Unit 5

 Rural Marketing 
• Rural Marketing refers to the activities undertaken by the marketers to
encourage the people, living in rural areas to convert their purchasing
power into an effective demand for the goods and services and making
these available in the rural areas, with the intention to improve their
standard of living and achieving the company’s objective, as a whole.

• The Rural Marketing is a two-way process, i.e.,

1. Urban to Rural: FMCG Goods, Agricultural fertilizers, automobiles, etc.
are offered by the urban market to the rural market.
2. Rural to Urban: The agricultural supplies viz. Fruits, vegetables, flowers,
milk, etc. is offered from the rural market to the urban market.
• The marketers are following the strategy to “Go Rural” because of the
following attractions in the rural market:
1. Large Population: Still, the majority of the population in India resides in
Villages and therefore, the marketers find more potential in the rural
areas and direct their efforts to penetrate the rural market.
2. Increased Income: The income and the purchasing power of the rural
people have increased. With the use of modern agricultural equipment
and technology, the farmers can produce more and can get better
returns for their agricultural produce. The increased income motivates a
farmer to improve his livelihood by purchasing a good quality product
and thus, the marketer gets an opportunity to enter into the rural
market.
3. Competition in Urban Market: There is a lot of competition in the Urban
market, where people are well aware of the goods and services and have
created a brand loyalty. Therefore, the marketers move to the rural
market to escape the intense completion and generate revenues from
the untapped areas.
4. Improved Infrastructure facilities: Today, many villages are well
connected with the roads and transportation facilities that enables the
marketer to access the rural market and promote his goods and
• services.With the growth in telecom services, the rural people can be
reached easily via mobile phones.
5. Saturated Urban Market: Also, the marketers may move to the rural
markets, when the urban market has reached the saturation point, the
i.e. market is well stuffed with the products, and the consumers are not
likely to make a frequent purchase due to the varied options available in
the market.
6. Support of Financial Institutions: Several Co-operative banks and public
sector banks offer the loan facility to the rural people at low-interest
rates. With the loan, the purchasing power of an individual increases,
thus resulting in a better standard of living.
7. New Employment Opportunities: The Government is running several
employment opportunity programmes, with the intention to engage
people in other activities apart from the agriculture occupation.The
Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), Jawahar Rozgar
Yojana (JRY), Training Rural Youth for self-Employment are the certain
programmes, designed to increase the livelihood of rural people.
 Social Marketing
• Social marketing is the use of marketing theory, skills and practices to achieve
social change. It has the primary of achieving "social good."
• Traditional commercial marketing aims are primarily financial, though they can
have positive social affects as well.
• In the context of public health, social marketing would promote general health,
raise awareness and induce changes in behaviour. 
• Social marketing seeks to develop and integrate marketing concepts with other
approaches to social change.
• Social marketing aims to influence behaviours that benefit individuals and
communities for the greater social good. The goal is to deliver competition-
sensitive and segmented social change programs that are effective, efficient,
equitable and sustainable.
• Social marketing uses principles from commercial marketing and the social
sciences to change people’s behaviour for the social good – to benefit both
individuals and wider society.
• Combining ideas from commercial marketing and the social sciences, social
marketing is a proven tool for influencing behaviour in a sustainable and
cost-effective way.
• The goal of social marketing is always to change or maintain how people
behave – not what they think or how aware they are about an issue. 
• Societal marketing is a concept in marketing that emphasizes social
consciousness as part of the overall marketing plan.
• Societal marketing is when a company markets a product not only with
consumer and company needs in mind, but also the long-term well being of
society as a whole. 
• Social marketing is not the same as social media marketing. 
• Example-Eco-Friendly Marketing- Companies that place an emphasis on
recycled products and organic products that aren't going to damage the
ozone layer fall under the societal marketing strategy. 
 Online Marketing
• Online marketing is a set of powerful tools and methodologies used for
promoting products and services through the internet. Online marketing
includes a wider range of marketing elements than traditional business
marketing due to the extra channels and marketing mechanisms available
on the internet.
• Online marketing is also known as internet marketing, web marketing,
digital marketing and search engine marketing (SEM).
• Online marketing connects organizations with qualified potential
customers and takes business development to a much higher level than
traditional marketing. Online marketing synergistically combines the
internet's creative and technical tools, including design, development,
sales and advertising, while focusing on the following primary business
models:
1. E-commerce 2. Affiliate marketing
3. Local search 4. Lead-based websites
• Online marketing has several advantages, including:
1. Low costs: Large audiences are reachable at a fraction of traditional
advertising budgets, allowing businesses to create appealing consumer
ads.
2. Flexibility and convenience: Consumers may research and purchase
products and services at their leisure.
3. Analytics: Efficient statistical results are facilitated without extra costs.
4. Multiple options: Advertising tools include pay-per-click advertising, email
marketing and local search integration (like Google Maps).
5. Demographic targeting: Consumers can be demographically targeted
much more effectively in an online rather than an offline process.
• The main limitation of online marketing is the lack of tangibility, which
means that consumers are unable to try out, or try on items they might
wish to purchase. Generous return policies are the main way to
circumvent such buyer apprehension.
• Online marketing has outsold traditional advertising in recent years and
continues to be a high-growth industry.
 DIRECT MARKETING
1. Direct marketing is about making direct contact with existing and
potential customers to promote your products or services.
2. Direct marketing is a form of advertising where organizations
communicate directly to customers through a variety of media
including cell phone text messaging, email, websites, online
adverts, database marketing, fliers, catalog distribution, promotional
letters and targeted television, newspaper and magazine advertisements
as well as outdoor advertising.
3. Direct marketing uses a variety of different methods. Traditional
methods include direct mail and leafleting but email marketing,
telephone marketing and mobile and SMS marketing are widely used and
provides a cost-effective way to reach your customers on a one-to-one
basis.
4. Direct marketing occurs when businesses address customers through a
multitude of channels, including mail, e-mail, phone, and in person.
Direct marketing messages involve a specific “call to action,” such as “Call
this toll-free-number” or “Click this link to subscribe.”
• The results of such campaigns are immediately measurable, as a business
can track how many customers have responded through a message’s call
to action.
• Benefits:
i. Greater accuracy in targeting consumers
ii. Timing can be controlled to maximise impact
iii. Competitors are less aware of activity
iv. Provide more opportunities for feedback from consumers thus improving
subsequent marketing activity
v. All outcomes are precisely measurable
vi. Being a more powerful communication medium, as it is personalised and
relevant.
 FORMS OF DIRECT MARKETING
1. DIRECT MAIL

• Advertising mail, also known as direct mail (by its senders), junk

mail (by its recipients), or admail, is the delivery of advertising material
to recipients of postal mail.
• A marketing effort that uses a mail service to deliver a promotional
printed piece to your target audience .
2. Catalog Marketing
• Catalog marketing is a sales technique used by businesses to group many
items together in a printed piece or an online store, hoping to sell at least
one item to the recipient.
• Consumers buy directly from the catalog sender by phone, return
envelope or online using information in the catalog. 
3. Telemarketing
• Telemarketing is a very common form of marketing companies use to
connect with potential customers of their products or services.
Historically, telemarketing consisted of companies making telephone calls
to existing or potential customers. With new technology, telemarketing
has expanded to include video conferencing calls as well, although those
are typically conducted with existing customers. Telemarketing is often
used to try to sell a product or service, but it can also take the form of
surveys or information gathering.
• For instance, political campaigns use telemarketing heavily prior to
elections to inquire about voting preferences.
• When companies call new customers, the activity is referred to as cold
calling. This means the consumer has not purchased from the company
before nor have they requested a call from the company.
• Other forms of Direct Marketing can be brochures, leaflets, toll free
numbers ,radio ads,tele shopping network,etc

• PUBLIC AND ETHICAL ISSUES IN DIRECT MARKETING

1. Irritation:-Many people find the increasing number of hard-sell direct-

marketing solicitations to be a nuisance.  They dislike direct-response TV
commercials that are too loud, too long and too insistent. Especially,
bothersome are dinnertime or late-night phone calls, poorly trained
callers and computerized calls placed by an auto-dial recorded-message
player. 
2. Unfairness: Some direct marketers take advantage of impulsive or less
sophisticated buyers. TV shopping shows and infomercials may be the
worst culprits. They feature smooth-talking hosts, elaborately staged
demonstrations, claims of drastic price reductions, “while they last” time
limitations, and unexcelled ease of purchase to capture buyers who have
low sales resistance.. 
3. Deception and fraud: Some direct marketers’ design mailers and write
copy intended to mislead buyers. They may exaggerate product size,
performance claims, or the “retail price.” Political fundraisers sometimes
use gimmicks such as “look-alike” envelopes that resemble official
documents, simulated newspaper clippings, and fake honors and awards.
4. Invasion of privacy: it seems that almost every time consumers order
products by mail or telephone, enter a sweepstakes, apply for a credit
card, or take out a magazine subscription, their names, addresses, and
purchasing behavior may be added to several company databases
 Services Marketing
• Marketing services is different from marketing goods because of the
unique characteristics of services namely, intangibility, heterogeneity,
perishability and inseparability.
• Services marketing typically refers to both business to consumer (B2C)
and business-to-business (B2B) services, and includes marketing of
services such as telecommunications services, financial services, all types
of hospitality, tourism leisure and entertainment services, car
rental services, health care services and professional services and trade
services.
• Service marketers often use an expanded marketing mix which consists of
the seven Ps: product, price, place, promotion, people, physical evidence
and process.
• Importance of Marketing of Services
• Given the intangibility of services, marketing them becomes a particularly challenging and yet
extremely important task.

1. A key differentiator: Due to the increasing homogeneity in product offerings, the attendant

services provided are emerging as a key differentiator in the mind of the consumers. Eg: In
case of two fast food chains serving a similar product (Pizza Hut and Domino’s), more than
the product it is the service quality that distinguishes the two brands from each other.
Hence, marketers can leverage on the service offering to differentiate themselves from the
competition and attract consumers.
2. Importance of relationships: Relationships are a key factor when it comes to the marketing
of services. Since the product is intangible, a large part of the customers’ buying decision
will depend on the degree to which he trusts the seller. Hence, the need to listen to the
needs of the customer and fulfill them through the appropriate service offering and build a
long lasting relationship which would lead to repeat sales and positive word of mouth.
3. Customer Retention: Given today’s highly competitive scenario where multiple providers
are vying for a limited pool of customers, retaining customers is even more important than
attracting new ones. Since services are usually generated and consumed at the same time,
they actually involve the customer in service delivery process by taking into consideration
his requirements and feedback. Thus they offer greater scope for customization according
to customer requirements thus offering increased satisfaction leading to higher customer
retention.
 Green Marketing
• Concept of green marketing concerns with protection of ecological environment.
• Modern marketing has created a lot of problems. Growth in marketing activities
resulted into rapid economic growth, mass production with the use of advanced
technology, comfortable and luxurious life, style, severe competition, use of
unhealthy marketing tactics and techniques to attract customers, exaggeration in
advertising.
• These all factors have threatened welfare of people and ecological balance as well.
Particularly, giant factories have become the source of different pollutions.
Production, consumption and disposal of many products affect environment
adversely.
• Green marketing refers to the process of selling products and/or services based on
their environmental benefits. Such a product or service may be environmentally
friendly in itself or produced in an environmentally friendly way, including:
1. Being manufactured in a sustainable fashion
2. Not containing toxic materials or ozone-depleting substances
3. Able to be recycled and/or is produced from recycled materials
4. Being made from renewable materials (such as bamboo, etc.)
5. Not making use of excessive packaging
6. Being designed to be repairable and not "throwaway"

• Green marketing is an attempt to protect consumer welfare and

environment (the nature) through production, consumption, and disposal
of eco-friendly products.
• Basically, green marketing concerns with three aspects:
1. Promotion of production and consummation of pure/quality products,
2. Fair and just dealing with customers and society, and
3. Protection of ecological environment.
 Impacts or Importance of Green Marketing:

1. Now, people are insisting pure products – edible items, fruits, and vegetables based
on organic farming.
2. Reducing use of plastics and plastic-based products.
3. Increased consumption of herbal products instead of processed products.
4. Recommending use of leaves instead of plastic pieces; jute and cloth bags instead of
plastic carrying bags.
5. Increasing use of bio-fertilizers (made of agro-wastes and wormy-composed) instead
of chemical fertilizers (i.e. organic farming), and minimum use of pesticides.
6. Worldwide efforts to recycle wastes of consumer and industrial products.
7. Increased use of herbal medicines, natural therapy, and Yoga.
8. Strict provisions to protect forests, flora and fauna, protection of the rivers, lakes
and seas from pollutions.
9. More emphasis on social and environmental accountability of producers.
10.Imposing strict norms for pollution control
• Examples of Green Marketing
1. Grocers that advertise organic produce. The organic food industry has
grown in leaps and bounds as consumers express an increased
preference for non genetically modified foods that are free of pesticides.
2. Restaurants that promote "locally sourced" meats, vegetables, fish,
wines, etc. Local sourcing is attractive to consumers as it projects an
image of sustainability and willingness to invest in the community.
3. Toyota's marketing of the Prius hybrid. (The Prius outsells all other
hybrid vehicles, mostly because its unique styling reflects the typical
owner's passion for sustainability.)
 Relationship Marketing
• Relationship marketing is a facet of customer relationship management (CRM) that
focuses on customer loyalty and long-term customer engagement rather than shorter-
term goals like customer acquisition and individual sales.
• The goal of relationship marketing (or customer relationship marketing) is to create
strong, even emotional, customer connections to a brand that can lead to ongoing
business, free word-of-mouth promotion and information from customers that can
generate leads.
• Relationship Marketing therefore has evolved not only as a marketing strategy but
has been the foundation on which the Companies build their core values and ethics.
• Relationship Marketing defines the framework for the Company to reach out as well as
and orient themselves to the outside markets, to the end customer as well as to the
business partners, the suppliers and vendors too.
• Relationship marketing implies consideration of not just better relationships with
customer markets, but also the development and enhancement of relationships with
supplier, recruitment, internal, referral and influence markets.
• Examples of Relationship Marketing (RM)
•   American Airlines – The airline maintains a comprehensive frequent flyer
program that rewards customer loyalty with the promise of free flights, upgrades,
and discounts.
•   Dell – Dell computers created a special online store for high volume corporate
customers. By tailoring the ordering process to the specific customer's needs, Dell
was able to expedite many of the hassles corporate technology buyers face.
Providing a higher level of service leads to increased loyalty.

• Benefits of RM
1.  Customer Value
• An advantage of customer relationship marketing is that it tends to identify the
customers who are more likely to be of higher value to a company. This saves the
company time and money in terms of its sales and order-fulfillment efforts.
Customer relationship marketing also helps pinpoint customers who are too costly
to maintain relationships with, as well as opportunities for growing
underdeveloped potential. For example, a customer who is unprofitable for the
company might become a long-term account once he is encouraged to buy more
of the same product.
2. Communication
• Communication and customer satisfaction tend to increase when customer
relationship marketing is used. Businesses find it easier and more efficient to
obtain and keep their customers. Databases and customer relationship
management software help companies keep track of who is buying what and how
often. There is more of a two-way interaction between the company and the
person who wishes to make a purchase. Promotional incentives such as loyalty
discounts and perks help foster a sense of appreciation and reward for repeat
business.
3. It creates opportunities to solve problems immediately.
• There isn’t a brand and business on our planet that is 100% perfect. Products
sometimes fail. Services don’t always get provided as intended. When relationship
marketing efforts are in place, it gives an organization an out to be able to keep
that customer. This is because customer contacts are at the forefront of this
marketing effort.
4. Sales are able to multiply with a minimal investment.
• Many customers who have a relationship with a brand will purchase upcoming
products because of the past values experienced in previous purchases. This
means the only marketing effort required is to make the current customer base
become aware of a new product or service that is being offered.

 
 Marketing Ethics
• Marketing ethics are the moral principles and values that need to be
followed during any kind of marketing communication.
• Any unethical behaviour is not necessarily illegal. If a company is making
any kind of claims about their products, and are unable to live up to those
claims, it may be called as an unethical behaviour.
• Marketing ethics basically promotes fairness and honesty in all their
advertisements.
• Any kind of false claims to the consumers, invading consumer’s privacy,
stereotyping and targeting the vulnerable audience (like children and
elderly) are considered to be unethical behaviour by the companies. Even
trying to harm the competitor’s image is considered immoral.
• Ethical marketing is a process through which companies generate
customer interest in products/services, build strong customer
interest/relationships, and create value for all stakeholders by
incorporating social and environmental considerations in products and
promotions.
 Principles of Ethical Marketing
1. All marketing communications share the common standard of truth.
2. Marketing professionals abide by the highest standard of personal ethics.
3. Advertising is clearly distinguished from news and entertainment
content.
4. Marketers should be transparent about who they pay to endorse their
products.
5. Consumers should be treated fairly based on the nature of the product
and the nature of the consumer (e.g. marketing to children).
6. The privacy of the consumer should never be compromised.
7. Marketers must comply with regulations and standards established by
governmental and professional organizations.
8. Ethics should be discussed openly and honestly during all marketing
decisions.
• Example- Dove soap, for instance, ran a widely seen ad campaign featuring
“real” models. The ad was meant to promote realistic body images and
encourage girls to love the way they looked even if they were not
supermodels. However, other Dove ads featured stereotypically beautiful
models whose images have been altered to hide imperfections. Dove
marketed ethically in one campaign and unethically in another.