International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering & Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org, editorijaiem@gmail.com
ISSN 2319 - 4847
Special Issue for National Conference On Recent Advances in Technology and Management for
Integrated Growth 2013 (RATMIG 2013)
Effective Utilization of Marketing Communication
Channel by FMCG Retailers of Rural India
(With Reference to Chandrapur District, Maharashtra)
Mr. Mangesh Kotkar1, Ms. Sandipa Itankar2, Ms. Neha Ghodghate3, Mr. Satish Rewatkar4
Ballarpur Institute of Technology, School of Business, Ballarpur, Dist. Chandrapur (MS)
2
3
4
mangeshkotkar11@gmail.com sandipa.itankar@gmail.com, neha.ghorghate@rediffmail.com, satish.rewatkar3885@gmail.com
1
ABSTRACT
In India, retail is one of the growing sectors. Retailing consists of all the activities involved in selling goods and services
directly to the final customers for their personal and non personal use. Due to competition consumer are now having
choice to select their retail shop for buying the goods. For the same cause retailers are focused to promote their retail shop
in their region. The Marketing communication is continuous interaction between the buyers and sellers in a market place.
It includes Advertising, Personal Selling, Sales Promotion, Public Relations, Direct Marketing, and Internet Marketing.
The said study provides a deep insight on the FMCG retailer’s promotional activities to attract the consumer in rural
India. This research is based on primary information and data collected from Chandrapur district of Maharashtra.
Keywords: Retail, FMCG, Retail in India, Marketing communication.
1. INTRODUCTION
Marketing is the processes associated with encourage the sale of goods or services. It is an integrated process
through which companies generate value for customers and build strong customer relationships. In return value from
customers is captured. Marketing is used to create customer demand, satisfy customer requirements and retain their loyalty.
Customer-focused marketing is based on the four Ps: product, promotion, price and placement. Product communication to the
consumer is mainly part of the promotion tool. The effectiveness of marketing instruments is usually measured in increased
sales. Improvements in customer satisfaction or customer loyalty are objectives of marketing instruments even if it is hard to
measure direct impact.
Marketing situation in India changed with market liberalization policies after 1990’s. Rural marketers have to distinguish
themselves on quality and value for money. For this purpose, they need to understand the factors that responsible for the
purchase of Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) in rural India.
Retail is the transaction of goods and services from individuals or businesses to the end-user. According to David Gilbert,
Any business that directs its marketing efforts towards satisfying the final consumer based upon the organization of selling
goods and services as a means of distribution. Retailer is a person (or an organization) who buys goods in bulk and divide
them into smaller lots to be sold to individual consumer. Retail transactions include sales of tangible products, services such
as financial services, beauty care saloons or dry cleaning. FMCG emerged as a foremost product category in rural
consumption in India. Companies marketing FMCG to rural consumers cannot merely extend their general/urban marketing
strategies to rural markets. Instead, they need to devise rural precise strategies. Retailers offer an assortment of merchandise
to facilitate choice for the selection of goods to consumers. Retailers attempt to use a pricing policy which is modified
depending upon consumer’s demand, level of competitions, etc. Marketing communication is continuous interaction between
the buyers and sellers in a market place. Marketing communication is a process of presenting an integrated set of stimuli to
the target with the evoking of a desire set of response within the target market and act upon message and identifying new
communication opportunities. According to Ramaswamy and Namakumari, marketing communication can be defined as the
endeavour of presenting a set of messages to target market through multiple cues and media, with the intention of creating a
favourable response from the market for the company’s total offering and simultaneously providing for market feed-back for
improving and modifying the offering. It consists of Advertising, Personal Selling, Sales Promotion, Public Relations, Direct
Marketing, and Internet Marketing.
Organized By: GNI Nagpur, India
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering & Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org, editorijaiem@gmail.com
ISSN 2319 - 4847
Special Issue for National Conference On Recent Advances in Technology and Management for
Integrated Growth 2013 (RATMIG 2013)
2. RETAIL SECTOR IN INDIA
Since from ancient time India had been started its retail journey. It was relatively time-consuming to step up and shape
the modern retail. There is a enormous change in Indian retail, the liberalization of the consumer goods industry originate in
the mid-eighty’s and accelerated through the ninety’s has started to impact the structure and conduct of the retail industry. In
India retail is the largest industry. The retail sector has observed a huge development from the last few years. The most
important factors responsible for the retail boom have been the revolutionize in consumer profile and demographics, increase
in the number of global brands available in the Indian market, economic implications of the Indian government, increasing
urbanization, credit availability, improvement in the infrastructure, increasing investments in technology and real estate
building a world class shopping atmosphere for the consumers. Retail has become major source of employment and has
deep penetration into rural India. Indian Retail Industry is ranked among the ten largest retail markets in the world. Retailing
contributes to 10% of GDP and around 8% of the employment. Retail sector is one of India’s fastest growing sectors with a
5% compounded annual development rate. It is expected that retail in India could be valued US$ 175- 200 billion by 2016.
At present the Retail industry in India is accelerating. Though India is still not at an equal pace with other Asian counterparts,
Indian is geared to become a major player in the Retail Market. The future of the India retail industry looks shows potential
with the growing of the market, with the government policies becoming more encouraging and the emerging technologies
facilitating operations.
3. OBJECTIVE
To study the effective utilization of marketing communication channel by FMCG retailers in rural India.
4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4.1 Area of the Study
The samples are taken from the Chandrapur district of Maharashtra state including its talukas. The structured
questionnaire was used to collect the primary data. There are fourteen talukas in Chandrapur District. Out of the fourteen
talukas, eleven taluka’s have been selected for the stated study along with Chandrapur city. The selection of sample talukas
has done by stratified sampling methods, although, selection is random.
4.2 Sampling Technique
FMCG retailers are the respondents for the study in the rural areas. Sampling unit is limited to the Chandrapur district of
Maharashtra, India. Sample Size of two hundred and seventy retailers from the said areas (twenty from each taluka of
Chandrapur district and fifty from Chandrapur city) are being taken. Random sampling is adopted on the ground of
availability, convenience to access and level of participation. Almost equal no. of respondents has been taken from each
taluka’s. The respondents selected were known about the marketing communication concepts.
4.3 Data Collection
The current study is principally based on the primary data collected with the help of structured questionnaire and
interview. The necessary data for this study has been collected through an interview scheduled by directly approaching the
retailers and other relevant data from some secondary sources also. All the data for the purpose of the study and deep analysis
had been collected during the field work. Preliminary data had been collected form twelve places which include eleven
talukas of Chandrapur district and Chandrapur city. During the survey in rural areas, the researcher has taken interviews on
the basis of prepared standard questionnaire of about twenty retailers in every taluka and fifty from Chandrapur city. The
places includes Chandrapur City, Ballarpur, Gondpipari, Warora, Rajura, Bhadrawati, Chimur, Bramhapuri, Nagbhid,
Pombhurna, Mul, Korpana. The study is concerned about Advertising, Personal Selling, Sales Promotion, Public Relations,
Direct Marketing communication channels.
Organized By: GNI Nagpur, India
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering & Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org, editorijaiem@gmail.com
ISSN 2319 - 4847
Special Issue for National Conference On Recent Advances in Technology and Management for
Integrated Growth 2013 (RATMIG 2013)
5. DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
The data analysis is done on the basis of data collected from field.
Table 1 shows the use of marketing communication channel by retailers.
SN
Marketing Communication
Number of Response (In %)
1
Advertising
37.02
2
Sales promotion
25.83
3
Public relation and publicity
37.15
4
Direct marketing
0.14
Table 2 shows the Advertising tools used by retailers.
SN
1
2
3
4
5
6
Advertising tools
Newspaper
Local Magazine
Cable TV
Leaflets
Hording
Transit Media
Number of Response (In %)
0.35
0.71
1.41
1.06
94.70
1.77
SN
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Table 3 shows the Sales Promotion tools used by retailers.
Sales Promotion tools
Number of Response (In %)
Discount
16.96
Buy one get one free
1.38
Coupons
1.38
Point of purchase display
61.25
Event sponsorship
2.42
Specialty advertising
4.84
Free home delivery
7.61
Not willing to answer
4.15
Table 4 shows the Public relation tools used by retailers.
SN
1
2
3
Public relation tools
Brochures
Mouth To Mouth Publicity
Association
Number of Response (In %)
0.73
98.18
1.09
The data collected from the samples to study the utilization of the marketing communication channel by the retailers in
rural India. The data shows that 37.02% of FMCG retailers in rural India use advertising channel to promote their business. In
advertising they are focused on Newspaper, Local Magazine, Cable TV, Leaflets, Hording (Sign Board), Transit Media. Out
of these tools retailers are used 0.35% newspaper, 0.71% Local Magazine, 1.41% local cable TV, 1.06% Leaflets, 94.70%
Hording (Sign Board) above their retail shop and in their region, 1.77% Transit Media like local transportation vehicles.
Sales promotion channel is used by 25.83% FMCG retailers. The data shows that in rural area 16.96% retailers use discount
tools to promote their business. 1.38% buy one get one free offers, 1.38% coupons, 61.25% point of purchase display in
which retailers are put FMCG goods in the display shelf, 7% local event sponsorship, specialty advertising used by 4.48% of
retailers, free home delivery service is used by 7.61% of retailers.
Public relation channel is also seen in the rural area. 37.15% of retailers use public relation to promote their business. 98.18%
consider mouth to mouth publicity is necessary to promote the retail business in rural area.0.73% distribute brochures other
than leaflets which includes information about their shop and management, 03% of retailers are being associated with the
local association.
Direct marketing which includes face to face marketing outside the retail shop for FMCG goods is used by 0.14%.
Organized By: GNI Nagpur, India
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering & Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org, editorijaiem@gmail.com
ISSN 2319 - 4847
Special Issue for National Conference On Recent Advances in Technology and Management for
Integrated Growth 2013 (RATMIG 2013)
6. CONCLUSIONS
From the responses obtained, it can be concluded that in rural India, Public relation and advertising are mostly used and
preferred by retailers. Sales promotion is also favoured by the retailers to promote their business. As compare to the other
marketing communication elements direct marketing is chosen and executed by very few retailers.
In rural India, the retailers believe that mouth to mouth publicity is important to promote the business. Hoardings (Sign
Boards) are also preferred by the retails which are being place above the retail shop, nearby shop, in market area, nearby bus
stand, auto stand, mostly in crowded area of region etc.
The present scenario of rural market regarding the FMCG retailers of rural India is to promote and attract the consumer for
which public relation and advertising is been commonly used.
7. REFERENCES
[1] Md. Abbas Ali, Venkat Ram Raj Thumiki and Naseer Khan “Factors Influencing Purchase of FMCG by Rural
Consumers in South India: An Empirical Study”, International Journal of Business Research and Development, ISSN
1929‐0977 | Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 48‐57 (2012)
[2] Dr. Jaskaran Singh Dhillon, Madhur Joshi, Ramita Verma, “Emergence of Retailing Sector in India: Challenges and
Opportunities” ISSN : 2230-9519 (Online) | ISSN : 2230-2463 (Print)
[3] Issue paper on marketing and effective communication, Issue Paper No 3, [April 2010]
[4] IJRFM Volume 2, Issue 2 (February 2012) (ISSN 2231-5985), Marketing Strategies Adopted By Retailers In Retail
Store: A Case Study of Max Lifestyle Store-Phoneix Mall, Lucknow By Smriti Srivastava.
[5] IJRFM Volume 2, Issue 2 (February 2012) (ISSN 2231-5985) International Journal of Research in Finance & Marketing
http://www.mairec.org, Organized Retail Industry In India – Opportunities And Challenges by Tazyn Rahman
[6] S. Thandayuthapani and Dr. P. Thirumoorthi, “Emergence of retailing sector in India: opportunities and challenges”
Abhinav national monthly refereed journal of research in commerce & management
[7] Sushma Rani, “Retail industry in India (a study on growth development opportunities and challenges), International
Journal of Computing and Corporate Research, ISSN (Online) : 2249-054X
AUTHOR
Mr. Mangesh Kotkar received the MBA degrees in Finance and Marketing Management from
Ballarpur Institute of Technology, School of Business, Ballarpur, Dist. Chandrapur (MS) in 2013.
Ms. Sandipa Itankar received the MBA degrees in Human Resource and Marketing Management from
Ballarpur Institute of Technology, School of Business, Ballarpur, Dist. Chandrapur (MS) in 2013.
Ms. Neha Ghodghate received the MBA degrees in Human Resource and Marketing Management
from Ballarpur Institute of Technology, School of Business, Ballarpur, Dist. Chandrapur (MS) in
2013.
Mr. Satish Rewatkar received the MBA degrees in Finance and Marketing Management from C.P. and
Berar College, Nagpur in 2008. His research area includes marketing.
Organized By: GNI Nagpur, India