11-06-2012, 03:10 PM
Rural Marketing : Opportunities and Challenges
Rural Marketing.doc (Size: 66 KB / Downloads: 5)
Abstract
In recent years, rural markets have acquired significance, as the overall growth of the economy has resulted into substantial increase in the purchasing power of the rural communities.
On account of green revolution, the rural areas are consuming a large quantity of industrial and urban manufactured products. In this context, a special marketing strategy, namely, rural marketing, has emerged. But often, rural marketing is confused with agricultural marketing - the latter denotes marketing of produce of the rural areas to the urban consumers or industrial consumers, whereas rural marketing involves delivering manufactured or processed inputs or services to rural producers or consumers.
RURAL MARKETING
Rural areas in India is considered today as a huge store-house of untapped marketing opportunities, by marketers. India is a very large country .Rural marketing is identifying the serving needs of consumers living in villages. Three fourths of India’s population lives in rural areas. About 30% of our national income is generated by this sectors. Some of these villages are located near cities and enjoy facilities like electricity, water supply communications infrastructure etc. Some other villages are located in remote areas and modern facilities have not yet reached them. The primary source of income for rural consumers is agriculture.
During the last four or five decades India ‘s progress on the individual front and agricultural production has been significant and resulted in substantial economic growth. The contribution of the Green Revolution and continued stress on socio-economic and technological development of the vast rural India have brought noticeable economic and social changes. India is a vast country with huge population and about three-fourths of the population lives in rural areas. The intelligent use of fertilizers, high yield agricultural crops and modern implements by farmers have brought about changes in the life-style and living condition of the large rural population.