Introduction of rural market:

Rural markets in India constitute a wide and untapped market for many products and services which are being marketed for the urban masses. There is a demand for telecommunication services to be provided to in these areas. Till now it was government which was trying to reach the villages through various initiates, but the rural tele-density is very poor and can be improved only through the introduction of modern and suitable technology along with participation from the private operators.

Introduction to rural markets: The rise of rural markets has

been the most important phenomenon of the 1990 s, providing volume growth to all leading companies. Many corporates have been trying to get a grip on rural market. But challenges are many: how to make the product affordable, how to penetrate villages with small populations, connectivity, communications, language barriers,spurious brands, etc.Marketers and manufacturers are increasingly aware of the burgeoning purchasing power,vast size and demand base of the once neglected Indian hinterland. Efforts are now on tounderst and the attitude of rural consumers, and to walk their walk and talk their talk. Themarketing mix of many companies is now being tailored to rural tastes and lifestyles.Government agencies like IRDA (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority) andNCAER (National Council for Applied Economic Research) define rural as villages witha population of less than 5000, with 75% of the male population engaged in agriculture,etc. Two-third of the country s consumer (more than 700 million) live in rural areas andalmost 26% of the national income is generated there. And 10 consecutive good monsoonshave lead to improved returns from agriculture (which is India s largest economic sectorand accounts for 26% of GDP, increasing the spending power in India s rural areas. Indiais divided into 597 districts, and has 638,667 villages, of which 32% can be reached and areconnected by pucca roads. However, 68% of the rural market lies untapped due to variousreasons ranging from inaccessibility to lack of awareness.In all, there are more than 3.8 million retail outlets in rural India, 5.8 shops per village(the term shop refers to any type of premises haats, stalls, shacks-that sell goods).Overall, the rural market has been growing at 3-4%per annum, adding more than 1 millionnew consumers every year, and now accounts for close to 50% of the volume of consumption of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) in India. As a result, it is becoming an important part of the market development strategies of allFMCG companies, including multinational ones, as well as consumer durables businessand services companies as well.Further, the vast untapped potential of the rural markets is growing at a rapid pace. Thepolicies of the government largely favour rural development programmes. This is clearlyhighlighted by the fact that the outlay for rural development has risen from Rs 14000

croresin the 7th plan to Rs 30000 crores in the 8th plan period. Thus, with the rural marketsbulging in both size and volume, any marketing manager will be missing a great potentialopportunity if he does not go rural.

Introduction of Consumer Behaviour:

The study of consumers helps firms and organizations improve their marketing strategies by understanding issues such as how
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The psychology of how consumers think, feel, reason, and select between different alternatives (e.g., brands, products, and retailers); The psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her environment (e.g., culture, family, signs, media); The behavior of consumers while shopping or making other marketing decisions; Limitations in consumer knowledge or information processing abilities influence decisions and marketing outcome; How consumer motivation and decision strategies differ between products that differ in their level of importance or interest that they entail for the consumer; and How marketers can adapt and improve their marketing campaigns and marketing strategies to more effectively reach the consumer.

One "official" definition of consumer behavior is "The study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the processes they use to select, secure, use, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society." Although it is not necessary to memorize this definition, it brings up some useful points:
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Behavior occurs either for the individual, or in the context of a group (e.g., friends influence what kinds of clothes a person wears) or an organization (people on the job make decisions as to which products the firm should use). Consumer behavior involves the use and disposal of products as well as the study of how they are purchased. Product use is often of great interest to the marketer, because this may influence how a product is best positioned or how we can encourage increased consumption. Since many environmental problems result from product disposal (e.g., motor oil being sent into sewage systems to save the recycling fee, or garbage piling up at landfills) this is also an area of interest. Consumer behavior involves services and ideas as well as tangible products.

The impact of consumer behavior on society is also of relevance. For example, aggressive marketing of high fat foods, or aggressive marketing of easy credit, may have serious repercussions for the national health and economy.

INTRODUCTION All of us are consumers. We consume things of daily use, we also consume and buy these products according to our needs, preferences and buying power. These can be consumable goods, durable goods, speciality goods or, industrial goods. What we buy, how we buy, where and when we buy, in how much quantity we buy depends on our perception, self concept, social and cultural background and our age and family cycle, our attitudes, beliefs values, motivation, personality, social class and many other factors that are both internal and external to us. While buying, we also consider whether to buy or not to buy and, from which source or seller to buy. In some societies there is a lot of affluence and, these societies can afford to buy in greater quantities and at shorter intervals. In poor societies, the consumer can barely meet his barest needs. The marketers therefore tries to understand the needs of different consumers and having understood his different behaviours which require an in-depth study of their internal and external environment, they formulate their plans for marketing. Management is the youngest of sciences and oldest of arts and consumer Behaviour in management is a very young discipline.Various scholars and academicians concentrated on it at a much later stage. It was during the 1950s, that marketing concept developed, and thus the need to study the behaviour of consumers was recognised. Marketing starts with the needs of the customer and ends with his satisfaction. When every thing revolves round the customer, then the study of consumer behaviour becomes a necessity. It starts with the buying of goods. Goods can be bought individually, or in groups. Goods can be bought under stress (to satisfy an immediate need), for comfort and luxury in small quantities or in bulk. For all this, exchange is required. This exchange is usually between the seller and the buyer. It can also be between consumers. Consumer behaviour can be defined as the decision-making process and physical activity involved in acquiring, evaluating, using and disposing of goods and services. This definition clearly brings out that it is not just the buying of goods/services that receives attention in consumer behaviour but, the process starts much before the goods have been acquired or bought. A process of buying starts in the minds of the consumer, which leads to the finding of alternatives between products that can be acquired with their relative advantages and disadvantages. This leads to internal and external research. Then follows a process of decision-making for purchase and using the goods, and then the post purchase behaviour which is also very important, because it gives a clue to the marketers whether his product has been a success or not. To understand the likes and dislikes of the consumer, extensive consumer research studies are being conducted. These researches try to find out:

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What the consumer thinks of the companys products and those of its competitors? How can the product be improved in their opinion? How the customers use the product? What is the customer s attitude towards the product and its advertising? What is the role of the customer in his family?

The following key questions should be answered for consumer research. A market comes into existence because it fulfils the needs of the consumer. In this connection, a marketer has to know the 70 s framework for consumer research. Taking from an example of soap.

What are the 4 marketing p's ?

1. Product 2. Pricing 3. Placement 4. Promotion There you have it, the 4 marketing p's So now lets get a bit more explanation of the 4 marketing p's : 1. Product - The product aspects of marketing deal with the specifications of the actual goods or services, plus how it relates to the end users needs and wants. The range of a product normally includes supporting elements such as warranties, guarantees, and support. 2. Pricing -This refers to the process of setting a price for a product, together with discounts. The price need not be monetary; it can plainly be what is exchanged for the product or services, e.g. time, energy, or attention. Methods of setting prices optimally are in the domain of pricing art

3. Placement - (or distribution ): refers to how the product gets to the buyer; for instance, point-ofsale assignment or retailing. This third P has furthermore at times been called Place, referring to the channel by which a product or service is sold (e.g. online vs. retail), which geographic region or industry, to which division (young adults, families, business citizens), etc. also referring to how the surroundings in which the product is sold in can influence sales. 4. Promotion - This includes advertising, sales promotion, including promotional education, publicity, and individual selling. Branding refers to the assorted strategies of promoting the product, brand, or company. All the 4 marketing p's are also known as "the marketing mix" furthermore are frequently used by a marketer to plot a plan, and place the foundations of fresh projects/campaigns, it is a astonishingly useful strategy that has been used ever since the early 1960's, and will be constant for as long as newfound projects/campaigns are being produced.