Consumer behaviour has changed for generations to come: Anand Bhadkamkar

Dentsu International India CEO Anand Bhadkamkar said that the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted consumer behaviour to such an extent that it has changed for generations to come. He also said that pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation. Bhadkamkar was speaking at the unveiling of the dentsu-e4m Digital Report 2021 on Thursday, February 5, 2021.

"The pandemic was a socio-economic catastrophe and it impacted all facets of life. It had an impact on consumer behaviour. Consumer behaviour has changed for generations to come. That accelerated digital transformation. We started consuming more entertainment. Education also went online," Bhadkamkar said.

He also said that pandemic has led to faster adoption of digital in tier-2 and 3 cities. These markets have largely contributed to the digital advertising growth as well in 2020 and 2021.

According to Bhadkamkar, the larger impact for businesses was their transition to e-commerce. "The physical connect moved away because of the pandemic due to which digital became one of the gainers where the transitioned has happened."

He also said that Dentsu as an agency has been working with its clients for getting business outcomes and finding solutions to their business problems. "Dentsu India has a strong team of 3000 professional of which more than 2000 are digital professionals where we work with clients in their digital transformation journeys."

The report has predicted advertising growth to rebound in 2021. "Come 2021, there are lots of positives when it comes to India. Advertising is expected to grow at 10.8% in 2021. In 2020, we had taken a huge hit as an industry with almost 18% drop in advertising. It's going to take another year for us to get to the 2019 level."

He also said that brands are moving towards being more socially relevant and purpose-driven while engaging with consumers. "Digital transformation is going to be the driving force as we get on to our subsequent journeys in 2021 and beyond."

Voice, video and vernacular continue to be the driver of digital growth, Bhadkamkar said while adding that regional is getting more and more prominence on digital video platforms. "Digital has become the second-largest medium while TV remains the largest. Digital has overtaken print, which we had anticipated to 2-3 years down the line."

He pointed out that digital is growing faster than all mediums. "Last year, all other mediums had de-grown whereas digital grew by 15%. Digital has that edge over others and it's part of the lifecycle as we are moving forward."

The Dentsu India CEO said that social commerce and digital adoption by seniors were key highlights of 2020. "Using social media for commerce saw growth big time. The focus now is on creating customer experiences. 2020 saw the adoption of digital by seniors who shifted to online payments from cash payments," Bhadkamkar stated.

Mobile, he said, has become quasi digital and has taken 75% of digital spends.

While presenting the summary of the report, WATConsult AVP, Consumer Insights Abheek Biswas said that the pandemic hit traditional advertising avenues while some benefitted from it. "For example, QR codes made a huge comeback in 2020."

He also said that FMCG's share of total advertising nosedived while e-commerce saw a jump in total share. He also highlighted that from 2019 to 2020 digital increased its share from 20% to 28% in just one year.