the rural markets, it is always good to plan customized marketing strategies according to the local festivals, fairs, and other events. Such activities get connected to the audience in quite an effective manner. Timing is critically important in rural marketing. You must time a strategy well. Harvesting season is the right time when you should target the audience. People have money to spend during this period. Do not put underperformers in the rural marketing. It is not a training ground, please! However, do not make the mistake of appointing people who are born ad brought up in the urban area. You need people who know the pulse of the people well. Innovation is the key to success. Dont hesitate in trying the unconventional stuff. Make use of the available channels to design new business models. Word of mouth marketing, for example, is very effective there. Plan rural advertising strategies well, implement them well and reap big benefits.

Understanding the rural consumer is also important for rural marketing

Advertising in Rural & Urban, advertising in rural india, BTL Activation, rural advertising, rural marketing / By

The behavior patterns and liking of the rural consumers have changed drastically in the past two decades. They are quit choosy and skeptical now. Also, the paying capacity increased manifold. Hence, they do not compromise on quality in any case. Looking at the change, marketing managers have been forced to brainstorm about the means and ways of luring customers. They cant remain confined to the good old practices. You will be amazed to know that so many rural marketing companies in india emerged that focus on purely villages and small towns for establishing marketing strategy. Since the clich Customer is the king holds true with the rural consumers also, marketing managers need to spend time in understanding their choices and preferences. Brand loyalty? Come on; it is a good old story! Gone are the days when rural customers preferred brand to the product category. For them, Colgate was the only toothpaste and Dalda was the only hydrogenated oil. Today, they do not restrict them to a brand but want to experiment and test. They are keen to develop their personal brand preference instead of getting influenced by someone. Cost may not be a limiting factor for them, but cost-benefit ratio is an important aspect. They are ready to spend high provided the product gives them excellent return. Rural marketing agencies in india change the marketing strategies to get aligned with the paradigm shift in the thinking process. Studies reveal some interesting facts In fact, the consumers of interior villages and small and medium size towns have become more complex than the urban counterparts. There have been several studies undertaken to understand the rural consumer behavior by business management schools. In a study, researchers conducted tests across ten states in India to know about 20 popular categories of consumer products, e.g. beauty products, biscuits, cereals, food products, etc. The basic idea behind the study was to come out of prototype thinking and to stop looking the whole rural market uniformly. The study revealed that people of each state showed different opinion about the product and their preferences were also different. It means, today it is impossible to make a universal strategy. Even the rural advertising in india also has to be specific to a state or geographical region. Today a company that offers services for Rural marketing in Maharashtra need to think separately for Madhya Pradesh even if it is the neighboring state. That much complexity has been added to it!

10 notes keep in mind when doing rural marketing

Advertising in Rural & Urban, advertising in rural india, rural advertising, rural marketing, rural marketing agency, rural marketing companies, rural promotion / By

You need half an hour to cut the tree, but you need six hours to sharpen the axe, the adage is relevant in every situation. rural marketing agency is also not an exception to it. When you derive an effective strategy for the market, it is critically important to look at some salient features. Know what the audience is interested into? Preferences of rural consumers are different from urban ones. One size doesnt fit all; rural marketing agencies in india need to work from the grass root level while designing the campaign. Dont proceed without valid data points. Gather in-depth knowledge about the market sentiments, consumer psyche, product distribution and pricing. Marketers must pay attention to the way things will be communicated to the consumers. Spend some time in making an understanding of the particular market. If the product or services are being launched for the first time, then this point is further critical. You must understand that it is a different ball game. The rules are different here. Dont treat is just another market segment. The more you get into it, better will be the result. Look at the rural marketing strategy as the whole. You should work simultaneously on market development strategy, campaign, distribution, or rural marketing events in india. The overall impact will be effective. Look at the market from a long-term perspective. There is immense potential in the rural market, and the effectiveness of your strategy will decide how successful you will be in grabbing the attention of people. If you are one of the best rural marketing companies in india, then dont forget to include the client in every stage of planning and execution. The final say has to be of your client. Prepare a checklist. It is critical for the success of the strategy. Checklist makes sure that you do not forget anything in the execution process. Dont get disheartened by the initial lukewarm response. May be you need a little bit tweaking here and there. Rural consumers take some time to appreciate a product or service, but they are highly responsive once they get an idea about it. You neednt be extravagant while deriving rural marketing strategy. It is possible to come out with flying colors by adapting a conservative approach. These points help in taking your company new heights of success in the rural market. With a sound groundwork and well-planned execution; you can be the role model for others.

A different market but a completely different socio-cultural entity – ‘Rural India’

Articles and Opinions, rural marketing / By

Rural market is the latest buzzword not only in India but many other big economies such as China, Indonesia and Vietnam. Marketing gurus look at this highly potential market segment as the market of the future. Yes, in a country like India where economic growth has been consistently good for more than a decade; it is a high time to concentrate on this unique socio-cultural entity. According to economists and marketing experts, urban economies show an immediate reflection of the global economic change. Rural markets take quite some time to show the impacts. In such scenario, they can be a good buffer for diverting the business. It is needless to say that the complexities of rural markets should be kept in mind while designing marketing strategies. It is the common mistake that marketers extend their urban marketing programs without focusing on rural market. Quite obviously, they fail to create any impact because of the fundamental differences in the mindset and concepts. Here are some aspects that distinctly differentiate between the rural and urban market. Rural customers are not influenced externally, but internally What do we mean by it? It means that they are closely knit with the community, and real-life experience is more convincing for them than a marketing campaign. Therefore, community campaign is an effective way of communicating about product and services. Since people rely more on the word of mouth, it is critically important to have the first impression right. There is a lack of media channels, but the recall value is incredible Unlike urban market where consumers have a plethora of media channels, but a feeble recall value, rural markets have very high recall value. Once they get connected to a marketing campaign, it is very difficult to erase the impression. It is the reason; the products and services that reached to the rural market still enjoy terrific recall value. Seasoned marketers have used intelligent micro-marketing campaigns to tap the markets. Audio – Visual campaigns, Haats, Yatra/Mela Marketing programs, Bus Stand announcement advertising, mobile vans, and marketing campaigns in the fairs or local events are a few successful marketing ideas. It takes time to establish the brand, but it is long-lasting once established Typically, you need quite a long time to establish a brand in the rural market. However, the loyalty of the rural market is amazing. Hence, front-loading the investments and waiting long for the results would be the right marketing strategy. The returns will come without fail, but you need to give sufficient time and have to be consistent in approach.