AGRICULTURAL CREDIT MARKETING IN TURKEY 1

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1 ULUSLARARASI HAKEMLİ BEŞERİ VE AKADEMİK BİLİMLER DERGİSİ INTERNATIONAL PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL OF HUMANITIES AND ACADEMIC SCINENCE AGRICULTURAL CREDIT MARKETING IN TURKEY 1 Erdogan GÜNEŞ 1, Berkay KESKİN 2, Mevhibe ALBAYRAK Ankara University, Faculty of Agriculture, Depart of Agricultural Economics, Ankara / Turkey ORCID ID: , , X 3 Abstract: The funding of agricultural enterprises has many critical aspects for enterprises. Agricultural enterprises benefit from credits especially on the production and marketing stages. Banking activities in agricultural credit applications in Turkey have increased after 2000 s. While Agricultural Bank of the Republic of Turkey (Ziraat Bankasi) gave almost all of the agricultural credit alone in Turkey until 2000, the share of the bank has decreased by 60-70% with the introduction of private banks in recent years. When agricultural enterprises receive agricultural credits; low interest rate, flexible payment plan, short and easy procedures, promotion are important for bank preference. Banks are also trying to create advantages in these factors for this purpose. For this reason, banks attach importance to factors such as reduction in loan interest rate, ease of repayment, flexibility, maturity shift, promotion of input usage. The banks carry out various marketing activities with the aim of creating a positive image, giving information about services, winning new customers and keeping existing customers. In this study, the strategies applied in agricultural credit market, market actors and credit marketing in Turkey are examined. In addition, the effects of increasing competition in credit marketing on the agricultural sector, agricultural enterprises and credit markets have also been examined. Key Words: Agriculture, Credit, Finance, Market, Bank Doi: /UHBAB (1) Corresponding Author: Erdogan GÜNEŞ, Ankara University Faculty Of Agriculture, Agricultural Economics Department, egunes@agri.ankara.edu.trreceived: Accepted: Type ofarticle (Research and Application) Conflict of Interest: None Ethics Committee: None 21

2 INTRODUCTION Agricultural credit usage is increasing with massive and qualitative production. Previously, public banks were active in the agricultural credit market, but today, proportion of private banks is increasing due to liberal approaches and competition. This situation has led private sector banks to participate in public credit markets as well as public sectors. This change in the credit markets has created competition between the banks and has created differentiation of the marketing strategies in credit markets. In this process, an agricultural enterprise has utilized many opportunities such as repayment, interest and so on. This is seen in different forms of the world s developed or developing countries. Turkey is a country aiming to pass on the competitive market in the field of agricultural credit in the development process and it aims to move away from public sector banking by going to this field. Nowadays, in the field of agricultural loans, private banks have a significant share in the loan portfolio and this share is on an increasing trend. On the other hand, credit diversification in the field of agricultural lending attracts attention, and this diversity has increased with development of agricultural culture. In this study, the strategies applied in agricultural credit market, market actors and credit marketing in Turkey are examined. METHODOLOGY This study is based on a literature review related to last development about agricultural credit. Books, articles and internet sources about the research area have been used. Recently, many scientists have studies agricultural market orientation. At this stage, it is estimated that competition within the banks will increase. Thus, several banks must follow many strategies in order to success at this areas. Banks agricultural credit marketing strategies and current developments in research area have been examined in 7Ps of Marketing Mix based on literature. AGRICULTURAL CREDIT MARKET and DEVELOPMENTS in TURKEY Agriculture is an important sector for Turkey in terms of social and economic aspects. In order to create a sustainable, competitive and organized agricultural sector Turkey needs to utilize its resources efficiently and effectively. For developing such an agricultural sector, farmers of all sizes should have better access to finance (Taşçı, 2015: 175). Of the total GDP, employment and export 8%, 20% and 5%, respectively, comes from agriculture. Turkey had 68 billion $ agricultural output in 22

3 2014. In spite of its importance and contribution to the economy, Turkish agricultural sector consisting more than 3 million farm holdings has a very small share in total loans (Yıldız and Koçoğlu, 2014:8-15). The share of agricultural loans among total loans varied from %3 to %4 in the last 5 years (BDDK, 2015a). Agricultural credit is developing with internal and external factors such as the structural status of agricultural enterprises, production and market conditions, farmer purchasing power and parity in Turkey. Increasing credit volume for agriculture and sectoral orientation of private sector banking are the main developments in recent years. But the main question that is constantly asked is the ratio between the volume of credit growth and the development of the agricultural sector. This situation is different according to the sub-branches and the structural situations of the enterprises within the agriculture sector. According to the general opinion, enterprises need to have professional, rational management and organization to make sufficient and effective use of credits. Since agricultural enterprises in Turkey are small, fragmented and not at the expected level in organization, the enterprises can t benefit from agricultural credits at the desired level (Güneş and Movassaghi, 2016a: 1719). In this context, organizational studies are being carried out to enable all enterprises to benefit from agricultural loans. Farmers get agricultural credits from various sources in Turkey. They can be classified as two groups, formal and informal sources. Agricultural Bank of the Republic of Turkey (Ziraat Bankası), commercial banks (domestic and foreign-owned and operated), and agricultural credit cooperatives (ACC), agricultural sales cooperatives and some cooperatives such as Pankobirlik relayed to sugar processing, are major formal credit suppliers, while other individuals and institutions constitute informal resources (Güneş, 2011: 92-93). Agricultural Bank of the Republic of Turkey (Ziraat Bankası) has supplied almost all agricultural credits in Turkey to mid-2000s (Güneş and Artukoğlu, 2010: 796). In recent years, other banks have entered the sector, so Agricultural Bank s share fell to 65-75% (Güneş and Movassaghi, 2016b: 86). The share of Ziraat Bank in agricultural lending market went down to around 66% in spite of the monopoly of the bank on disbursement of subsidized loans and agricultural subsidies. It has been aimed to meet the financing needs of the agriculture sector through subsidized credit application which is maintained through the bank since Also, it has 23

4 been encouraged to move towards some areas where development is required with low interest rates applied. Under the Decree No. 2012/2781, discounted interest rate is applied to agricultural loans and the difference between the bank s agricultural credit interest rate and discounted interest rate is covered by the Treasury. In the financing of Turkish agriculture, the agricultural credit share of private banks increased from 33.8% to 35.9% from 2007 to Approximately 45 billion TL agricultural credit was used in the agriculture of Turkey in 2014 and the share of the private sector was determined as 35.8% in the same year. (BDDK, 2015b). AGRICULTURAL CREDIT MARKET- ING STRATEGIES of BANKS In today s banking sector, product-oriented strategies are replaced by customer-focused approaches. In customer-oriented approaches, it is aimed to establish permanent relationships with customers and to provide customer loyalty in the long term (Ocak, 2011: 66). Due to the special characteristics of agriculture, there is an increase in the need for agricultural credits. This situation has improved the agricultural banking and increased the credit demands of the enterprises. Agricultural enterprises have started to benefit from credits on the production and marketing stages and competition among banks has increased. Accordingly, the agricultural sector has become an important market for banks and a new field of competition has emerged. When agricultural enterprises receive agricultural credits; low interest rate, flexible payment plan, short and easy procedures, promotion are important for bank preference. For this reason, banks attach importance to factors such as reduction in loan interest rate, ease of repayment, flexibility, maturity shift, promotion of input usage. The banks carry out various marketing activities with the aim of creating a positive image, giving information about services, winning new customers and keeping existing customers. Traditional marketing mix elements (4P= product, price, place and promotion) can be used in the banking sector (Balsöz, 2004: 26). But recently it is thought that the traditional marketing mix for service marketing is insufficient, so 3P (people, physical evidence and process) has been added to traditional marketing mix elements and the concept which is often seen as 4P has evolved to 7P (Yapraklı and Erdal, 2015: 482; Barouh, 2017: 3). Thus, 7P for service marketing has come to the forefront. The concept of marketing in the banking sector is under the roof of ser- 24

5 vice marketing (Gürsoy, 2006: 65; Karaslar, 2014: 23). In this way, banks agricultural credit marketing strategies and current developments in agricultural credit marketing can be examined in 7P (Panigrahi, 2015:6). Product The product is the most basic element of the marketing mix. The product is defined as an object that contains important items such as quality, design and brand and is presented to the market by the company (Ocak, 2011: 22). Although money is a tangible that banks offer agricultural credits in a customized format to market to different needs groups and different masses. In this direction, there are credits designed according to different types of needs under groups such as business credits and investment credits. Banks that offer innovative products / services in an innovative manner have been found to be more successful than satisfying customer needs (Yapraklı and Erdal, 2015: 484). As a product-related strategy, it is seen that banks use agricultural themes in names and images of agricultural credit cards in Turkey. These credit cards bear the names Başak (Wheat Head) Kart, Üretici (Producer) Card, Hasat (Harvest) Card, İmece (Collective Work) Card, Tarım (Agriculture) Card, Ekin (Crop) Card, Verimli (Productive) Card, Harman (Blend) Card, Mahsul (Crop) Card (Figure 1). These cards can be used as bank cards and shopping can be done with cards and discounts provided by cards can be used in contracted shops. Figure 1. Agricultural Credit Cards for Agricultural Banking in Turkey* 25

6 * Credit cards images were taken from the official web pages of various banks Price The price is simply defined as the money the buyers need to pay to obtain a good or service. The price must match the value of the product offered, otherwise the buyer may choose the products of others. For this reason, price is an important element of marketing mix. The price mix for banking services includes the determination of price levels, the determination of the payment, terms and costs of credit and the determination of the strategies to be applied in pricing (Ocak, 2011: 77). The two most important issues that banks attach importance in price element are the interest rates and the payment plans. For this reason, banks try to keep their payment plans flexible with low interest rates in order to gain a competitive edge in agricultural banking. Despite the fact that pricing is very important, it is not enough by itself. Although some banks offer low interest rates, they may be less preferred due to the slow and prolonged lending process. Place Placing seeks solutions to questions about where, how and by whom the bank service will be marketed. Place in the marketing mix is very important for the bank image. Even if the customer likes the product, may give up from buying the product if there is a problem in the distribution phase (Balsöz, 2004: 37). Banks usually prefer direct distribution routes and are getting closer to their customers through their branches. But with new information and communication technologies, banks have also developed new services (Yapraklı and Erdal, 2015: 484). Most of the banks today accept agricultural credit applications via SMS or Internet banking without the customer arriving at the branch. Promotion Promotion consists of activities such as personal sales, sales promotion, advertising, public relations (Balsöz, 2004: 39). Promotion has different purposes in banking sector such as creating a positive bank image, differentiating from its competitors and creating customer loyalty (Yapraklı and Erdal, 2015: 485). Recently, advertisements for agricultural banking and agricultural credits have increased. These advertisements are often found on television and in newspapers. There are also various promotional practices besides advertisements. Postponing payments with zero interests in shopping at agreed stations, 26

7 village and farmer visits, farmer information meetings can be classified as other important promotional activities (Sun, 2013). People Everyone involved in the delivery of the service and affecting the perception of the buyer constitutes the people element of the marketing mix (Al, 2005: 3). Because service marketing cannot be thought independently from the people who make the marketing, people element is very important in service marketing and service presentation (Rakesh et al. 2016: 37). Since people are an important part of the service provided, the behavior of employees will affect the success of the organization s actions and functions (Luo et al., 2016: 32). This factor is especially important in banks. Bank employees give tips about the structure of the service. Therefore, clothing style, personal appearance, attitudes and behaviors of employees affect customer perception of service (Ocak, 2011: 24). Employees in agricultural credit departments must also have other qualifications along with the obligation to have the skills of bank employees. Employees should have basic knowledge of agriculture and agricultural production, should be able to communicate well with farmers and be a good listener (Heney, 2011: 8). Physical Evidence Physical evidence refers to the environment in which the service is provided and the environment in which the customer interacts. (Al, 2005:3). The environment in which banking services are offered is as important as other marketing mix elements. Because, furniture, machinery, equipment, lighting in the bank closely influence the evaluation of the service the customer receives. For this reason, the banks are trying to create bright and modern places (Bacıoğlu, 2009: 80). Banks can also create a specialized environment in their agricultural branches. There are agricultural bank branches that include pictures and symbols of agriculture This bank branches are designed according to agriculture theme and include agricultural icons such as cows, fruit trees and chickens (Figure 2). In this way, the physical environment has been made to show that it is a branch where services related to agricultural banking can be obtained (Hürriyet, 2013). 27

8 Figure 2. Example of an Agricultural Bank Branch From Turkey** **Sun, 2013: 32 Process Process includes the activities from production to the customers. It is especially important for service enterprises (Bacıoğlu, 2009). It is important for enterprises that credit is easy to get and that the process is not long. Despite the fact that some banks offer low interest credits, the fact that the lending process is slower and therefore less preferred, reveals the importance of the process. For this reason, banks aim to shorten and simplify the process of application and postmarketing as much as possible. In addition to this, it is also possible to apply in different ways. For example, in some banks the application for agricultural credit can be made via SMS without going to the branch. If the application reply is positive, the credit limit that can be used is sent to the mobile phone and credit can be used if there is no obstacle to the credit usage by going to the branch with the identity card. CONCLUSION Increased competition in agriculture and service quality has started to contribute to the sector. This is partly due to the growing strength of credit lenders and credit-borrowing agricultural enterprises. The recent situation in Turkey with crediting of agriculture is that private sector banking is involved in the process. Different banks in this area have different marketing strategies in different areas of agriculture for credit activities. Increasingly, banks have been working to provide suitable term and conditional credits, to determine the right and timely needs, to fast lending and use, to carry out 28

9 demonstration studies and farmer participation, to encourage the use of credit cards suitable for agriculture financing. It s seen that, product-oriented approaches in agricultural credit marketing are replaced by customer-oriented approaches. With the expansion of the 4P marketing mix to 7P, human, physical evidence and process factors have come to the forefront, and these factors have gained importance also in agricultural banking. There has also been intense competition in the field of agricultural credit marketing, as many banks have entered the sector. Banks that want to be successful seem to be trying to take advantage by low interest rates, ease of repayment and fast lending. In addition to this, farmer visits, meetings, campaign purchases are also frequently applied especially in promotional activities. The mentioned applications are evaluated as important developments in reaching developed country standards in agricultural credit sector. However, it is necessary to emphasize the importance of the holistic organization and to determine the strategies accordingly. REFERENCES AL, U., (2005). Hizmet Pazarlaması, BDDK,(2015a).Fintürk, org.tr/finturk, BDDK, (2015b). Financial Indicators, aspx, BACIOĞLU, K.H, (2009). Bankacılıkta Elektronik Pazarlama Yöntemleri, Uygulamaları ve Etkinliği, Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Kadir Has Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Finans ve Bankacılık Anabilim Dalı, İstanbul BALSÖZ, F.M., (2004). Bankacılıkta Değişen Pazarlama Anlayışı Bankacılık Sektöründe Bir Uygulama, Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Ankara Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü İşletme Anabilim Dalı, Ankara BAROUH, Y., (2017). 4P den 7P ye Geçiş, GÜNEŞ, E., ARTUKOĞLU, M., (2010). Küresel Kriz Sürecinde Türkiye de Tarımsal Kredi Etkinlik ve Uygulamaları, Türkiye IX. Tarım Ekonomisi Kongresi, s , Şanlıurfa lesson/week6-notes.pdf,

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12 TÜRKİYE DE TARIMSAL KREDİ PAZARLAMASI Öz: Giriş: Tarımda kredi kullanımı giderek artış göstermektedir. Özellikle tarımın kendine has özellikleri nedeniyle işletmeler krediye ihtiyaç duymaktadır. Bu durum işletmelerin kredi taleplerini arttırmış ve tarım bankacılığının gelişmesini sağlamıştır. Önceleri kredi piyasasında çoğunlukla kamu kaynaklı bankaların varlığı, günümüzde liberal yaklaşımlar ve rekabet nedeniyle değişmeye başlamış ve tarımsal kredi piyasalarında kamu yanında özel sektör bankaları da piyasada yer almışlardır. Kredi piyasalarında görülen bu değişim, bankalar arası rekabetin oluşmasına yol açarak, kredi piyasalarında oluşacak pazarlama stratejilerinin farklılaşmasını da yaratmıştır. Günümüzde tarımsal kredi alanında özel bankaların kredi portföyü içinde önemli bir payı vardır ve bu pay artış eğilimindedir. Diğer yandan tarımsal kredi alanında kredi çeşitliliği de dikkati çekmektedir ve tarımın entansif yönlü gelişimi, bu çeşitliliği artırmaktadır. Türkiye de tarımsal kredi, tarım işletmelerinin yapısal durumu, üretim ve pazar koşulları, çiftçi satın alma gücü ve paritesi gibi iç ve dış etkenlerle gelişme göstermektedir. Ancak sürekli sorulan temel soru, artan kredi hacmi ile tarım sektörünün gelişimi arasındaki orantıdır. Bu durum da tarım sektörü içerisinde alt dallar ve işletmelerin yapısal durumlarına göre farklılık göstermektedir. Genel kanı, işletmelerin kredilerden yeterince ve etkin yararlanmalarında profesyonel, rasyonel yönetim ve organizasyona sahip olmalarının önemli olduğudur. Tarımda kredi kullanımı giderek artış göstermesine rağmen Türkiye genelinde işletmelerin küçük, parçalı ve örgütlülükte beklenen düzeyde olmadıkları dikkate alındığında, bütün işletmelerin tarımsal kredilerden yeteri ölçüde yararlanamadığı söylenebilir. Yine de tarımda kredi kullanımı ve tarım bankacılığı son yıllarda büyük gelişme kaydetmiş ve farklılaştırma stratejilerinin uygulandığı bir alan haline gelmiştir. Amaç: Bu çalışmada Türkiye de tarımsal kredi piyasası değerlendirilmiş ve tarımsal kredi veren bankaların kredi pazarlamasında uyguladıkları stratejiler ve tarımsal kredi alanındaki yeni gelişmeler ortaya konulmuştur. Tarımsal kredi veren bankaların kredi pazarlamasında uyguladıkları stratejiler 7P pazarlama karması içerisinde ele alınmış ve ayrı ayrı incelenmiştir. Metodoloji: Çalışma derleme niteliğindedir. Çalışmanın hazırlanmasında konuyla ilgili kitaplardan, bildirilerden ve web sayfalarından yararlanılmıştır. Bulgular: Günümüz bankacılık sektöründe, ürün odaklı stratejilerin yerini, müşteri odaklı yaklaşımların aldığı görülmektedir. Tarım işletmeleri üretim ve pazarlama aşamalarında kredilerden sıklıkla yarar- 32

13 lanmaya başladığı için tarımsal krediler veren bankalar arasında rekabet artmıştır. Bu doğrultuda tarım sektörü bankalar için önemli bir pazar haline gelmiş ve yeni bir rekabet alanı ortaya çıkmıştır. Tarım işletmeleri tarımsal kredi talebi için banka tercihinde kredi masrafının ve faiz oranının düşük olması, ödeme planının esnek olması, işlemlerin ve prosedürün kısa ve kolay olması, promosyon gibi pek çok faktöre önem vermektedir. Bankaların ise tarımsal kredi pazarlama faaliyetlerinde kredi faiz oranındaki indirimler yanında, geri ödeme kolaylığı, esneklik, vade öteleme, girdi kullanımında promosyon gibi faktörlere önem verdikleri dikkati çekmektedir. Bankalar, olumlu imaj yaratmak, hizmetler hakkında bilgi vermek, müşteri kazanmak ve mevcut müşterileri elde tutmak gibi amaçlarla çeşitli pazarlama faaliyetleri yürütmektedir. Geleneksel pazarlama karması elemanları olan 4P (Ürün-Fiyat-Dağıtım-Tutundurma) bankacılık sektöründe de kullanılmaktadır. Fakat günümüzde hizmet pazarlaması için geleneksel pazarlama karmasının yetersiz kaldığının görülmesiyle birlikte geleneksel pazarlama karması elemanlarına 3P(insanlar, fiziksel kanıt ve süreç) ilave edilmiş ve 4P olarak sıklıkla görülen kavram 7P ye evrimleşmiştir. Böylece hizmet pazarlaması için 7P ön plana çıkmıştır. Bankacılık sektöründe de pazarlama kavramı, hizmet pazarlaması çatısı altında ele alınabilmektedir. Çalışmada da, kredi veren bankaların kredi pazarlamasında uyguladıkları stratejiler 7P altında ele alınmış; ürün, fiyat, dağıtım, tutundurma, insanlar, fiziksel kanıt ve süreç alt başlıklarında uygulamalar incelenmiştir. Bankaların tarımsal kredi pazarlamasındaki uygulamaları incelendiğinde genel kredi pazarlanmasına kıyasla bazı farklılaştırmaların ve farklı stratejilerin uygulandığı görülmüştür. Tarımsal kredi hizmeti sunan bankaların tarım kredilerini farklı ihtiyaç gruplarına ve farklı kitlelere pazarlayabilmek için özelleştirilmiş biçimde sundukları görülmektedir. Bu doğrultuda tarımsal işletme kredileri ve tarımsal yatırım kredileri grubu altında, farklı tip ihtiyaçlara göre tasarlanmış krediler bulunmaktadır. Tarım bankacılığında çeşitli tutundurma stratejileri de yoğun olarak kullanılmaktadır. Tarım bankacılığı yapan bankalar tarımsal kredi kartlarında diğer kredi kartlarından farklı olarak isim ve görsellerinde tarımla ilgili temalar kullanmaktadır. Bununla beraber bazı bankalar tarımla ilgili resimler, semboller içeren ve tarım temasına göre tasarlanan özelleştirilmiş tarım bankacılığı şubeleri geliştirmiştir. Bu şubelerde tarıma ait inek, meyve ağacı ve tavuk gibi simgeler şubenin girişine yerleştirilmiş ve şubenin fiziksel çevresi, tarım bankacılığı ile ilgili hizmetlerin alınabileceği bir şube olduğunu gösteren bir hale getirilmiştir. Son zamanlarda tarım bankacılığına ve tarımsal kredilere ilişkin önemli tutundurma uygulamalarından olan banka reklamlarının da arttığı görülmektedir. Reklamlar 33

14 dışındaki tutundurma uygulamaları içerisinde anlaşmalı istasyonlardan alışveriş yapan kart sahibi çiftçilere akaryakıt ve madeni yağ alımlarında ödemelerini sıfır faizle erteleme imkanı, üye işyerlerinden yapılan tarımsal girdi alışverişlerinde faizsiz dönemli alışveriş imkanı gibi çeşitli uygulamalar bulunmaktadır. Bunların yanında köy ve çiftçi ziyareti yapma, çiftçi bilgilendirme toplantıları düzenleme gibi faaliyetler de yaygındır. Türkiye de tarımın kredilendirilmesinde gelinen son durumda, özel sektör bankacılığının sürece dahil olduğu görülmektedir ve bu alanda farklı bankalar değişik pazarlama stratejileriyle tarımın farklı alanlarında faaliyetlerde bulunmaktadır. Sonuç: Günümüzde tarımsal kredi pazarlamasında ürün odaklı yaklaşımların yerini genellikle müşteri odaklı yaklaşımlar almış durumdadır. Özellikle 4P pazarlama karmasının 7P ye genişlemesiyle birlikte insan, fiziksel kanıt ve süreç faktörleri de ön plana çıkmış, tarım bankacılığında da bu unsurlar önem kazanmıştır. Bankaların son dönemlerde uygun vadeli ve koşullu kredi verilmesi, doğru ve zamanında gereksinim tespiti, hızlı kredilendirme ve kullandırma, demonstrasyon çalışmaları, çiftçi katılımının sağlanması, tarımın finansmanına uygun kredi kartı kullanımını özendirmeleri gibi çalışmalarının arttığı görülmektedir. Belirtilen uygulamalar tarımsal kredi alanında gelişmiş ülke standartlarına ulaşmada önemli gelişmeler olarak değerlendirilmektedir. Sektörün gelişiminin devam etmesi için bütünsel organizasyonun önemini vurgulamak ve stratejileri buna göre belirlemek gerekmektedir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Tarım, Kredi, Finans, Pazar, Banka 34