"Customer is the king of the market. Every company needs to understand their customers.

The companies focus more on customer satisfaction, customer relationship and loyalty. All these are to retain the customer. Hence at the end of the day it is all about games for customer. It is really in need to understand their requirements. For the rural consumers it is really tough as the market is a complete heterogeneous. There will not be a clear definition for it.. Thus there should be a proper understanding of their profiles before the companies go further in the rural market.

The low literacy levels, low capita per income, low production in agriculture all these were older factors to tap the market. But the scenario has changed a lot; the largest percentage of the market has been into rapid progress. The rural market is better than the urban market,which now accounts for almost 70% of the total market. It is chasing urban market in terms of development. The rural youth are playing a vital role in the development. Taking all into consideration the companies should design the profile in a perfect manner. The profile can be 1.Traditional background: The consumer believes in old customs and traditions. They take the consideration of their culture. They look at functionality than on the style, brand and features. The superstition is one of the draw back in the rural market. They have a set of attitudes and they follow those only. It is really a tough task to change their mindset. 2.Perceptions: It is important because in rural market the size, colour, shape, and packaging of the product matters a lot. If the packaging has some changes in it, then it might be a problem. The colors differ according to the areas. In south people prefer yellow as good, but in North it is a sign of a disease. Hence all these factors matters a lot depending upon the perceptions of the consumer. 3.Less exposure: The consumers have less exposure towards the product, marketing of the brands, on the advertisements and its behaviors. There will not be any ready hand information available for them. There are fewer stores available per 1000 population. 4.Money value: They buy the products depending upon the money they have and if the product will sustain for the long term usage. There is a saying in Hindi "sastha, sundar,aur tikaau". That means for a lower price the product should be with all attributes. Hence this kind of expectation they have from the product. 5.Attitude: Their approach to buy the products is very realistic. They only buy the product if it is in their limits of the budget. But if the product is good in technology, quality and adds value to his role and status in the society then they do not look at money to buy it. Rather in its place, If it is good and long lasting then there is no go back from the consumers.

6. Size of the Rural Consumer:

Rural population forms a major portion of the Indian population. If we consider the state level

picture, in several states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala, the rural population constitutes more than 80% of the total population. In states like Bihar and Orissa 90% of the population is in rural areas.

7. Location Pattern of Rural Consumer: The urban population of India is concentrated in 3200 cities and towns and the rural population is scattered over 6, 38,365 villages. About 55% of the villages have population in the range of 500 people or less. The influence is clear, rural demand is scattered over a large area, unlike the urban demand, which is highly concentrated.

8. Literacy Level: It is estimated that there are 23% literate in rural India. The rural literacy in the rural area is on an increase. Among the rural population Kerala tops with 77%. The literacy rate has its implication in communication with the rural population. It appears that communication should not prove a hurdle, provided appropriate means are chosen.

9. Rural Income: An analysis of the rural income pattern reveals that nearly 60% of the rural income is from agriculture. Rural prosperity and the discretionary income with rural consumers are directly tied up with agricultural prosperity. The pre-dominance of agriculture in the income pattern has one more significance-rural demand is more seasonal.

10. Rural Savings: The rural consumers have been drawn into the saving habit in a big way. The commercial banks and the co-operative have been marketing the saving habit in the rural areas for quite some years. Today nearly 70% of the rural households are saving a part of their income. The habit is particularly widespread among salary earners and self-employed non-farmers.

CONCLUSION

It can be seen in general sense low purchasing power, low standard of living, low per capita income, low literacy level and overall low social and economic positions are the traits of the rural consumers.
All the consumers have a mentality of a love towards their village. They don't want to get cheated by the people. Therefore companies need to give detailed information for the customers. They should make them to believe for the brand. If they are going to introduce any product they should be more careful ,before doing so. There a should be a proper awareness for the product in the market. The word of mouth may help the companies a lot than any other kind of activities. It is better for the companies that they should clarify their doubts, and should examine the profile carefully because it may be a chance to miss an opportunity.

By and large, the rural consumers of India are a tradition bound community; religion, culture and even superstition strongly influence their consumption habits.