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Mobile The way of the Future

Tushar Vyas &Harish Nair


September 2013

Flip through any industry magazine these days and youre sure to stumble
upon the debate related to the power of mobile marketing. Typically these
debates tend to be polarizingeither its the future or its all unnecessary
hype. The truth is - It is a powerful new tool in any marketers arsenal given
the role mobile plays in our consumers life. The power of this medium will
depend on how marketers intend to intelligently use it.
Mobile today is a thread that is connecting many varied profile of users across
India who use it very differently given their needs. At the top of the pyramid
are users who use mobile to be always connected to the net even when on
the go. And at the bottom of pyramid are new users who were not touched by
wired telecom- rural users who are coming into the fold thanks to wireless
telecom; and also lower SEC audience who are connecting to the Internet
now that they have a cost device they can afford unlike the expensive PC.

The new (mass) media


Today mobile phone has an unparalleled reach in India- TRAI reports a mobile
subscriber base of 906 Mn as of Sep 2013- 571 in urban and 335 Mn in rural
India. But the more interesting story is the mobiles evolving smart features
and ability to reach and connect people by becoming the entry point to
Internet and the virtual world. Below are some reasons why marketers cannot
ignore it.
1.High reach
Today India has 110 Mn active mobile Internet users. Over half of this is
unduplicated reach over PC- these are new users who have never accessed
Internet on any other device but their mobile. Mobile is helping bypass the big
barrier limiting Indias Internet growth-the high cost of PC, which many first
time users cannot afford.
2. High frequency of usage
More than 56% of smartphone users are online daily and have multiple
sessions. Searching, checking mail and browsing social networks on the go
on mobile has become a way of life for an entire generation of Indians. As of
July last year the mobile page views on Internet overtook the PC page views.
Today more than 50% of Google and Facebook users access these services
from a mobile device.
3. Hard to ignore demographic

The mobile Internet users are part of a demographic chased by all leading
brands. They are young and urban. 70% Mobile Internet users are between
20-34yrs. 46% are from the top 8 cities.

4. Unique targeting options


Unique targeting options that this medium provides The main being accurate
location based targeting which lets marketers do much more with a lot more
media efficiency - and others basis the device you own; the apps / content
you consume. Today whoever the TG and whatever his usage there is a
mobile advertising option to reach out- be it through voice, sms, mobile
Internet or through proximity based targeting. And since mobile has the
inputs/attributes of other media, its also easy to repurpose and use existing
assets- Radio jingle becomes a mobile CRBT, TVC becomes a online video
ad.
5.Mobile is becoming a Bridge
On one hand, Mobile is becoming the bridge between real and virtual worldmore and more people are using mobile to scan information on products and
compare prices in real time while they are in store through the web, through
augmented reality information layers and through apps.
And in a multi-screen world mobile is also becoming a connector between
various offline media initiatives be it engaging with audience real time on an
outdoor hoarding or through mobile based companion apps that provide a rich
vibrant second screen experience over and above the TV screen. More and
more marketers are also looking to mobile to complement their traditional
media advertising since parallel media usage along with mobile is high in
India. Since after seeing brand ads on traditional media, today the audience
seeks more information on their phone.
6.This is only the beginning
Even higher growth predicted - Mobile Internet is estimated to grow manifold
in coming years. As per Mckinseys digital prediction Indias Internet users will
increase to 450 Mn in 2015- More than three quarters of users will access
Internet through Mobile.41% of these users will access internet exclusively on
mobile, 38% on PC and Mobile both and only 21% exclusively on PC. The two
primary drivers of growth will be the widespread investment in high-speed
wireless networks and lower priced smartphones/ tablets in the country
Mobile is also expected to be the game changer in Indias rural Internet
space. Mobile Internet will undoubtedly become the superhighway that
connects rural India to the world- and with it is bringing an immense
opportunity for agriculture, handicrafts as well as other traditional industries. It
is telling that priority for major non-food purchase in rural households today is
either a television or a mobile phone. Penetration of mobile is higher than

conventional media in most rural markets. 2013 witnessed a huge 5.3 times
growth over 2012 and nearly 47 times over 2010. Falling prices in handset
and telecom plans is driving this growth. Mobile phones will become the
gateway for rural Internet journey as the telecom infrastructure connects more
and more villages in India.
The changing perceptions
Marketers are starting to take to this medium in an encouraging way. Mobile
marketing spends in India is estimated to grow exponentially in the next few
years. But more important than spends will be the way marketers evolve to
use this new medium intelligently. With Mobile gaining prominence as a
purchasing device and m-commerce predicted to take off in a big way, the
implications are huge. Every piece of data that makes targeting more
intelligent and more discerning on Mobile will help brands reach out to the
right audience in a streamlined manner that other media cannot.
Segmentation, localization and contextualization will make for an exciting
proposition that will open up a new era of highly targeted and highly relevant
advertising that may push marketers to adopt a mobile-first approach.

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