The opportunity is high in rural markets for the companies. They have to tap a large size of the market. According to the profile and lifestyle of consumer it is believed that they do not care for brand for the product to buy. But there are some products which they prefer to go for brand. The brand should be in the market for a quite long term. There are few ways to build the brand in rural market.

1. Customisation: Rural consumers use different products depending upon their needs. As discussed for their profile they require product based on the budget they have with them. The companies need to find which type of product they are looking at. Depending upon that they need to reengineer the product so that it will cater the needs of the consumer. In lay man terms making the product by looking at customers requirement or by doing customisation to the product.

For Ex: Nokia has done it with the model 1100. They have done it to sell in the rural market. The advertisement also designed in that manner. They made the slogan as made for India. Hence they received the feedback from the customer and modified the product according to their needs.

2. Relevance: There should be identification for the product in terms of name, colour, packaging, punch line etc. Customer should be in such a position that they should remember the product name very easily. It should strike to their mind within short period. They should find themselves with the advertisement or with the product. There should be an identity created in the market. For Ex: Coca Cola with the punch line " Thanda Matlab Coca Cola" by Amir khan has reached the audience. They felt like the drink is really made for the Indian market only.

3. Media: The media that the company has chosen should be reachable to the remote locations. Apart from this the company should use some other methods to make the customer aware of product and its quality. The awareness programs can be through audio visual van, demo programs at mandi, haats, meeting places etc. For Ex: Coromandel Fertilizer gave their promotions in the rural A P with the audio visual van. They made the farmer about their products and usage. They explained through audio video about the implications of pesticides. And in other case HLL at Kumbh mela shown the usage of the washing powder. Hence these touch and feel methods work well than others. It is one of the important factors to make the customer aware of the brand.

4. Message and Recognition: The message about the product and the company should be very clear. The customer should receive the message in clear terms. The message should be in the local language. It should be parallel with the culture and traditions of that specific region. People believe that they should not get cheated by the companies. Therefore company should give the message in proper way so as touch the emotions of the customer. They should convince the customer that they are not being cheated. By which they will get a proper recognition in the market.

In the rural market it is mostly the word of mouth publicity works. Therefore by influencing the opinion leaders, Sarpanch, village youth works out well for the companies. Hence it is all about making the people aware of the product and quality. Companies should try to make them convince for the acceptance of the product. In this way for a time period they can build the brand. In Rural market it can be done once the consumer is ok with the product. They continuously ask the product. Hence by the above methods the companies can meet the trick. There are some of the successful companies which have done it. Hence it is all about building brand for sales.

About Author / Additional Info:
An MBA from GITAM University,India

Reference: Mr.Balaram Dogra and Mr. Karminder Ghuman