Rural Marketing,

Communication and
Advertising
 The Rural Rush:
Rural India accounts for over 50 percent of
Indias GDP
8% plus growth in 2005-06
Three-fifths of rural India derives income
from services and industry

Source: The Economic Ti

mes
 The Rural Rush
Reliance is in the process of
Identifying 1600 Rural Business
Hubs (RBH)
-for reliance retail initiative
ITC has been using e-Chaupal
to reduce middlemen,
increase rural procurement,
Create price transparency,
Cut trading margins and
Directly converse with farmers
Sunil Mittals Bharti has organized
farmers in Punjab to grow high
products that are then graded, sorted
cold stored and shipped
for exports
-for their Field Fresh initiative of
Exporting vegetable and fruits
Mahindra Finance has been
quietly pushing loans
throughout upcountry with
great success
 The growth drivers
HLL in 2005
Revenue of 5000 crore from rural markets
50% of total sales turnover
LG in 2005
55% of total turnover from rural and semi-
urban markets
 The growing figures
Industry analysts have predicted that by
2009-10, the urban households are
projected to grow by 4% while rural
households are expected to grow by 11%.
 Drivers of Growth:
The rise in disposable income of the rural
families
The economic boom
Timely rains
Rural population involved in occupations
other than agriculture
Women empowerment
Improving infrastructure
 Increase white-collar jobs in nearby towns
Commercialization of agriculture
Saturation of the urban markets
Media penetration in rural areas
(particularly satellite channels)
Globalization
Economic liberalization
Revolution in the Information Technology
 Effective Communication Matters!
Godrej hair dye is used by the rural
consumers for applying on their buffaloes
to make them look immaculate black
People in the state of Bihar feed the cattle
with Horlicks as a health drink to fatten
them!
In Punjab use washing machines not for
washing clothes but to make frothy lassi in
huge quantities!
 Effective Communication Matters!
Animals are rubbed with Iodex on their
skins to relieve them from muscular pains
after a days hard work.
Paints meant for houses are used on the
horns of cattle for easy identification and
theft prevention!
How do we talk to our consumers..
It is not enough simply to place our brand in front
of consumers and talk about ourselves.
We have to involve them in the communications:
give them an involving and engaging message
when and where they are most receptive to it
 Consumer Connectivity

Unique Product
Displays
Retail Database Sponsorships
Targeting

In-Store
Signage
Sampling
Events
Consumers On-pack

PR Partnering with
Retail Equities

TV Print
Radio
 Are We Effectively Reaching
Consumers
Difficulty in reaching our target consumers
through traditional media
Urban
Increased fragmentation of TV channels
High clutter in advertising (Advertising
spends for 03 estimated at Rs. 94 bln -
increased by 50 % over the last 5 years)
Rural
Reach through traditional channels limited
(65% of Rural India is still media dark)
Same Old Marketing or Time for a Behaviour
Change...
In a communications environment
where everyone is shouting to be
heard, we have two choices

Shout louder Behave differently

Money / Impact Local / Insight

3600 Marketing is about marketing differently

Lifebuoy Swasthya Chetna
 The brief
Create a sustainable, scalable and cost
effective model to reach villages
Create a communication package for rural
India which enables behaviour change in
favour of soap usage
 The Audience
Primary
School going children, aged 5 to 13 years studying in
primary and middle schools
Secondary
Parents (CWE and his wife) who are infrequent user of
soap
Key Influencers : RMP, Teachers & Retailers
 360*

Design Communication

Direct PR

PC
Design
Communication
Public Relation
Promotional campaigns
Direct Marketing
RASOI GHAR
Behavior Change
Marketing
 LPG Marketing Challenge
Rural penetration is only 15%, mainly among
R1&R2 HHs. Entire segment is non-users
MART research showed that non-users are aware
about benefits of LPG,
57% of them believed that it is convenient to cook on
LPG
63% felt that LPG is a clean fuel (no smoke while
cooking),
69% were of the opinion that food cooks faster
50% said that for making of tea for unscheduled arrival of
guests LPG is very handy.
Process Followed by MART
1
Research
Qualitative and Quantitative in 8 States

Strategy Awareness, Availability, Affordability and Acceptance

Pilots One district each In 3 Representative States

Scale Up
Strategy & Implementation
 Marketing Issues
Research Identified the following
marketing issues among non users
Awareness
Extremely low awareness about actual cost of
connection and refill (20%), most believed it cost
Rs 2,000 or more
Availability
Not available close to home (61%)
 Marketing Issues
Affordability
High connection cost of Rs 1600 (73%)
High recurring cost for refill @ Rs. 270 is a barrier
(51%)
Options for cooking at low cost/zero cost e.g.
firewood (93%), dung cake (27%)
Acceptance
Cases of Cylinder burst
Gas leakage fire hazard (52%)
Cooking on gas leads to gas in stomach.
 Awareness
Participate in Haats
Reminder through wall paintings at Haat
boundary walls, bus stands
Safety clinics during SHG meetings.
 Availability
Open extension counters in larger villages
(5k 10k population villages).
Use HPCLs Petrol Pump outlet network in
semi urban locations, highways/arterial
roads for distributing LPG
 Affordability
Introduction of 5 Kg cylinder
Initial connection cost Rs 850 (Rs 1600)
Refill @ Rs 95 (Rs 270)
Finance
Chit-fund scheme introduced with SHG members who
contribute Rs 100 per month
 Objectives of Pilot
How to influence poor women to move
away from traditional cooking methods.
To make women experience the benefits
of LPG
(Clean, Convenient and Safe)
Dispel myths associated with LPG

RASOI GHAR concept was conceived to meet

the objective
 Rasoi Ghar: The Model
Rasoi Ghar is a community Kitchen set up in 2
5k villages where women come to cook.
SANJHA CHULHA
Local Panchayat contributes a room (10 x 10 or
bigger) for the kitchen
HPCL contributes cooking stoves, LPG
cylinders, utensils, cooking counter and water
(Rs 8000)
 How it works

An SHG member appointed as caretaker

Women bring basic materials and pay (Rs

2/- per half hour) for using gas and take
away cooked food home

Caretaker collects money, orders refills,

keeps premises clean
 Outcome
Non users experienced the advantages of
clean, convenient, safe and non-polluting
LPG without having to buy a connection
Once they are satisfied, many decide to
buy individual connections subsequently
 Formal Evaluation
NCAER evaluated the Rasoi Ghar
initiative in UP
Acceptance of Rasoi Ghar by the people is
quite high (82 %)
85% users use Rasoi Ghar twice a day
6 % of the drop outs have opted for individual
connections
Among the Users, 20% are intending to install
individual LPG connection in near future
 NCAER Evaluation
Marginal increase in expenditure on fuel (Rs
0.52 per day), but time saving on collecting
traditional fuel and cooking is 1 hours per
day.
Saved time is utilized in productive activities,
better child care, domestic chores and
increased leisure time
Rasoi Ghar established by SHG members are
generally more successful and sustainable
 Current Status
589 Rasoi Ghars opened in 4 districts of
UP
Varanasi 84
Hamirpur 104
Sultanpur 239
Jaunpur 162
Total 589
Another 720 planned in the next 6 months
 Way Ahead
Encouraged by the success, Ministry of
Petroleum has put together a proposal to
open 80,000 Rasoi Ghars across the
country
Successful Mantra in
Rural
Business Mind,
Social Heart
Thank You