Guest Column: OMG! It's a social world

The modern marketer faces a slew of challenges in his/her job profile. With the proliferation of disruptive technologies, rise of the connected consumer and rapid globalisation, the marketer’s task has become a daunting one. How does one reach out to a consumer with a much reduced attention span? How does one target the consumer who is always on the move and lives in a connected world, and make one’s brand stand out in this cluttered world? Most importantly, how does one keep delighting and engaging consumers?

There are no perfect answers, but harnessing the potential of the new digital world can address most. Over the years, we have seen an (r)evolution that has spiked internet growth and usage exponentially. It all started in the 90s, when we were gripped to the web and fascinated by the possibilities. But what has happened in the second decade of the web is truly amazing, with the addition of the complex layer of human interaction. Today, social networking is often among the first uses of Internet in India, besides the usual reasons like email, music and gaming – a trend fast forwarded by the increasing affordability of smartphones/ mobile phones.

The experience of being online is now like being a part of a gigantic group at an event – like standing in a crowd where one can hear everybody’s thoughts – and one has to piece together a picture from all of those tiny fragments. It is magical, yet so much a reality. But for brands this ‘social’ commotion is not so much a challenge as it is an opportunity.

As per the latest IAMAI and IMRB report on social media in India, the number of social media users in urban India reached 62 million by December 2012 and is estimated to touch 66 million by June 2013. That is 66 million people on digital platforms waiting for brands to reach out to them. Music to the ears of the telecom, consumer electronics, FMCG and retail sectors.

Social media marketing has compelling advantages – from lower costs, greater RoI to improved flexibility. From a marketer’s point of view, social media marketing spends are only a fraction of traditional marketing spends. As per a Gartner survey, US companies spent 10.4 per cent of company revenues on marketing activities in 2012. Of that budget, 24 per cent, or 2.5 per cent of total revenues, was spent on digital media initiatives, with the rest spent on traditional media. In India, digital constitutes 7-8 per cent of advertising and marketing spend, across most brands. Further, the RoI is strong, and more importantly, easily measurable in real time. With digital marketing, brands can encourage their target audience to take action (visit their website, respond, etc.) as opposed merely being passive recipients of information. Adding personality to brands becomes easier, offering greater opportunity for meaningful engagement. This, in turn, can lead to business benefits, brand promotion and longevity of profits.
 
Citibank is a case in point. The bank partnered with SapientNitro in early 2011 to be part of a growing group of connected Facebook users to build a community that enabled interaction with its users. Over time, the community has grown to over 480,000, all of whom benefit from one of the best banks in India. Recently, the ‘best internet bank’ launched India’s first ever 24-hour e-commerce mega sale, OMG! Sale. Seventeen e-commerce sites were brought together for this iconic sale on a single platform, offering heavy discounts and the biggest deals online. Exclusively designed for Citibank customers, the programme aimed at providing value added benefits and choice to Citibank customers.

Besides microblogging platforms and viral videos, the overall digital marketing campaign leveraged Facebook to create customer excitement that translated into a boost in digital sales. The Citibank India Facebook page reaches out to 5.5 million users, and during the OMG! Sale had more than 75,000 of them engaging actively throughout with a virality of 7.63 per cent. Within 24 hours, Citibank card spends grew eight times over average daily spends at the 17 partner website. The average ticket size increased by 30 per cent for partner websites on Citibank card. Partner merchants reported 50 per cent reduction on ‘cash on delivery’ mode of payment. In fact, the Citibank India Facebook page posts achieved the highest reach ever in 2012 – at 2,095,104.

Clearly, there is huge scope for enterprises to start exploring social marketing seriously. But the web is not new to the SMB and SOHO segments, and offers immense scope to drive marketing and distribution to scale in an era where budgets are shrinking even while targets expand.

Indian teens spend 86 per cent of their time daily on Facebook, followed by 54 per cent on Twitter, as per a recent McAfee survey. Forward looking brands must start planning for the customer of tomorrow. There are already virtual only retail stores like Flipkart, Myntra, Jabong. Is it time for a virtual only bank? No more real estate presence? If Second Life had taken off – would we have been banking there? Is it time for a new version of second life in first person perhaps? I wonder.

Avinash Joshi is Social Media Lead at SapientNitro India.