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| Walk On The Wired Side |
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| They spend more time on the internet than the idiot-box. So if youre hoping to get into the mind of i-gen youd better get tech-savvy |
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TWO THINGS go into making India unique-a high growth rate outpacing other global economies and its young population (with 500 million below the age of 25, and 700 million under 35). In a marked shift from the past, Indian consumers will have greater spending power, and will be more literate, tech-savvy Netizens who are wired into the global world, though they thrive on their local environment and culture. The single driver moving consumers and consumption will be
technology, as India goes through a revolution in industries such as telecommunications, services, IT, media and entertainment. Almost all these will be fuelled by youth joining the workforce in large numbers. Indian consumers are already much like their global counterparts- self-centric, ambitious, entrepreneurial, with scant respect for bureaucracy and hierarchy, and always seeking excitement, instant gratification and global connectivity.
Markets that can engage, entertain and excite consumers have tremendous growth opportunities. The new digital age will encourage consumer need for whatever-wherever whenever. A combination of broadband and internet will provide the means to download information and entertainment. The mobile phone will see convergence as a personal video recorder(PVR), a camera, a computer with access to internet, music, TV clips, films, gaming, information and e-zines. India has the fastest growing cell phone user base after China. Growing individualism will lead to fragmentation of the mainstream consumer base. The digital age will encourage cyber and these niche markets to flourish. The latter when aggregated can sometimes be bigger and more profitable than mass markets as marginal costs in cyber space are virtually zero. The impact of technology on media exposure will be significant. Both message and medium will undergo a transformation best described as permission marketing as opposed to interruptive marketing, and whether consumers can be persuaded to seek your brand or not will spell success or failure. It is anticipated that 30% of commercials will be skipped through the PVR. Viral marketing, with films swapped on the net, allows only what is entertaining to survive. This ensures that power over media rests with the consumers. Product placements in films or on-site product placement, as some top-end car manufacturers have done at luxury hotels, will gain acceptance.
IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH
Mobile ownership and internet access could lead to web and text-based interviewing-this would be a solution for several problems in collecting market research data. Consumers are increasingly becoming marketing savvy and difficult to access because of privacy and security issues. With ever-diminishing interest spans, researchers will have to collect information in non-intrusive ways. So even as technology is helping consumers blank out traditional ways of reaching them (read advertising), it can also help in gaining access to them and allowing them to respond at their convenience. It will also allow online responses in real time and, perhaps, focus groups in cyber space. Trend research using a panel of experts would help keep track of consumers in a fast changing environment. Information overload on the Net will see curators-people who will guide consumers on lifestyle, entertainment etc-help sell the trends. Collaborative consumer research through the Net is gaining ground with consumers participating, both on and off-line, in generating new product ideas, product and advertising development. It can be easily extended to pre-testing product concepts and advertising.
Tracking buying behaviour in the absence of organised retail has led to testing hand-held computerised transitters and mobile text messages from households. A similar device is being developed for capturing offtake at the single outlet level. With the growth of supermarkets, data on household purchases could be stored with the swipe of a credit card. Further, credit card bills could become the best profile of a consumer if banks were to do data mining on consumer spending patterns. If the mobile phone had a credit card embedded in it (coming soon) every swipe could mean questions for you on the mobile! Viewership and audience measurement will have to rely on a host of different metrics. Market research will have to get more eclectic, using technology, behavioural and neurological sciences to get as close to the real consumer, as possible.
Ethnography and observation research are gaining more acceptance as they do away with a classroom environment. Motivational research will become critical as it will lead to insights into brand differentiation as markets get driven by attitudes, lifestyles and values. The challenge before market research has always been to provide information that simulates real life, in the shortest possible time and at the lowest cost. Now technology, and cyberspace can do just that. Imagine that a girl/woman gets this message on her mobile from a skincare brand: "If you have dry skin and skin eruptions, we would like you to help us develop the right cream for you, answer the following questions..."
If this has begun to sound like doomsday, we can be reassured that in a highly diverse country such as India, the new and the old will continue to co-exist.
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