Why marketers need to mind their language

While the debate over whether this is India’s 76th or 77th year as an independent nation will probably continue for a while yet, it is undeniable that the country has 22 official languages. And even while the lingua franca for much of the country is Hindi, with pidgin English to a lesser extent, efforts are being made to democratize access to goods and services by those limited to, or more comfortable in, their native tongues.

In a recent interview with exchange4media, Unny Radhakrishnan, CEO, Digitas India, highlighted this fairly herculean task, pointing to the Bhashini project, a national language translation mission undertaken by MeITy (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology). “Given that a lot of technologies, like Alexa, don’t recognize Indian languages, this is a big project for the Indian government as they feel a lot of services can be delivered digitally if the various languages are recognized.”

It’s not for nothing that in India, where literacy levels still leave a lot to be desired, the voice searches on Google are twice the global average, as people, especially from rural areas, who have increasing access to the internet but not requisite literacy levels, take advantage of digital access.

And while access to the diverse speakers of languages is only increasing, brands and companies are making sure there’s plenty of relevant content for them to be able to engage with prospective purchasers. Consumer media is speaking to us, and more of us are tuning in every day.

Market Chatter

Noting that integrating the next half billion in the digital ecosystem has been an ongoing conversation for some time now, Puneet Bajaj, VP, Strategy, FCB Kinnect, says, “I see it as a phase-wise shift, which first requires infrastructure, then products, followed by affordability, and then usage drivers.”

He adds, “Infrastructure (internet penetration), products (Jio, e-commerce and resellers, SFV, OTTs), affordability (free/low pricing) have been implemented quite well and will continue to evolve, now the focus is on the last leg, and rightly so. And for this, we don't necessarily need new solutions and innovations all the time, rather figure out how the barriers can be overcome through the existing ecosystem of products.”

Bajaj says this is best exemplified by Senegal, where the government and other public institutions use WhatsApp voice notes as a way of educating the farmer community, who speak in their own dialects, none of which are integrated in the keyboard system of the country is a very good case in point.

“Audio is easiest to understand and adopt and we are seeing something similar being worked on by the Bhashini initiative. Brands that are seeking to engage with the hitherto untapped/unaddressed markets will have to take the charge in driving this change,” he adds.

Apart from the public sector, the process of digitizing various Indian dialects is also being undertaken by private corporations, especially Alphabet, Meta, and Amazon. Most recently, Adobe announced the global expansion of Firefly, Adobe’s family of creative generative AI models, to support text prompts in over 100 languages, including eight Indian regional languages enabling users to generate images and text effects using their native languages in the standalone Firefly web service.

Pointing to the fact that India has over 750 million active internet users in 2023, Debarshi Chakravorti, VP - Business and Communications Planning, Interactive Avenues (the digital arm of IPG Mediabrands India), notes, “Nielsen's data indicates that 56% of this active user base comes from rural India, accounting for approximately 425 million users. This statistic underscores the significant presence of non-English speaking regions in the digital landscape.”

The Story in Numbers

The report by Nielsen further highlights the remarkable growth of rural areas, which outpaced urban areas. While urban regions experienced a 10% growth in the number of active internet users, rural areas exhibited an impressive 30% increase. Notably, the highest growth was observed in areas with populations below 100,000, including small towns and rural areas.

“The swift expansion of digital access has led to tangible effects on online activities, including a notable 43% year-on-year growth in digital payments transactions. In addition, video watching and video calling rank as the top two online activities among individuals aged 12 and older,” says Chakravorti.

Another standout trend is the surging popularity of digital regional news, which has seen a remarkable 20% increase in consumption compared to the previous year. Chakravorti says that as Indian languages become more broadly accessible, advertisers need to increasingly be aware of and offer localization and cultural relevance; multilingual content creation; and regional influencer marketing.

A notable example of a recent campaign that embraced India's rich cultural and linguistic diversity is Tata Tea Premium's #DeshKaKulhad campaign in August 2021. This campaign, showcased primarily on YouTube, celebrated artisans that craft the country's diverse art forms. The campaign not only portrayed the creation of the iconic kulhad but also highlighted region-specific art on each piece. As an extension of the campaign, it featured kulhads created by local artisans from different regions, enlisted local influencers to endorse these unique creations, and even made them available for purchase on ecommerce platforms as collectibles.

Unlike say 10 years ago, where barriers to build something were quite high, today's it's relatively easier with the technological suite of solutions. Bajaj observes, “The advent of AI as we see today couldn't have come at a better time, opening numerous opportunities to remove various barriers for the next 500 million users. If we can do an AI-powered hyperlocal, personalized campaign, there's no reason why we can't solve for this audience that has certain adoption barriers, primarily language.”

Take Away

The evolving digital landscape in India necessitates a shift in advertising and creative strategies to match the widespread digital access across languages.

Mitesh Kothari, Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer, White Rivers Media, says we have been witnessing vernacular video adverts gaining prominence through short-forms and social apps, enabling brands to connect swiftly with their target audiences and leave a lasting impact.

“Personalization has become integral as customers seek relatability, values, and language alignment. It is a pressing need in the current times to adapt to various languages and cultural nuances, tailoring messages for targeted emotional resonance. With a nation constituting multiple languages and dialects, successful digital evolution hinges on customization and personalization,” he says.

This means that platforms catering to local experiences and languages will play a vital role in empowering and including a larger demographic, even as leveraging accurate engines and AI is essential for realizing the true potential of digital media in reaching a diverse population.