Having worked most of my life for MNC's and being more in tune with global system and practices, on the eve of Independence day I turned my attention to try and find some uniquely Indian marketing experiences. I am not talking about advertising or communication examples but some very typical Indian marketing examples.
The most simple explanation of marketing is to discover and satisfy a consumer need with a product or service. The examples I am going to talk about below are doing that exactly. Some of these have become a part of our culture, some have become a victim of time and some still stand true. So without any further ado here goes
1) Housewives as LIC Agents: In the sixties and seventies when the concept of Life Insurance meant just term policies and LIC was the only organisation selling the same, housewives were used to build a network to sell the policies. The only requirement was basic literacy as there was nothing complicated about the policies. There was a term, there was an amount insured for and there was a yearly premium. The housewives earned commission on every policy sold, LIC increased its distribution at a very low cost without actually employing these women and the women propagated the concept of Life Insurance to an illiterate country. A win win for all. It spawned a whole generation of housewives who earned some money for the family and gained confidence to step out into the world. LIC still encourages this though with Life Insurance schemes getting complicated more qualified people are required.
2) Letter writers and readers: With literacy levels in India below 40 %, the sixties and seventies saw the proliferation of a new source of employment for the educated but unemployed urban youth. In the cities and towns there was a wave of migrant workers who had come from the rural interiors looking for any employment. Most of them were labour or mill hands or daily wage earners. With abysmal penetration of telephone lines, the only medium to connect with their families back home was the postal department. So they would hang around post offices and request people to write their letters and even read the ones they received. Soon the space outside post offices saw young educated men offering their services at a fees to these migrant class. Soon each one of the writers had their own clientele who trusted them with secrets and family issues. This industry thrived till the telecom revolution and STD booths mushrooming all over India. But they did a yeomen service to the migrant population and in return earned a livelihood.
3) Cow feeding ritual: This is an amazing example and is still prevalent in the big cities. With respect for cows as per the Hindu religion very important and cow feeding considered as a holy ritual many cow owners in the cities turned this into an opportunity. They would collect cow fodder (mostly grass growing on vacant land) and keep it in front of cows tethered close to a temple. Devotees thronging to the temple would buy the fodder and feed the cows. Thus not only would the cows be fed but the cow owners would also get some money in return. And of course the feeding would help get cow milk too for the owner. Another good example of Indian marketing.
4) Exchange schemes: I remember a twice or thrice a year ritual that would be done in our house every year. All old clothes would be collected, washed and sometimes even ironed. Then a Bartanwali would be summoned. She would have sparkling new stainless steel utensils of all sizes and shape balanced in the big basket on her head. After seeing what my mother had to give she would, in return offer some utensils. And then a bargain session would start. Soon a deal would be struck with both parties happy. The Bartanwali would sell off the old clothes and make her money and housewives like my mom had new utensils without paying for the same.
This concept of exchange is still prevalent in contemporary marketing today. TV brands, Mobile phone hand sets, Refrigerators, Computers even car manufacturers practice exchange schemes today. In fact Akai established itself as the leading colour TV brand in India in the nineties on the back of an audacious exchange scheme, where it offered new colour TV's at low rates in exchange for working black and white TV's. So while the 1982 Asian Games saw the advent of colour transmission in India, it was the exchange schemes launched by the likes of Akai that saw a big swing in the sales of colour TV.
I guess the Indian mind set of not throwing away anything until it stops working, fuels the craze for exchange schemes. Thrift is still in our blood and upgrade is not an option for the masses. Hence the only way to entice them to newer things is with exchange schemes.
5) Recycling: The mind set of not throwing away sometimes pertain to even things gone kaput. What else describes the phenomena of selling old books, old telephone instruments, or non working durables to the raddiwala. Or take the ragpickers who go around sorting out paper or reusable stuff even from garbage. So while the west has made recycling into a virtue, now, the Indian concept of second hand or third hand has always been in fashion. Why even dead durables are stripped apart to take out the working components, which are then recycled. Remember, India has the world's largest ship breaking unit at Alang. It dismantles any ship and disposes of each and every part of it and makes profit.
6) Filmy charity shows: Given the craze of Bollywood, Tollywood and other such film industries in India, the film actors are treated as demi gods. No wonder in the past whenever there was need to collect money for any cause, getting filmy people together to get the monies was a national past time. Even the central and state governments, defence forces all would fall for it. Floods in Bihar, there would be a film stars rally on Mumbai roads appealing for food, clothes and what not. Skirmishes on the border and Dharmendra would be at border posts doing shows for the armed forces. The need was to collect funds and in this case the product was the film industry. With many more source of avenues for CSR, specially from the corporate sector the demand for filmy charity shows has abated but not yet died out.
7) Cold water by glass: In the scorching heat of North India you could find a man with a cold water machine on a tricycle sort of contraption selling cold water by the glass. Cheap, refreshing (am not sure about the hygiene part, but where in India is hygiene guaranteed) and easily available this contraption was a big boon to the common man. In the pre bottled water days when refrigerator was a luxury this was a great boon for the aam admi. I haven't seen anything of this sort anywhere else in the world.
8) Private Tutions: I am sure this not a unique Indian practice but the way this business has evolved throws a light on the evolving Indian society. To start with when many graduates flooded the market and jobs were few this was a good way for some unemployed youth to keep the house fires burning. The toppers or the distinction holder graduates would go to the houses of the well off and teach their kids. Soon teachers in schools saw an opportunity and instead of focussing on doing their official job, started focussing on the tutions that could earn them better remuneration than what the schools paid. With the focus on marks and not learning, this quickly degenerated into a farce as tutions became more important than actual schooling. Today it has reached a stage where private tutions are offered for any competitive exam, for children from class 1 and I am told that there are private tutions being offered even for admission into prestigious schools like Welhams!
9) Voltage Stabilisers: Honestly am sure there are many parts of the world where this product is in great demand. But in India given the state of electricity almost 80% of India needs stabilisers. For any electrical or electronic equipment, voltage stabiliser is a must. Stabilisers have become a great tool to promote products. Its either the claim of in built stabiliser or giving a free stabiliser that dominates the feature game in durables. And honestly given the current voltage fluctuations how can you enjoy your X box or your high end TV without the peace of mind of a voltage stabiliser. I would also add inverter to this list.
So folks that was my list of typical Indian marketing examples. I have managed to get 9, can some of you add to this. Make it a round 10 or maybe even 15. Go ahead, try.
Jai ho.
The most simple explanation of marketing is to discover and satisfy a consumer need with a product or service. The examples I am going to talk about below are doing that exactly. Some of these have become a part of our culture, some have become a victim of time and some still stand true. So without any further ado here goes
1) Housewives as LIC Agents: In the sixties and seventies when the concept of Life Insurance meant just term policies and LIC was the only organisation selling the same, housewives were used to build a network to sell the policies. The only requirement was basic literacy as there was nothing complicated about the policies. There was a term, there was an amount insured for and there was a yearly premium. The housewives earned commission on every policy sold, LIC increased its distribution at a very low cost without actually employing these women and the women propagated the concept of Life Insurance to an illiterate country. A win win for all. It spawned a whole generation of housewives who earned some money for the family and gained confidence to step out into the world. LIC still encourages this though with Life Insurance schemes getting complicated more qualified people are required.
2) Letter writers and readers: With literacy levels in India below 40 %, the sixties and seventies saw the proliferation of a new source of employment for the educated but unemployed urban youth. In the cities and towns there was a wave of migrant workers who had come from the rural interiors looking for any employment. Most of them were labour or mill hands or daily wage earners. With abysmal penetration of telephone lines, the only medium to connect with their families back home was the postal department. So they would hang around post offices and request people to write their letters and even read the ones they received. Soon the space outside post offices saw young educated men offering their services at a fees to these migrant class. Soon each one of the writers had their own clientele who trusted them with secrets and family issues. This industry thrived till the telecom revolution and STD booths mushrooming all over India. But they did a yeomen service to the migrant population and in return earned a livelihood.
3) Cow feeding ritual: This is an amazing example and is still prevalent in the big cities. With respect for cows as per the Hindu religion very important and cow feeding considered as a holy ritual many cow owners in the cities turned this into an opportunity. They would collect cow fodder (mostly grass growing on vacant land) and keep it in front of cows tethered close to a temple. Devotees thronging to the temple would buy the fodder and feed the cows. Thus not only would the cows be fed but the cow owners would also get some money in return. And of course the feeding would help get cow milk too for the owner. Another good example of Indian marketing.
4) Exchange schemes: I remember a twice or thrice a year ritual that would be done in our house every year. All old clothes would be collected, washed and sometimes even ironed. Then a Bartanwali would be summoned. She would have sparkling new stainless steel utensils of all sizes and shape balanced in the big basket on her head. After seeing what my mother had to give she would, in return offer some utensils. And then a bargain session would start. Soon a deal would be struck with both parties happy. The Bartanwali would sell off the old clothes and make her money and housewives like my mom had new utensils without paying for the same.
This concept of exchange is still prevalent in contemporary marketing today. TV brands, Mobile phone hand sets, Refrigerators, Computers even car manufacturers practice exchange schemes today. In fact Akai established itself as the leading colour TV brand in India in the nineties on the back of an audacious exchange scheme, where it offered new colour TV's at low rates in exchange for working black and white TV's. So while the 1982 Asian Games saw the advent of colour transmission in India, it was the exchange schemes launched by the likes of Akai that saw a big swing in the sales of colour TV.
I guess the Indian mind set of not throwing away anything until it stops working, fuels the craze for exchange schemes. Thrift is still in our blood and upgrade is not an option for the masses. Hence the only way to entice them to newer things is with exchange schemes.
5) Recycling: The mind set of not throwing away sometimes pertain to even things gone kaput. What else describes the phenomena of selling old books, old telephone instruments, or non working durables to the raddiwala. Or take the ragpickers who go around sorting out paper or reusable stuff even from garbage. So while the west has made recycling into a virtue, now, the Indian concept of second hand or third hand has always been in fashion. Why even dead durables are stripped apart to take out the working components, which are then recycled. Remember, India has the world's largest ship breaking unit at Alang. It dismantles any ship and disposes of each and every part of it and makes profit.
6) Filmy charity shows: Given the craze of Bollywood, Tollywood and other such film industries in India, the film actors are treated as demi gods. No wonder in the past whenever there was need to collect money for any cause, getting filmy people together to get the monies was a national past time. Even the central and state governments, defence forces all would fall for it. Floods in Bihar, there would be a film stars rally on Mumbai roads appealing for food, clothes and what not. Skirmishes on the border and Dharmendra would be at border posts doing shows for the armed forces. The need was to collect funds and in this case the product was the film industry. With many more source of avenues for CSR, specially from the corporate sector the demand for filmy charity shows has abated but not yet died out.
7) Cold water by glass: In the scorching heat of North India you could find a man with a cold water machine on a tricycle sort of contraption selling cold water by the glass. Cheap, refreshing (am not sure about the hygiene part, but where in India is hygiene guaranteed) and easily available this contraption was a big boon to the common man. In the pre bottled water days when refrigerator was a luxury this was a great boon for the aam admi. I haven't seen anything of this sort anywhere else in the world.
8) Private Tutions: I am sure this not a unique Indian practice but the way this business has evolved throws a light on the evolving Indian society. To start with when many graduates flooded the market and jobs were few this was a good way for some unemployed youth to keep the house fires burning. The toppers or the distinction holder graduates would go to the houses of the well off and teach their kids. Soon teachers in schools saw an opportunity and instead of focussing on doing their official job, started focussing on the tutions that could earn them better remuneration than what the schools paid. With the focus on marks and not learning, this quickly degenerated into a farce as tutions became more important than actual schooling. Today it has reached a stage where private tutions are offered for any competitive exam, for children from class 1 and I am told that there are private tutions being offered even for admission into prestigious schools like Welhams!
9) Voltage Stabilisers: Honestly am sure there are many parts of the world where this product is in great demand. But in India given the state of electricity almost 80% of India needs stabilisers. For any electrical or electronic equipment, voltage stabiliser is a must. Stabilisers have become a great tool to promote products. Its either the claim of in built stabiliser or giving a free stabiliser that dominates the feature game in durables. And honestly given the current voltage fluctuations how can you enjoy your X box or your high end TV without the peace of mind of a voltage stabiliser. I would also add inverter to this list.
So folks that was my list of typical Indian marketing examples. I have managed to get 9, can some of you add to this. Make it a round 10 or maybe even 15. Go ahead, try.
Jai ho.
