Problems and Opportunities in Rural Marketing: A Study of

Raipur's Southern Districts

Namrata Shrivastava

Kalinga University, RAIPUR (CG), India

Keywords: Rural Marketing, Farmers and Traders, Developmental Marketing, Market Threats, SWOT Analysis.

Abstract: Most Indians reside in villages. Furthermore, this rural population forms the backbone of Indian society and

embodies the country's true character. The Indian rural market has been able to demonstrate to marketers

across the country the signs of ripe opportunity due to its diverse range of demand. It presents the marketer

with a variety of opportunities and difficulties that must be carefully considered in order to develop effective

marketing plans. We still need to better understand rural consumers' buying patterns, attitudes, and

behaviours, especially from a marketing perspective. The study is based on both primary and secondary data

collected for three years, ranging from 2017 to 2019. The current investigation was conducted in four stages.

The profiles of the marketers and their personality scores were discussed at the initial stage. The discussion

of rural marketing issues is then followed by a second step of democratic discrimination over how these issues

are seen. The analysis of market threats in rural markets, the SWOT analysis, and the areas of prospects in

rural marketing are used to assess the prospects in rural marketing at the third stage. The necessary marketing

strategies and rural marketing mix requirements are determined at the very end.

1 INTRODUCTION

Rural marketing in India significantly impacts

people's lives and the Indian economy. It governs

commercial activities involving the flow of goods

from urban sectors to rural regions and the sale of

non-agricultural items. Rural marketing focuses on

the sale of manufactured goods in rural areas and

agricultural products in metropolitan areas. The

Registrars of Companies in each state manage the

rural market, which accounts for nearly half of the

nation's income. Rural consumers have unique traits,

as well as regional variances in purchasing patterns,

income levels, and macro- and microenvironments. A

distinct marketing strategy is needed to meet the

needs of rural consumers. Rural marketing tactics in

India enable brands to connect with rural clients

effectively. Techniques like hoarding and mobile

marketing have evolved over time, making it easier to

reach rural audiences. The large and developed rural

market attracts many brands, making it crucial for

marketers to adhere to these techniques and methods.

2 MARKETING APPROACHES

FOR RURAL COMMUNITIES

There are numerous rural marketing tactics in India

that can be used today to connect with rural clients.

Your brand will thrive in rural locations with omplex

planning and successful rural marketing methods.

There are a variety of techniques available in the rural

market, from hoarding to mobile. Reaching rural

audiences has gotten easier as rural marketing in India

has evolved over time. In the section below, we've

listed the best rural marketing tactics for reaching

Indian farmers. With these methods, rural marketing

is now a rather simple procedure. The brands are able

to effectively target rural audiences thanks to their

rural marketing tactics. Due to the sizeable and

developed nature of the rural market, there are many

brands in India that are interested in entering it.

Nowadays, the majority of marketers, both new and

old, desire to penetrate this sector. Therefore, if you

fall into this category, you must adhere to the rural

marketing techniques and methods described above.

864

Shrivastava, N.

Problems and Opportunities in Rural Marketing: A Study of Raipur’s Southern Districts.

DOI: 10.5220/0012515900003792

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 1st Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies (PAMIR 2023), pages 864-867

ISBN: 978-989-758-687-3

2.1 Need of the Study

Marketers have reached a certain saturation point in

urban areas, but there is still enormous untapped

potential in rural areas. But it's not always simple to

reach the rural market. It doesn't resemble an urban

market. It presents the marketer with a variety of

opportunities and difficulties that must be carefully

considered in order to develop effective marketing

plans. Therefore, it is essential to grasp the current

situation of the rural market, as well as its prospects

and problems.

3 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The following discussion includes a review of prior

research on rural marketing in India as well as issues

and future potential.Shukla and Tandon (2011)

remarked that rural India provides opportunities for

businesses to grow and thrive. Companies in the rural

market might earn higher earnings, market share, and

so on as a result of technological advances in

distribution and marketing. Pawan (2013) the causes

for the prospects of rural marketing in India have been

discovered. These include an increase in disposable

income and purchasing power, a reduction in risk

during the recession, an increase in literacy, IT

penetration in rural India, rapid infrastructure

improvement, and an increase in population and

demand. Malick and Jothi (2014) the significant

problems in rural marketing have been identified.

These include low literacy, communication issues,

traditional living, promotional media, seasonal

demand, transportation, distribution, a job in the rural

market, purchasing decisions, and cultural

considerations. Ingle (2015) stated that rural markets

provide enormous growth prospects due to an

unexplored market, a vast population, and a large

scope for penetration. A competent marketing plan,

such as acceptance, affordability, and awareness, as

well as the adoption of some new marketing tactics,

can assist organisations in tapping the enormous rural

market. Gosari and Vishal (2016) the role of rural

marketers in rural marketing was discovered. The

scope of rural marketing is expanding for secured

rural marketers. They are learning to take advantage

of all opportunities and to turn dangers into

opportunities. The majority of individuals in rural

areas are unwilling to invest in business and are also

unable to accept that being an entrepreneur is also

their vocation. Shrivastava, N (2017) found that many

Developing countries in the world may not have

appropriate infrastructure due to a lack of funds. Now

better infrastructure facilities can be easily created by

foreign funds, Foreign direct investment (FDI) is the

most strategic and vital tool for any country’s

infrastructure, domestic investment, increasing

human capital formation, and facilitating the

technology transfers for the development of rural

areas.

4 RESEARCH GAP

Indian research on rural marketing is extensive, but

little is known about the perspectives of farmers and

dealers. This study aims to fill research gaps by

examining their perspectives on challenges and

opportunities in rural marketing using a proposed

research paradigm.

4.1 Objectives

● To examine the problems in rural marketing as

per the view of marketers.

● To identify the discriminant aspects in problems

and prospects in rural marketing among the

farmers and traders.

● To analyse the strengths, weaknesses,

opportunities, and threats in rural marketing.

● To study the required marketing mixes for future

rural marketing.

4.2 Methodology

The study uses primary and secondary data from 2017

to 2019, with a carefully planned interview schedule

divided into four halves. The first section discusses

marketers' characteristics, challenges, market threats,

SWOT analysis, and potential areas for rural

marketing. The second section focuses on marketing

strategies and mixtures for the future. Five farmers

and five traders from each of the four southern

districts participated in the pilot survey. In response

to their comments, adjustments were made to the final

schedule for gathering the marketer’s core data, and

the Likert scale including some changes and

deletions.

Table 1. Determination of sample size

S.N. Category Sample Size--

n=[Ƶσ/D]

Total

1 Farmers n=[1.96 x

0.6173/0.5]

=585.55

586

2 Traders n=[1.96 x

0.4984/0.5]

=381.7

382

Total 968

Problems and Opportunities in Rural Marketing: A Study of Raipur’s Southern Districts

865

The sample size of farmers and traders included in the

present study is determined with the help of the

above-said formula and shown in table no 4.1.

Farmers and traders were assigned sample sizes of

586 and 382 based on the standard deviation of

marketers' satisfaction with rural marketing in the

pilot study, which was 0.6173 and 0.4984,

respectively.

4.3 Area of Study

The researcher chose four rural marketplaces in

Raipur's southern region for this work. The researcher

is knowledgeable about the local dialect and culture in

these places. In all four rural market areas, namely

(Fundahar, Mathpurena, Sejbahar, and Tikrapara), the

determined sample size of farmers and traders is

distributed evenly in all four marketplaces. In total,

586 farmers are dispersed evenly across all four rural

marketplaces in Raipur's southern region. As a result,

each district's sample size is 149 farmers. In each

district, the permitted sample size is 94 traders. As a

result, the current study's sample approach is judgment

sampling.

Table 2 summarises the Eigen value and the

percentage of variation explained by each key concern

that the first three IPRM narrated by the factor analysis

are poor marketing systems, financial-related

problems, and poor marketing knowledge since their

Eigen values are 6.4, 5.1, and 4.3 respectively. The

percent of variation explained by these three IPRMs

are 15.1, 12.1, and 10.1 respectively. The next IPRM

identified by factor analysis are customer-related

problems and poor informative access since their

Eigenvalues are 4.1 and 3.8 respectively. The percent

of variation explained by these two IPRMs are 9.3 and

9.1 percent respectively. The last two IPRM narrated

by the EFA are sales-related problems and lack of

infrastructure since its Eigenvalues are 3.4 and 3.1

respectively. The percent of variation explained by

these two IPRMs is 8.3 and 7.2 percent respectively.

These seven IPRMs are included for factor analysis.

Table 2: Important problems in rural marketing (IPRM) *Significant at zero percent level.

Table 2 displays the results. where the t statistics

are significant at the 5% level. Poor marketing

expertise and customer-related problems have the

highest mean differences, with mean differences of

0.6 and 0.5, respectively. Wilks lambda values of

0.102 and 0.119, respectively, indicate higher

discriminant power in the event of inadequate

marketing expertise and a poor marketing system.

Table 3: Marketers’ View on SWOT in Rural Marketing.

S.N.

Components of

SWOT

Mean score among

‘t’

statistics

Farmers Traders

1 Strengths 3.38 3.79 -2.4224*

2 Weaknesses 3.83 3.33 2.6038

3 Opportunities 3.28 3.77 2.5117*

4 Threats 3.74 3.21 2.5084*

*Significant at a 5 percent level

S.N.

problems in rural

marketing

Number of

variables in

Eigen value

% of variation

explained

Cumulative % of

variation explained

1 Poor marketing system 10 6.4 15.1 15.3

Finance related

problem

7 5.1 12.1 26.1

Poor in marketing

knowledge

6 4.3 10.1 36.2

Customer related

problems

6 4.1 9.3 45.3

5 Poor information access 6 3.8 9.1 54.1

6 Sales related problems 5 3.4 8.3 62.3

7 Lack of infrastructure 4 3.1 7.2 68.4

KMO measure of sampling adequacy:0.7396 Bartlett’s test of sphericity: Chi square value: 81.09*

PAMIR 2023 - The First Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies- | PAMIR

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Table 3 contains the results. Farmers place a high

value on weaknesses and threats, with mean values of

3.83 and 3.74, respectively. These two are strengths

and opportunities among traders, with mean scores of

3.79 and 3.77, respectively. Since its 't' statistics are

significant at the 5% level, there is a considerable

difference in the farmers' and traders' perspectives on

all four components of SWOT.

Table 4 shows the Eigen value and the percentage

of variation explained by IRMFRM. Since their

eigenvalues are 7.82 and 4.91, respectively,

availability and awareness are the first two

IRMFRMs that factor analysis describes. The

percentage of variation that these two IRMFRMs

account for is 23.70 and 14.91%, respectively.

Because their Eigen values are 4.1132 and 3.97,

respectively, the factor analysis selected affordability

and acceptability as the next two IRMFRM. These

two IRMFRMs account for 12.51 and 12.02 percent

of the variation, respectively. The four narrated

IRMFRM have been added for additional analysis.

The 33 variables in the RMFRM are explained by the

recounted four IRMFRM to a degree of 63.05

percent.

Table 4: Important Required Marketing Mixes for Future

Rural Marketing (IRMFRM).

5 SCOPE FOR FUTURE

RESEARCH

The current study will serve as the foundation for a

wide range of next studies in the field of rural

marketing. Here is a list of them. The issues with rural

marketing may only be the subject of a separate

investigation. According to the marketers, it might

cover the reasons of these issues and their solutions.

Similarly, to this, future research may evaluate the

potential for rural marketing, its region, and necessary

tactics as a separate topic of study. Future research

may examine the relationship between rural

marketing's issues, opportunities, and performance.

Rural consumer behaviour in the age of globalization

may be the subject of different research. In the near

future, it may be researched how government actions

influenced the growth of rural marketing. The focus

of the next research will be on marketing tactics and

techniques used in the study area's rural markets.

6 CONCLUSION

The current study comes to the conclusion that while

there are many opportunities in rural marketing, there

are also many serious difficulties. Poor marketing

understanding and issues relating to customers are the

main issues. Despite issues including a lack of

infrastructure and difficult access to information,

these are described by the qualities at a higher rate.

Overall, farmers are experiencing more issues than

traders. It can be a result of their personal

characteristics and personality features, which the

current study acknowledges. To successfully position

their products, marketers are urged to create effective

rural marketing mixes that include availability,

awareness, affordability, and acceptability. The

current study has recognized the following strategic

rural marketing practices as being necessary for the

future of rural marketing: effective promotion

strategies, developmental marketing, knowledgeable

sales staff, demand management, value-added

services, and input building. If marketers follow the

procedures, they will profit more from rural

marketing because the prospects there are better.

REFERENCES

Gosari, J.M and vishal Balkrushma Samudre (2016), “Rural

marketing-opportunities and challenges”, IOSR journal

of business and management, 18(8), pp.59-64.

Ingle, D.V (2015), “A study of rural market opportunities

in India with specific reference to Akola District”,

International journal of applied research, 1(2), pp.131-

134.

Malick, T.V and J.Jothi Krishnan (2014), “ Rural marketing

strategies, cjwes and challenges”, International Journal

of engineering and management research, 4(2), pp.116-

122.

Pawan Kumar (2013), “Rural marketing in India:

challenges and opportunities”, International journal of

management and social sciences research, 2(8), pp.93-

100.

Shrivastava, N (2017), “Impact of FDI on Rural

Development “, SRF International & National Research

Journal & Book Publication House, Swadeshi Research

Foundation a Quarterly Journal of Multidisciplinary

Research, Jabalpur, INDIA, 5(1), pp.146-149.

Shukla, S and Tandon, N (2011), “rural marketing

exploring new possibilities in the rural India”,

International business review, 7(1), pp.125-130.

S.N. IRMFRM Number of

variables

Eigen

value

% of

variation

laine

Cumulative %

of variation

laine

1 Availabilit

11 7.82 23.70 23.70

2 Awareness 9 4.91 14.91 38.57

3 Affordabilit

7 4.11 12.51 51.03

4 Acce

tabilit

6 3.97 12.02 63.05

KMO measure of sampling

ade

uac

:0.7089

Bartlett’s test of sphericity: Chi

uare value: 81.83

Problems and Opportunities in Rural Marketing: A Study of Raipur’s Southern Districts

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