Rural customers’ perception towards the fast moving consumer goods: A hypothesis test

Abstract

The Indian FMCG sector is the fourth largest in the Indian economy and has a market size of $13.1 billion. It includes the production, distribution and marketing of consumer packaged goods, that is those categories of products which are consumed at regular intervals. It has a strong and competitive MNC presence across the entire value chain. The FMCG companies are expected to have a huge growth potential since the percapita consumption of almost all the products in the country is amongst the lowest in the world. Rural market is one of the best opportunities for the FMCG sector. Advertising in rural markets is an upcoming and growing field of marketing. The consumer forms an attitude, which is made by combining choice criteria and brand comprehension. When he becomes certain about his understanding of different brands, he decides whether to purchase or not. If he purchases and the alternative meets his expectation, he may remember it for the next buying decision. It has been found that relatively more continuous or sustained advertising campaign is more suitable for consumer non durables. The buying frequency is high and little decision making is involved and consumers do not actively seek product information. Instead they tend to use whatever information is handy to them.