Rural Marketing Strategy Analysis of Kan Khajura Tesan of HUL

Submitted by;

Craig Pinto
Marketing A
40161
Rural Markets

For evolving an appropriate marketing strategy, understanding the rural environment is quite
essential. Challenges and problems associated with entering emerging markets, and to make
contribution why these strategies are implemented and carried out in the way they are. As most
of the Indian population resides in the rural area, FMCG companies have realized the
importance of the rural market and started to tap this market through various marketing
strategies and initiatives. HUL is India's largest Fast-Moving Consumer Goods Company and
as they state, works to create a better future every day with good brands and services.

Challenges faced when reaching rural markets

- Market development (Educating customers about offerings not primary to their use at
times)
- Product design (Customizing products to fit specific needs)
- Logistics (Reaching markets physically)
- Communication (Getting the right message through the right media)

Below discussed is a campaign carried out by the company.

The Campaign

Kan Khajura Tesan (KKT) one of the most discussed mergers between the ‘old’ medium of a
radio and a comparatively newer device the mobile phone was arranged by Hindustan Lever
Limited (HUL) to provide entertainment to people living in entertainment-starved places,
particularly rural India in the media dark states of India like Bihar, Jharkhand or Uttar Pradesh.

The campaign was born out of HUL’s need to reach more than 200 million consumers living
in the country’s media dark states. These states lacked traditional media like television, radio,
internet, outdoor advertising and even electricity to power these media. However, they also
represented a significant market for HUL even as reaching out to them posed a challenge. HUL
wanted to feel the consumer’s pulse in terms of demand for its range of products – Lux, Fair
& Lovely, Close Up and others in the same price range as affordable by people in that category.
The Concept

To make this possible HUL created a mobile marketing platform which consisted of the number
‘1800-30-000-123’ which people could call from their mobile phone, hang up and receive a
call-in return with 15-minute capsules of entertainment including shayaris, jokes, hit
bollywood songs, devotional songs, news and quick snippets on the benefits of HUL products.
Initially the campaign was advertised on All India Radio (AIR) with the ‘Missed call lagao,
muft manoranjan pao’ tagline and launched in Bihar followed closely by Jharkhand, Uttar
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

HUL’s ‘missed-callvertising’ campaign launched in 2013 has since, according to The

Economic Times, garnered 35 million subscribers across the country and vast amounts of data
on consumers who have been hard to access and read in the past. KKT via mobile phones
also represents the only medium of entertainment for vast populations living in the hinterland
of India.

Large Scale Collaborations

In 2014 HUL tied up with Ajay Devgan’s Singham 2, the sequel to the very popular police
story, to generate more awareness about Kan Khajura Tesan. The campaign proved to be a
stellar success of the ‘muft manoranjan’ or free entertainment concept as 17.1 million missed
calls were received in five days, of which 3.2 million were unique and HUL ended up adding
2.7 million new subscribers.

A similar campaign was designed to build a stronger brand awareness among the people for
Lux, by inviting listeners to engage with leading movie stars of the movie Happy New Year.
In this case, Shah Rukh Khan returned missed calls and asked the listener to ‘help him win
back Deepika’s heart’. Once listeners shared their idea they could listen to the usual free
entertainment capsule. The result was 24 million calls, out of which 14 million were unique
while the Lux brand delivered staggering 21 million ad impressions and its awareness jumped
by 800 basis points in one month.

The Success

Kan Khajura Tesan, the biggest media channel in Bihar, as stated by HUL is now
available across the country and HUL is even opening up its mobile-radio channel to other
advertisers, although for now the company is keeping the details about the advertisers and the
nature of the deals under wraps.

The innovative Kan Khajura Tesan campaign was awarded three gold Lions at the prestigious
Cannes Lions 2014 – two in Media for PHD India and Lowe and Partners Worldwide (Mumbai)
and one in Mobile for Lowe and Partners Worldwide (Mumbai). The campaign also won the
Golden Award of Montreux and GSMA Global Mobile Awards 2014 among others and has
been named the top marketing campaign in the world, according to the annual Warc 100
ranking. KKT has been nominated for the mBillionth Award South Asia 2015 in the
Entertainment category.

Accelerated penetration of mobile phones, internet, and satellite TV is making these

rural consumers aware of the product and service options that they aspire to have for
themselves and their families. Urban markets are becoming saturated – competition there is
growing ever-fiercer. Forward-looking companies like Unilever cultivate an inclusive
growth strategy that considers rural consumers as part of their plans for growth.