Indians have accepted the eCommerce culture and are making it a part of their daily lives. But to progress continuously, eCommerce companies need to be on their toes and keep proving to their audience why and how they are much better than the traditional retail stores.
The foundation has already been put, but now to build a strong building upon it needs new strategies – strategies that make the roots stronger and push the competitors aside. One such great strategy which Snapdeal has implemented is – Employing Rural India!
Yes, you heard it right. Snapdeal has tied up with IndiVillage, a rural BPO which trains and employs rural Indians on IT functions.
When asked about the collaboration Kunal Bahl, co-founder and CEO of Snapdeal said, “We are constantly looking at partnerships that let us marry our business goals while creating quantum impact for our country and society. Rural India has immense talent in very large numbers that can be unlocked by companies like ours and thus, giving us the opportunity to make our growth story more inclusive.”
Ravi Machani, Founder & CEO, IndiVillage said, ““The rural youth waits for its fair share of opportunity. India has 6, 00,000 villages and all we need is 6, 00,000 entrepreneurs to each adopt a village,”
He also added, “We believe that participation from a young technology leader like Snapdeal will intensify the cause of digital inclusion and community development in rural India”.
Rural India is definitely going to get some great opportunities and a brand name on its CV. It is impractical for companies like Snapdeal to operate from one city or to hire employees in urban India to carry out operations in rural India. It adds to their expenses. Also, let’s take this as an example, suppose a person orders shoes in Ambala, is it logical to operate from Chennai? Or will it be more sensible to hire locals and cut down on charges as well as on time? Similar will be the case when the company will have locals work for them.
Unexplored areas are always the best ones to dominate. You can quickly take over as a leader and that is exactly what Snapdeal is trying to do. Set a benchmark where no one has reached yet. As per Rural India Online, India’s rural population is 833 million. Can you now see how profitable involving this part of the country into business will be?
The company has previously installed 15 hand pumps in Uttar Pradesh and as a gesture of gratitude the village renamed itself as ‘Snapdeal.Com Nagar’. If in the future, their loyalties lie only and only to Snapdeal even if there are better players around, you will get your answer for ‘Why Rural India?’.
We do not know if targeting Rural India is just another marketing strategy, but whatever it is, it is doing ‘More Good, No Damage’ to the nation. With the complaints this eCommerce giant gets daily on Social Media, some good publicity is all they should hunt for.
Having said that, publicity or not, every company should adopt marketing strategies that benefit all the parties involved in the long run. Spending millions on a campaign for a short term return just for the company is anyways a complete waste as it benefits none when considered a few years later.
Way to go, Snapdeal! Looks like you will soon establish yourself as a Leader in Rural India capturing one of the largest chunks of the country.
Editor team is specialized in introducing the marketplace content targeting the Indian online sellers. They plan and coordinate to bring the appealing content for the small businesses on how to partner with the e-commerce sites like Amazon and Flipkart and strategies for improving their online business.
Leave a Comment
