Bottom Of The Pyramid Marketing Essay

Bottom Of The Pyramid Marketing Essay The Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) is the largest and poorest socio-economic group in the society. There are more than four billion people who live their lives on less than $2 per day. Indias rural majority today accounts for more than US$100 billion in consumer spending, making them by far the biggest buyers in the country and contributing significantly to Indias gross domestic product. To tap the vast markets at the BOP, MNCs must specially design and develop quality products and services, or they must select some to alter and make available at lower cost. Serving BOP customers is a profitable opportunity for corporations. It is also a social imperative, given that two-thirds of the human population (about four billion people) are at the bottom of the economic pyramid. By addressing the BOP, MNCs can curtail poverty and improve the living conditions of the worlds poorest. HYPOTHESIS IS THERE SUFFICIENT OPPURTUNITY AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PYRAMID? 70% of the Indian population lives in rural areas. This segment, which is commonly referred to as the bottom of the pyramid, presents a huge opportunity for companies. To expand the market by tapping the countryside, more and more MNCs are foraying into Indias rural markets. Among those that have made some headway are Hindustan Lever, Coca-Cola, LG Electronics, Britannia, Standard Life, Philips, Colgate Palmolive, Amul and many foreign-invested telecom companies. The Opportunity In earlier times rural consumer had to go to a nearby town or city to buy a branded product. The growing power of the rural consumer is now forcing big companies to flock to rural markets. At the same time, they also throw up major challenges for marketers. Servicing rural markets involves ensuring availability of products through a sound distribution network, overcoming prevalent attitudes and habits of rural customers and creating brand awareness. Price-sensitivity is another key issue. Rural income levels are largely dependent on the vagaries of monsoon, and demand is not easy to predict. The Indian rural market currently contributes to 50% of the annual consumption of FMCG goods and is increasing year on year. As a result it is becoming an important market place for fast moving consumer goods as well as consumer durables. The Necessity The rural market is certainly tempting since it comprises 70 % of the countrys population, 41 per cent of its middle class, 58 per cent of its disposable income and a large consuming class. Today, real growth is taking place in the rural-urban markets, or in the 13,113 villages with a population of more than 5,000. In order to efficiently and cost-effectively target the rural markets, companies cover many independent retailers since in these areas, the retailer influences purchase decisions and stock a single brand in a product category. Most of the companies have started tinkering with pack sizes and creating new price points in order to reach out to rural consumers. Thus, sachets and miniature packs, as in the case of shampoo sachets priced at Re 1 and Rs 2 or toothpaste at Rs 10, have become the order of the day and help improve market penetration. Yet, driving consumption of goods in rural areas is not just about lowering prices and increasing volumes but also about product innovation and developing indigenous products to cater to their demands. For example, soap makers use advanced technology to coat one side of the soap bar with plastic to prevent it from wearing out quickly. Impact of globalisation The impact of globalisation is felt in rural India as much as in urban. It will have its impact on target groups like farmers, youth and women. Farmers, today keep in touch with the latest information and maximise both ends. They keep their cell phones constantly connected to global markets. Surely, price movements and products availability in the international market place seem to drive their local business strategies. On youth its impact is on knowledge and information and while on women it still depends on the socio-economic aspect. The marketers who understand the rural consumer and fine tune their strategy are sure to reap benefits in the coming years. In fact, the leadership in any product or service is linked to leadership in the rural India except for few lifestyle-based products, which depend on urban India mainly. Coca-Cola India In 2001, Coca-Cola India attempted to gain leadership in the Indian market and capitalize on the rural markets. In rural markets, soft drinks category was undeveloped. Coca-Cola India believed that the first brand to offer communication targeted to the smaller towns would own the rural market and went after that objective with a comprehensive strategy. The rural segments primary need was out-of-home thirst-quenching and the soft drink category was undifferentiated in the minds of rural consumers. Additionally, with an average Coke costing Rs. 10 and an average days wages around Rs. 100, Coke was perceived as a luxury that few could afford. In an effort to make the price point of Coke within reach of this high-potential market, Coca-Cola launched the Accessibility Campaign, introducing a new 200ml bottle, smaller than the traditional 300ml bottle found in urban markets, and concurrently cutting the price in half, to Rs. 5. This pricing strategy closed the gap between Coke and basic refreshments like lemonade and tea, making soft drinks truly accessible for the first time. At the same time, Coke invested in distribution infrastructure to effectively serve a disbursed population and increased the number of retail outlets in rural, increasing market penetration. Coca-Colas advertising and promotion strategy pulled the marketing plan together using local language and idiomatic expressions which even won them some campaign of the year award in the Advertising Market Coca-Cola doubled its spend on Government Channels, increased price compliance from 30 per cent to 50 per cent in rural markets and reduced overall costs by 40 per cent. Result: the rural market accounts for 80 per cent of new Coke drinkers and 30 per cent of its volumes. CONCLUSION The basic problem with brand marketing is its high cost. Local Markets do offer a cost-effective method of marketing. With the virtual Local Markets the cost saving is still better. Consider for example the case of marketing farm inputs like fertilisers, seeds and pesticides. In the brand marketing approach, the same information is provided by several marketers through different media and methods. In the virtual Markets, several people can join hands and provide best possible information in a most cost effective manner to the farmers. The rural market grab has already begun. Once the rural consumers get attached to these new forms of virtual Local Markets they are going to procure most of their requirements from the same source and sell their produce in the same Markets. This offers an interesting challenge for those companies that are selling in the rural market including the agri-input companies, farm equipment companies, FMCG and consumer durable manufacturers. The bottom of the value-chain pyramid indeed represents a huge gambit of opportunities. Here lies a fortune that is waiting to be explored

Recreational Vehicle Magazine Ad

Recreational Vehicle Magazine Ad The RV model I want to advertise is the most expensive, highline. Most people would think that expensive vehicles are not exactly what people need in the economy we’re having at the moment. However, I want to make a point that recreational vehicle is not a necessity, it is a luxury. Since it is a personal luxury, so why not make it luxurious. When I say luxurious, the vehicle has to represent the glamour of every little detail. We have to exceed the consumer’s expectations and bring it to the next level. Most consumers want something they can make it unique and design it if they’re given the opportunity.Plus, anything luxurious is more attractive than average. My Highline will have customized interior and/or exterior, spacious living space, reliable performance, and of course, its unlimited warranty. The suitable target audience for my project will be the middle age people. As the baby boomers generation ages, retirement is someth ing they are looking forward to. Traveling has been always on top of their lists as soon as they’re finished with their careers. At that point in their lives, they deserve a branded, one of a kind vehicle that they can have as their travel companion.Also, retired people do not really have children at home to think of and to spend money onto. They are at the age where they only spend on themselves trying to live their lives to the fullest. When advertising to the middle age group, the magazine that will be read by the target audience is something that has less clutter and straightforward with its content such as National Geographic Traveler Magazine. National Geographic Traveler Magazine is dedicated to the travelers. While there are plenty of travel magazines out there, the Traveler Magazine has a section of driving vacations where I want my ad to be inserted.Looking at the beautiful driving destinations posted on the magazine, consumers will be interested on looking at my lu xurious RV ad and people who can afford will probably get one. Fleetwood and Airstream are my two main competitors. Both companies have been around for more than two decades. Their names are popular with RV lovers. They are more experienced than American RV which is hard to compete with. On the other hand, they are not known for their luxury RVs. This is where American RV will persuade the consumers. I want to portray an image that only American RV has the best option of customization in the market.

Advertising Mixture of Art and Science Essay

Advertising allows us to communicate a salient message to a large group of consumers faster than any other form of communication. It allows us to truly connect with the consumer; it gives us an opportunity to develop an ongoing relationship between the consumer and a brand. At its best, advertising will create a sense of urgency for the consumer, awareness often honest and accurate that there are products, places, styles or sensibilities that cry out for action or attention. Advertising is a compendium of all communications that consumer sees, feels, touches, hears, smells, and so on. If they are walking through a store, the packaging on particular product is advertising. If they are at home, the direct mail they receive in their mailbox, the e-mails and pop-ups on their computers, or the images they see on television are advertising. The logos on the NASCAR autos or even the t-shirts with every name known to mankind are advertising Advertising A Mixture Of Art And Science: Advertising is a fine balance between art and science. The science part of it is consuming information, but the true challenge is translating these facts into a relevant strategy, into an original, creative execution, and generating the right communication stream. Explanation: Advertising is a mix of science and art. Most companies approach marketing problems in the same way we all do a certain level of copy testing, using qualitative and/or quantitative research techniques. That is the science side of it. The art is in the ideas. It s in being able to see something that others don t see and to develop creative ideas around it. There s a lot of art to that. There are some fundamental rules which successful advertising must follow. First, need to understand the brand which about to take on. Ask questions such as: What are its core equities? Who are the brand s consumers? From there, we need to understand the consumers and observe how that brand fits into their lives and their day-to-day routines. Once we have got that, we can develop a strong, critical consumer insight. Then marry that insight with the core equities of the brand. That way the insight becomes brand-centric. After that, provide a strong creative brief that helps the creative understand the brand, the arriers the brand might face, and exactly what it is that the advertising should do. In reviewing the creative s ideas, it is important that keep in mind whether they really deliver on the marketing strategy. We need to set aside our own tastes and put our self in the consumer s shoes, because nine times out of 10 you aren t the target consumer anyway. Ask, Will this idea connect to the consumer? Once we ve completed the review, take the ideas to the client. WE have to listen to the client, because its job is to protect the core equities of the brand. The client needs to feel comfortable, but also needs to judge the idea the way you did will it connect? You need to cut through the clutter, engage the consumers, and persuade them to take an action or purchase the product. At the end of the process, we need to get the results and learn from them. If the process worked well, understand what made it successful and keep it going. To succeed in the advertising business, we must be able to see opportunity in the abstract and then, you must make it real. Advertising is a part art, part science, and perhaps even a greater measure of discipline. If you don t have a disciplined approach to developing a strategic platform, it will be impossible to produce quality material over a long period of time. The essential tactics for this type of disciplined approach are many: Hiring, training, firing, strategy development, creative development, media development, account service, research; how you follow up with your clients on a day to day basis; the processes you use within your agency; the financial discipline you have within your company; how you approach developing a real partnership with the client; how you approach developing an understanding of their products or services. So, discipline isn’t something that s nice if we have time for it; it s mandatory. We can t just wing it. In years past, advertising agencies have had the reputations of being free-thinking, free-wheeling, free-spending bastions of creative largesse where folks think, do and create great things all day long. But anyone who has worked in the business knows that the creative part is the figurative tip of the iceberg: It only represents about 10% of what we do. The rest of the time is spent learning, researching, understanding, and massaging information so that we can actually deliver a message that makes sense and produces results. Conclusion: Advertising has been described as something that interrupts someone s attention long enough to be able to sell them something. Fundamentally, you are imposing yourself intruding upon someone s time and finding a way to connect with a passive mind in a very brief period to help inform or intrigue with something that has value to that person. That’s what advertising is. The art relates to the entertainment qualities, which are there to capture interest. The science is in the ability to understand what you are going to do when you have those two or three seconds of attention. The science involves having an understanding of people and human nature; understanding the qualities of a product, a brand, a category, or a specific offering and being able to frame it properly.

Social Class in the United States Essay - 1673 Words

There is much debate about the issue of social class in the United States. There are arguments about whether social classes are distinctly separate or fluid, dependent upon one’s community or society as a whole, and if they are subjective or objective (Hughes and Jenkins). However, despite the debate surrounding social classes, it is still important to try to define them and analyze their effects, as they are such an important part of our identity and our opportunities in society. Although our society has tried to appear as though we have no classes, and it is becoming harder to tell what class someone is in by material goods, classes do still exist today (Scott and Leonhardt). The trend has been to divide the U.S. into four major†¦show more content†¦Despite the debates about social class, the United States is usually described as having four major social classes, the elite or upperclass, the middle class, the working class, and the lower class (Goldscmidt). Cla sses are generally differentiated by income, education, and occupation although other factors do have an effect. The upperclass consists of about 1% of the population making 750,000 dollars or more a year as investors, top executives, or heirs to large fortunes (Hughes and Jenkins). There tends to be no question about who is in the upperclass as they are pretty clearly isolated in their power and wealth. The middle class makes up about 40% of the population making anywhere from 40,000 to 749,999 dollars a year (Hughes and Jenkins). The large disparity in income and wealth have led to a further division of this class into upper-middle class and middle class in some circles. The middle class usually work white collar jobs as professionals and managers, however some highly skilled blue collar workers are included. Those in the middle class have usually obtained higher education degrees and place a high value on individual responsibility for one’s class (Goldschmidt). The working class is composed of about 50% of the population earning 13,000 to 39,000 dollars a year (Hughes and Jenkins). Some also divide this class into a working class and aShow MoreRelatedSocial Class Of The United States1103 Words   |  5 Pagesname and occupation. The American society is conventionally arranged into social classes founded on income, wealth, occupation, educational successfulness and social network. Social classes are defined as â€Å"status hierarchy in which individuals and groups are classified on the basis of esteem and prestige acquired mainly through economic success and the accumulation of wealth.† (â€Å"social class†) For most of American history, social classes have created inflexible barriers, with multiple institutions andRead MoreThe Inequalities of the Social Class in the United States and How to Improve It1315 Words   |  6 PagesWhat is social class you ask? Social class is a system created to categorize people by education, wea lth and heredity. 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