Page 57 - MARKETING & PUBLIC RELATIONS EBOOK IC88

4. Some of the characteristics of the rural customers are

 He enjoys a visit to the town. That is where he makes most of his big purchases. His mobility is
high because of bicycles, motorcycles or tractors.

 He has an uneventful, routine life style, which is in tune with nature, not the clock or the
calendar. (Sunday is not a holiday).

 Cultural constraints may prevent purchase, without approval of elders or seniors. Traditions may
inhibit the lower classes from possessing goods which the upper classes may consider status
symbols.

 They are generally fatalistic. Whatever happens is as per the will of the Almighty. When things
happen according to God's will, it would be foolish to try and counter such happenings, through
insurance.

 It had been noticed that the villager values his cattle and land (means of production) more than
the family and his own needs.

 He may be illiterate: but he is wise.

 He has a natural suspicion of the smart operators from towns. Winning trust through the
endorsement of one of the village elders is essential. He is also quick to accept the opinion of
someone he trusts.

(b) Promotion

Promotional communication in the rural areas is more complex than in the urban areas. Written matter
has little impact. Cinema, as a medium, is poor. Three-fourths of the touring talkies are in the southern
states. They do not generally agree to show ad films. Even if they do, there is no guarantee that they will
show it as agreed. Even if they were screened, the visuals and spoken words must match the local
customs and lingo, to make any impact. There are said to be 850 dialects in India. Commercial radio and
TV advertisements have much better reach. They have to be carefully prepared so as to appeal to the
rural folk.

The spoken word, through personal selling and word-of-mouth, is the most powerful medium of
communication in the rural areas. A study showed that information about new products is received from
shopkeepers (75%), T,V, ads (23%), newspapers (6050), friends (10%) and hoots (2%).

3. Other effective promotional media for the rural markets are

 Specially prepared films, to be shown through publicity vans.
 Claim cheques may be handed over at a function attended by the community, preferably by the
agent who arranged the insurance.
 Promotional messages can easily be weaved into local entertainments like the katha or folk
theatres

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