Coming from small-town Aligarh, blending with the rural milieu was natural for Naved. But selling handsets from a company known primarily as a computer peripherals maker was a different proposition. This feisty youngster made that look easy, managing a battalion of young mbas in tier-2 and tier-3 towns to tap a market that bigger companies have not been able to figure out.
The elder of two siblings from a modest background, Naved graduated in electrical engineering from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) before doing his MBA. Having worked with the DS Group, BenQ and Hamdard before joining Intex, he had a fair idea about strategies that work in smaller towns. The rural customer, he feels, is price-sensitive and wants value for every rupee spent. To convince rural customers requires a different mindset. Today, as marketing head of Intex, Naved is revelling in these “future” markets, which have become the company’s primary areas of coverage.
Innovation, he feels, is the key to attracting and retaining customers in small towns. Looking at the market pattern, he introduced dual-sim mobile phones as most small-town users had taken to keeping more than one, thanks to cheap offers from service providers. The strategy clicked, and the company made a killing in rural markets. Similarly, he convinced the company to add a cordless microphone to one of its speaker systems. The product became an instant hit at temples and jaagarans across Uttar Pradesh. The future of companies, he feels, is in rural India. And he already has a head start there.
.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max&format=webp&w=376&dpr=2.0)
