Creative Idea for Rural promotion in India

You would feel overwhelmed to know that with a projected annual growth of 15 t 20 percent, rural markets in India open new opportunities of meeting top lines. It is needless to say that there is a hit on the bottom lines initially as you have to spend additionally on rural promotion and marketing initiatives. As the expenditure drops in the long run, there is a significant boost to the business.

Amongst the 1.3 billion people spread across 29 states and 7 union territories, more than 70 Million people live in villages and small towns. It is a considerable population. However, sadly, all marketing and promotional drives till recent times were targeted to the remaining 30% people living in mid-size towns, big cities and metros. The reason was quite simple; the maximum business share was contributed by the urban population. Several reasons such as lack of awareness, illiteracy, and less purchasing power always kept this sizeable population out of the mainstream.

Why is rural marketing so challenging?

India, a country with incredible cultural, economical, and linguistic diversity throws a big challenge in front of marketing managers and advertisers. In a country where people speak more than 100 languages and over 1600 dialects, it is impossible to design rural promotion strategy that fits for all. However, marketing managers are ready to take the challenge as it is still simpler to conceptualize creative ideas for rural promotion than struggling in the fiercely competitive market of big cities and metros. They work hard on the rural market which contributes more than 60 percent of the GDP. Btl activation agencies in Mumbai makes use of creative ideas that attract the majority of the rural population.

People who did great experiments in the rural market got big success

There are agencies such as Vritti Imedia that worked in the rural marketing niche with a focused approach and open, creative minds. They conceptualized and implemented unique and ‘never-thought-earlier’ kinds of ideas that changed the way people were looking at the rural market. Vritti Imedia proved that innovative and creative ideas always get noticed and appreciated by the audience.

Use of bus stands for promoting brands and products was one of the unique ideas that got clicked in the rural markets. Similarly, Vritti explored the possibilities of brand building in big religious events. All these initiatives have been quite successful and effective. It proves that innovation always brings a phenomenal change in business.

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

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.