Concept of Rural Marketing…

Rural marketing is a process of developing, pricing, promoting, distributing rural-

specific goods and services leading to exchange between urban and rural markets which
specifies consumer demand and also achieves organizational objectives.

Rural marketing involves a two-way marketing process, however, the prevailing

flow of goods and services from rural to rural areas cannot be undervalued.

Since demands’ of urban and rural folks are different, companies should
manufacture products to suit the rural demand rather than dump urban products on rural
consumers.

The process should be able to straddle the attitudinal and socio-economic

disparity between the urban and rural consumers.

Rural Marketing in India…

 A thorough understanding of the rural markets has become an important aspect of
marketing in the Indian marketing
environment today. This attraction
towards the rural markets is
primarily due to the colossal size of
the varied demands of the 230
million rural people. In fact, the
rural markets are expanding in
India at such a rapid pace that they
have overtaken the growth in urban
markets. This rate of growth of the
rural market segment is however not the only factor that has driven marketing managers
to go rural. The other compelling factor is the fact that the urban markets are becoming
increasingly complex, competitive and saturated.

Further, the vast untapped potential of the rural markets is growing at a rapid
pace. The policies of the government largely favour rural development programmes. This
is clearly highlighted by the fact that the outlay for rural development has risen from Rs
14000 crores in the 7th plan to Rs 30000 crores in the 8th plan period. These figures also
prove that the rural market is emerging stronger with a gradual increase in disposable
income of the rural folk. In addition, better procurement prices fixed for the various crops
and better yields due to many research programmes have also contributed to the
strengthening of the rural markets. Thus, with the rural markets bulging in both size and
volume, any marketing manager will be missing a great potential opportunity if he does
not go rural.

Problems Related To Rural Marketing…

 Although the rural market does offer a vast untapped potential, it should also be
recognized that it is not that easy to operate in rural market because of several problems.
Rural marketing is thus a time consuming affair and requires considerable investments in
terms of evolving appropriate strategies with a view to tackle the problems.

The major problems faced are:

• Underdeveloped People and Underdeveloped Markets: The number of people

below poverty line has not decreased in any
appreciable manner. Thus underdeveloped
people and consequently underdeveloped
market by and large characterize the rural
markets. Vast majorities of the rural people
are tradition bound, fatalistic and believe in
old customs, traditions, habits, taboos and practices.

• Lack of Proper Physical Communication Facilities: Nearly fifty percent of the

villages in the country do not have all weather
roads. Physical communication of these
villages is highly expensive. Even today most
villages in the eastern parts of the country are
inaccessible during the monsoon.

• Media for Rural Communication: Among the mass media at some point of time
in the late 50's and 60's radio was considered to be a potential medium for
communication to the rural people. Another mass media is television and
 cinemas. Statistics indicate that the rural areas account for hardly 2000 to 3500
mobile theatres, which is far less when compared to the number of villages.

• Dispersed Market: Rural areas are scattered and it is next to impossible to ensure
the availability of a brand all over the country. Seven Indian states account for
76% of the country’s rural retail outlets, the total number of which is placed at
around 3.7 million. Advertising in such a highly heterogeneous market, which is
widely spread, is very expensive.

• Many Languages and Dialects: The number of

languages and dialects vary widely from state to
state, region to region and probably from district to
district. The messages have to be delivered in the
local languages and dialects. Even though the
number of recognized languages is only 16, the
dialects are estimated to be around 850.

• Low Per Capita Income: Even though about 33-35% of gross domestic product
is generated in the rural areas it is shared by 74% of the population. Hence the per
capita incomes are low compared to the urban areas.

• Low Levels of Literacy: - The literacy rate is low in rural areas as compared to
urban areas. This again leads to problem of communication for promotion
 purposes. Print medium becomes ineffective and to an extent irrelevant in rural
areas since its reach is poor and so is the level of literacy.

• Prevalence of spurious brands and seasonal demand: - For any branded

product there are a multitude of ‘local variants’, which are cheaper, and, therefore,
more desirable to villagers.

• Different way of thinking: - There is a vast difference in the lifestyles of the

people. The kind of choices of brands that an urban customer enjoys is different
from the choices available to the rural customer. The rural customer usually has 2
or 3 brands to choose from whereas the urban one has multiple choices.

Introduction…
 A long time ago, when the British ruled India, a small factory was set up in the
suburbs of Mumbai city, to manufacture sweets and toffees. The year was 1929 and the
market was dominated by famous international brands that were imported freely.

Despite the odds and unequal competition, this company called Parle Products,
survived and succeeded, by adhering to high quality and improvising from time to time.
A decade later, in 1939, Parle Products began manufacturing biscuits, in addition to
sweets and toffees. Having already established a reputation for quality, the Parle brand
name grew in strength with this diversification. Parle Glucose and Parle Monaco were the
first brands of biscuits to be introduced, which later went on to become leading names for
great taste and quality.

Evolution Of Parle Products Ltd..

Parle-G has been a strong household name across India. The great taste, high
nutrition, and the international quality, makes Parle-G a winner. No wonder, it's the
undisputed leader in the biscuit category for decades. Parle-G is consumed by people of
all ages, from the rich to the poor, living in cities & in villages. While some have it for
breakfast, for others it is a complete wholesome meal. For some it's the best
accompaniment for chai, while for some it's a way of getting charged whenever they are
low on energy. Because of this, Parle-G is the world's largest selling brand of biscuits.

Launched in the year 1939, it was one of the first brands of Parle Products. It
was called Parle Gluco Biscuits mainly to cue that it was a glucose biscuit. It was
manufactured at the Mumbai factory, Vile Parle and sold in units of half and quarter
pound packs.

The incredible demand led Parle to introduce the brand in special branded packs
and in larger festive tin packs. By the year 1949, Parle Gluco biscuits were available not
just in Mumbai but also across the state. It was also sold in parts of North India. By the
early 50s, over 150 tonnes of biscuits were produced in the Mumbai factory. Looking at
the success of Parle-G, a lot of other me-too brands were introduced in the market. And
these brands had names that were similar to Parle Gluco Biscuits so that if not by
anything else, the consumer would err in picking the brand. This forced Parle to change
the name from Parle Gluco Biscuits to Parle-G.

Originally packed in the wax paper pack, today it is available in a contemporary,

premium BOPP pack with attractive side fins. The new airtight pack helps to keep the
biscuits fresh and tastier for a longer period.

Parle-G was the only biscuit brand that was always in short supply. It was
heading towards becoming an all-time great brand of biscuit. Parle-G started being
advertised in the 80's. It was advertised mainly through press ads. The communication
spoke about the basic benefits of energy and nutrition. In 1989,
Parle-G released its Dadaji commercial, which went on to become one of the
most popular commercials for Parle-G. The commercial was run for a period of 6 years.

Parle-G grew bigger by the minute. Be it the packs sold, the areas covered or the
number of consumers. It became a part of the daily lives of many Indians. It wasn't a
biscuit any more. It had become an icon. The next level of communication associated the
brand with the positive values of life like honesty, sharing and caring.

In the year 1997, Parle-G sponsored the tele-serial of the Indian superhero,
Shaktimaan that went on to become a huge success. The personality of the superhero
matched the overall superb benefits of the brand. Parle extended this association with
Shaktimaan and gave away a lot of merchandise of Shaktimaan, which was supported
by POS and press communication. The children just could not get enough of Parle-G
and Shaktimaan.

In the year 2002, it was decided to bring the brand closer to the child who is a
major consumer. A national level promo - `Parle-G Mera Sapna Sach Hoga' was run
for a period of 6 months. The promo was all about fulfilling the dreams of children. There
were over 5 lakh responses and of that, over 300 dreams were fulfilled. Dreams that were
fulfilled ranged from trips to Disneyland at Paris & Singapore; meeting their favorite
film star Hrithik Roshan; free ride on a chartered plane; 20 scholarships worth Rs
50,000; a special cricket coaching camp with the Australian cricketer - Ricky Ponting;
etc.

The year 2002 will go down as a special year in Parle-G's advertising history. A
year that saw the birth of G-Man - a new ambassador for Parle-G. Not just a hero but
also a super-hero that saves the entire world, especially children from all the evil forces.
A campaign that is not just new to the audiences but one that involves a completely new
way of execution that is loved by children all over the world - Animation.
 A TV commercial that showed G-Man saving the children from the evil force
called Terrolene launched this campaign. It was also supported by print medium through
posters and streamers put up at the retail outlets. G-Man, a new superhero of Parle-G
has the potential of making it big. And will be supported by a campaign that will see
many a new creative in the future so as to keep the children excited and generate pride in
being a consumer of Parle-G.

To make the brand much more interesting and exciting with children, it was
decided to launch a premium version of Parle-G called Parle-G Magix in the year 2002.
Parle-G Magix is available in two exciting tastes - ‘Choco’ and ‘Cashew’. The year
2002 also witnessed the launch of Parle-G Milk Shakti, which has the nourishing
combination of milk and honey, especially launched for the southern market.
 Parle’s Rural Marketing Management…

Marketing management refers to distribution of the

firm’s product or service to the customers in order to satisfy
their needs and to accomplish the firm’s objectives.

Marketing includes developing the product, pricing,

distribution, advertisement, and merchandising, doing personal
selling, promoting and directing sales and service to customers.

Marketing is an essential function because unless the firm has a market, or can
develop a market, for its product or service, other functions of staffing, producing and
financing are futile.

Developing rural marketing Strategies for Parle: -

Determine what the customer’s needs are and how those needs can be satisfied.
Select the market that would be served.
Decide what advantage that will give a competitive edge over other firms.

Meeting customer’s needs

Learning customer’s needs
Conscious about the firm’s image
Looking for danger signals

These are the questions which arise while introducing a new product, such as HIDE n
SEEK.

Parle’s efforts to make biscuits affordable to all?

 Biscuits were very much a luxury food in India, when Parle began production in
1939. Apart from Glucose and Monaco biscuits, Parle did offer a wide variety of brands.

However, during the Second World War, all domestic biscuit production was
diverted to assist the Indian soldiers in India and the Far East. Apart from this, the
shortage of wheat in those days, made Parle decide to concentrate on the more popular
brands, so that people could enjoy the price benefits.

Thankfully today, there's no dearth of ingredients and the demand for more
premium brands is on the rise. That's why; we now have a wide range of biscuits and
mouthwatering confectionaries to offer.

Strategic marketing Policies of Parle…

 Formulation of strategic marketing policies for certain areas of the Parle Are:

Morality and public service

Product
Market
Profit
Customer relations
Promotion
Credit Policies

• Morality and Public Service

Policies on morality and public service consist of general statements expressing

Parle’s desire to be honest in its dealings with public and its customers. They fulfill the
demands of the consumers by supplying adequate quantities to them. And they follow
morality by providing products at good and acceptable quality.

• Product

Parle often finds its most effective competitive weapon in the field of product
strategy. It may concentrate on narrow product line, develop a highly specialized product
service or provide a product containing an unusual amount of advantage and satisfaction.
Competitor’s products, prices and services are constantly examined to determine whether
the Company can build a better product.

Parle has always followed this principle of making the product as the most
important thing rather than spending more on advertising and promotions. They feel that
if the product has quality, than it will be promoted on its own. It will itself act as
publicity.

• Market
 Market policies are designed to clarify with geographic areas Parle wishes to
serve and other marketing characteristics appropriate for it. The market policies are
framed as per the market segmentation. As the Parle Biscuits don’t have the targeted
market as such, because it is a product consumed by all. So, there are market strategies as
per the potentiality to cover the markets

And the biggest achievement for Parle is that, it is available in “Every Nook

and Corner” of the country. It has even reached the interior most part of the rural
areas. This has been possible only by the foolproof distribution system.

• Profit

Profit policies may require that sales goals be specified that will provide Parle a
sufficiently large sales volume or profit as percentage of sales may be specified which
calls for low marketing costs.

As the biscuits of Parle are well known, they don’t have to spend much on
advertisements. So, the profit margins are increasing substantially. Initially, they followed
penetration policy of pricing. And it worked. Still, the price is too low to be affordable by
the common man.

But, now they are planning to increase the prices of the biscuits, to increase their
profits even more. This pricing policy refers to as Skimming the Cream.

• Customer Relations

Parle’s relationship with its customers may be indicated with a question

Should the firm have a policy that customer is always right?

Parle, also like other company’s feel that consumers are the most important
aspect. The consumers are always right because they are the sources through which a
company comes to know about its performance. Same is the case with Parle.

They follow the feedback by the consumers and do as they want. They consider
the consumers views as of prime importance. Because, if the consumers are satisfied no
one can stop the growth of Parle.

• Promotion

The pattern of Parle’s advertisement may reveal the promotion policies. It always
follows a policy of tasteful advertising at all times. Sales promotion may be restricted to
trade shows or to industrial publications or to some other advertising media.

There are different promotion techniques like free samples, scholarships, etc.

• Credit Policies

In order to stimulate sales, customer should be provided with credit. However, an

appropriate credit policy is essential to be successful in granting credit. This is a useful
policy as it attracts the consumers and the retailers. And also increases their confidence in
the brand. The credit can be given by the company to the whole sellers or retailers. And in
turn they will give credit to consumers

Conclusion…
 The detailed study about the Parle products mainly PARLE G, gives out a Success
Story in rural areas. This shows that products even at low prices can earn substantially
considerable profits. The results of the survey also indicate the importance of Parle G in
comparison with its competitors, local and imitation brands. The views of the consumers
on the Parle G biscuits also put light on its vitality.