TELECOM SERVICE PROVIDERS IN THE VILLAGES Aniruddha Bhagwat Roll No. 148 Penaaz Shaikh Roll No. 70 Chaitra Desai Roll No. 117 Charu Gupta Roll No. 145 RURAL MARKETING

AN OVERVIEW The expansion of India's telecom industry has led to an "all- inclusive growth" of the Indian economy in terms of GDP In the 2006/07 the country saw the growth rate hit 9.6 percent-Majorly due to telecom sector. The demand for telecommunication services are surging across rural India, as middle class and upper classes are growing in most villages

OPPORTUNITY IN RURAL INDIA A huge population – 720 million people in 630,000 villages across 3.2 million square miles. A massive economy – over 50% of India’s total GDP. There are almost same number of middle to high income households in rural areas (21.16 mn) as urban India (23.22 mn). A booming economy – with the consumer durables market, for example, growing at 25% per year (vs 10% nationally). A parallel economy – with the same needs as developed markets but a reduced ability to pay.

GAP BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL No celebrities will work No mass media coverage -Due to lack of access to technology Rural market lies in the bottom of the Pyramid. The 4 A’s work for them Availability Affordability Acceptability Awareness

COMMUNICATION HELPS Lack of transportation -Coordinated rural transportation based on mobile information delivery, will increase convenience and allow users to find reliable, regular and affordable transportation ‘on-demand’. Difficulties in managing commercial transactions -Micro-commerce ventures like mobile ordering, payments and delivery requests can all help isolated small-scale entrepreneurs in remote locations. Lack of healthcare services -Telecom and broadband intervention will allow doctors, nurses and midwives to stay in closer contact with patients. Ignorance of governance policies -Rural governance services giving access to citizen data will allow the rural population to be more informed about national level developments and reduce the urban-rural divide.

IDEA The most favorable service provider in one of the 2 villages Has good network in the village Availability is high but the distribution is not well channelized Branding is seen in and around the village- not extensive The amount that people spend is Rs 10/- to Rs.150/-

AIRTEL Is favored in one village and not in the rest The network is good in Sonwadi because of the existence of a tower Availability is high, but distribution is poor Very poor branding around the villages The spending of the people remain the same irrespective of the network

VODAFONE Not favored by the villagers Usage rate of Vodafone is extremely low because of poor network Availability is not as high as that of Idea and Airtel. This is because of low demand Huge amount of branding is done all around the villages and district

NEED GAP ANALYSIS No direct distribution of sim cards and recharges People hesitate to buy a cellphone because of discomfort with usage Network: Only Idea and Airtel have good network Nominal women users Few purchase location: only 2 outlets in one bazaar No initiative taken by the company Inadequate branding (except for Vodafone)

DISTRIBUTION Well channelized distribution - Direct distribution to the rural market Trade discount and trade promotions - Incentives to the shopkeepers for branding and meeting sales target - prizes Tie-up with a mobile company for low cost phones to be distributed

PROMOTIONS Women’s initiative - Educate them in the village to encourage sales - Special schemes, e.g. speak to the ancestral home free of cost - Interaction with women on Mondays Festival branding - The service provider can brand the pandals - Built kiosks Cultural fairs, dramas and respected community elders Fairs and weddings

PROMOTIONAL STRATEGIES Communicating and changing quality perception - Value for money Communication in Indian language Exploit social and cultural values - Sensitive people Talking about a normal Indian - Base advertisements and interactions on normal Indian families Marathi names for the schemes

BRANDING Umbrellas Rooftops Run down buildings Interior branding - Inside stores Initiatives in college and high schools Communication - Focus on network

Increase towers for better network - e.g. Vodafone - Create awareness about the tower More shops needs to have the products - Only two shops in the entire bazaar had the products Companies need to come and show initiative in the villages

CSR ACTIVITIES Workshops to educate the children in the villages - The best performer gets a mobile phone with sim card Sponsor cricket tournaments - The target audience is the youth Medical check ups twice in a year - This will help the villagers to connect with the brand

THANK YOU Submitted by: Penaaz Shaikh (70) Chaitra Desai (117) Charu Gupta (145) Aniruddha Bhagwat (148)