Marketing Lessons from India’s Godmen
Posted by sidgoyal1 in India, Marketing Tips on May 7th, 2011 | 36 comments
India is a land of Gods and since eons, there have been people in India who claim to be “blessed” or “enlightened” and what not. While the veracity of their claims has always been a subject of much speculation, a lot of good is done by these “babas”. While these guys are ridiculed by one section of the society
Take the “Sathya Sai Baba” for example. This “holy” man’s net worth exceeded more than $1 billion. And what business was he in? The business of spirituality and charity. No. My article and this blog post is not about spewing vitriol towards the baba. I believe the baba was a blessing to this world and if his net worth was more than a billion dollars, he deserved every single penny of it. For the baba was real. He provided relief to people, opened charitable hospitals and institutions which provided free services. If he got money from his devotees, it was a much better investment and a much better use of people’s money than taxes, considering how much of the tax payer’s money is gorged on by the super corrupt politicians of India.
So what was the baba’s marketing strategy? He claimed he could do miracles. Small tricks like manifesting ash, rings, necklaces really appealed to the people in India who perceived these tricks as signs of divinity. Indian people are naive when it comes to religion and blind faith is a common phenomenon here. The Sai Baba was intelligent enough to understand the psyche of his target segment (market) and thus came up with the strategy of “miracles” in order to achieve his goal of providing relief to people and help the poor by way of starting free hospitals and educational institutions. In short, he used miracle to take money from those who could spare it and used that money to help those who did not have it.
Critics of the baba simply call him a thug who performed tricks and cheated people. They completely fail to see the larger picture. The tricks were only a marketing strategy to achieve a noble goal. And in that, the baba succeeded 100%.
Hence in short, if you want to achieve some goal, understanding the psyche of your target segment might go a long way in fulfilling that goal.
36 Responses to “ “Marketing Lessons from India’s Godmen”
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Good, very diplomatic.. you don’t want controversy
i also want to know this about controversy ?
I like the illustration and the point of the article (know the psyche of your target market) but I’m a little confused by the subject matter. It sounds like Sai Baba doesn’t deliver what he promises – is that right?
Wow, I really had no idea. I can see why Sathya Sai Baba would have his detractors – I imagine a person using his strategy would be maligned in the States as well. We have plenty of people who operate on blind faith here, and I could see a good many people who would take his tricks as signs of divinity.
I like how you tied this story in with understanding the mentality of your target niche. Well done!
Lee Rowley@freelance success kit recently posted..My Client Wants Me to Do WHAT!
Hello Lee.
Nice to connect with you. Many holy men in the past who ultimately founded our religions probably were similar persons. It’s hard to find out who is real and who is not.
Bottomline is, there is a market for everything and if correct strategies are applied, one can surely tap the same.
Although I find it morally wrong to comment on anybody’s faith. I think by “our religions” you mean all the religions because these stories are associated with almost everyone in every era, every part of the world.
Your article is pretty interesting, the way you connected it with marketing.
P.S. This moderate world should have more people (like you) with strong opinions.
It’s nice to know about this one. It is true that we have different opinions about certain things but i think that this article is really good and that one should consider this as a tip to help him or her when it comes to marketing.
andy recently posted..FIRST DATE TIPS
Sai Baba was a smart man. If you want to be a successful marketer, you definitely need to understand human psychology.
This was a great read. Thanks
Anita recently posted..Best Kitchen Cabinets : Find the Best One at the Best Price
He is like Robin Hood. I wouldn’t consider him a crook, he is not forcing anyone to believe in him. People contributing to Baba knows where the money is going and they are happy to be his followers. Baba gives hope and inspiration to a lot of people. His actions may sometimes be unacceptable but he is truly one of the most unselfish persons I heard of.
Robert recently posted..How To Pick Up A Girl
Like what they say, if you help someone it returns to you 10 folds or even more! The very important thing is to help without expecting anything in return…then blessings just pour all out. How wonderful isn’t it?!
Fami B. recently posted..- Online Dating Advice
I believe the Baba was a blessing to this world and if his Internet worth was more than a anything dollars, he deserved every single penny of it.I believed Baba Is the real one.this post giving us a good insight.thanks!
Laikka recently posted..Investing
“If you transplant your global strategy, you only get the tip of the iceberg,” Companies that see India’s economic growth i believe that the country is on its way to becoming a developed market with the same characteristics of the West are in for disappointment. “Their biggest lesson is that they come in saying, ‘Who can resist progress?
Camilla recently posted..Rough Times In My Life
This is a great overview of the baba’s.In our country we have the same professed holy man, but it wont work for the reason that they turn out opposite to what they teach.
Jessica Baron recently posted..How to win the lottery guaranteed
You can’t have a net worth of $1 billion without making some enemies. Just borrowing a similar tag line from the movie “The Social Network”. But good job on choosing this subject to explain the business aspect of understanding the psyche of your target market.Refreshing.
Justine Jennings recently posted..German Language Learning Software
Hi Sid,
Maybe his holy word helped a lot people and the people returned back what they have learned from him – the good virtues.
Carla recently posted..Tips on How to Avoid Stress
thanks for this post it really amazed me how you connected the ‘psyche and/or religion’ to business.. but i think everyone has a chance of success with perseverance and wits.
snyder2 recently posted..-HALLOWEEN PARTY INVITATIONS
He is like a modern day Peter Pan. I can really relate his story to him. But still… The end does not justify the means.
Daine recently posted..angry birds online
But his means of getting money out of people is still wrong. No matter how good his motives are… still, it cannot justify the way he fooled around the weaknesses of other people.
Ashley recently posted..Forte Music Notation Software
Call it taking advantage of people’s psyche. But what do multi national companies do all the time? They spend billions on conducting research on human behavior just so they could exploit some weakness and market better. Baba was no different, only he didn’t have to conduct any research.
Many people will still help him if he is open to people on his good motives. Am I right?
Vico recently posted..5 Steps To Financial Success
No you are not. That’s because the Baba passed away a few days before this post was made.
I like your being a genius but i don’t like your hair! LOL. Truly you know the ins and outs of this business. Great! how I wish I will be on your level someday.
manod5 recently posted..Can You really Trust these Antivirus Reviews on the Web?
I understand your point. If we just talk about marketing strategy, then he really has some good and effective one. He is just selling himself anyway so he is the only one responsible of his actions.
I am sorry to learn that the the Baba passed away a few days before this post was made. It is nice for him to do good deeds when he was still alive. Perhaps it is not wise to deceive people but it is good that helping the poor was his aim. And building free hospitals and educational institutions are very helpful to the community.
Stephan Hilson recently posted..Loi Châtel et résiliation de téléphonie mobile
it was a much better investment and a much better use of people’s money than taxes, considering how much of the tax payer’s money is gorged on by the super corrupt politicians of India.
michelle143 recently posted..angry birds
I am sorry too, but I think that all these deeds helped a lot the community and even the society as a whole.
Anna recently posted..These are not some temporary veneers!
Truly say that I comprehend your point. If we just speak about advertising strategy, then he truly has some good and efficient 1. He is just selling himself anyway so he is the only one responsible of his actions.
Geoff recently posted..How To Get Rid Of Man Boobs
I agree. He’s like the modern day Robin Hood. But the good thing is. He’s helping the poor people of India.
John T. recently posted..Propiedades del alpiste.
Have to say too that I comprehend your point. If we just talk about marketing strategy, then he truly has some great and efficient 1. He is just promoting himself anyway so he is the only 1 responsible of his actions.
Grace recently posted..How to Make Him Fall in Love With You
for me in order to achieve his goal of providing relief to people and help the poor by way of starting free hospitals and educational institutions. In short, he used miracle to take money from those who could spare it and used that money to help those who did not have it.
Benj recently posted..YouTube Photoshop Tutorials for Beginners
Call it taking advantage of people’s psyche. But what do multi national companies do all the time? They spend billions on conducting research on human behavior just so they could exploit some weakness and market better.
lanzones56 recently posted..living a healthy diet
A few year i went going to India have been to business and investment sage there is information from people like me who is there that there are people who love Baba was great. Thanks
Baba passed away!
I saw sachin tendulkar cry emotionally first time!!
Excellent article. I don’t think Baba is a conman. As long as the money that he earns from his “marketing” efforts are put to good use, then I would say he is simply an excellent salesman!
If any one want to stick to market then one must understand human pshycology.. which i think is being follow by many multinational companie
Getting into market is really head-breaking but If you know human behavior toward our product then you are lucky but even though interacting with people is most important part of business