Unlike most industries, India’s digital marketing industry weathered the pandemic with relative ease and came out on top. In the past two years, it has grown at unprecedented speeds for many reasons. Brands who noticed this shifting interest from traditional marketing to digital and adapted quickly saw a world of benefits.
With the rapid acceleration of smartphone adoption across the country, increased consumption of online content, and more consumers being confined to their homes, digital marketing became more effective than traditional forms of advertising. In fact, global media investment company GroupM reported that digital marketing accounted for almost 65% of all advertising around the world – a significant jump from 52% in 2019. It is also estimated that traditional and digital marketing spends around the world will be worth over $873 billion by 2024.
In 2022 as well, India will continue to retain its place in the 10 biggest ecommerce markets worldwide and will be the fastest growing. According to RedSeer, India is likely to become the third-largest ecommerce market in the world, taking over flourishing markets such as South Korea and the United Kingdom.
A large part of these digital ad spends is occupied by ecommerce ads. With fintech and healthcare brands bolstering their online transactional volumes, more categories are setting their sights on ecommerce platforms and increasing their advertising budgets. So if there’s ever a good time to be on ecommerce ad platforms, it’s now.
What will digital transformation spends in India look like?
Just like the rest of the world, India’s ecommerce industry is growing at a lightspeed. Digital marketing, in particular, is on the verge of a transformation as homegrown brands look beyond age-old social marketing methods. These brands are now discovering new ways to reach their consumer base in various regions. Here are some statistics that illuminate this shift.
- Traditional to digital media consumption
Research firm Nielsen India, in collaboration with the Media Research Users Council of India (MRUC), conducted the Indian Readership Survey, which revealed signs of permanent change. From 2017 to 2019, consumption of traditional media remained stable. However, digital media consumption shot through the roof.
- Digital media spends
According to RedSeer, India’s total digital advertising market was worth $3 billion in 2020, occupying 33% of the market. However in the next decade, it will see a 10x growth and account for almost 85% of the total advertising marketing in the country – reaching an estimated market value of up to $35 billion.
- Influencer marketing
A study by Statista showed a marked increase in influencer marketing spends. The total market value of influencer marketing will continue to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 25% over the next few years. Brands are moving towards influencer-led campaigns across scales and are aiming to invest 7-9% of total digital advertising spends.
- Exploring other avenues in FY 23-24
In the next few years, digital transformation spends will not be limited to websites, search engines and social media platforms alone. Ecommerce businesses should start planning for advertising on the Metaverse and ONDC – India’s open ecommerce network, and consider NFTs wherever applicable. That’s not all, tech-forward ecommerce brands will also jump onto the supply chain blockchain bandwagon and explore technologies that can optimize digital ad spends and boost ROI.
So what does this mean for your business?
Even a cursory glance at these trends will reveal the importance of digital marketing and its impending explosion. With more competitors breaking into the scene across every conceivable category, it is important to have a staggered digital marketing strategy that takes into account existing trends as well as future transformations.
As an ecommerce business competing in this cut-throat environment, it is obvious that higher spends can increase your chances of success. But it’s not enough to simply increase your budget. Effective ecommerce marketing is about targeting your intended audience accurately and on the right platforms – ultimately improving brand awareness and engagement, and encouraging trials and loyalty. If you’re looking to maximize the value of your digital ad spends, Tenovia can help.
Our in-house ecommerce analytics platform Tensight helps you make the best of data and tailor effective marketing campaigns that deliver on ROI. In addition to digital marketing campaigns on social media, we also provide solutions for ecommerce platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Swiggy, Blinkit, Bigbasket, Google, YouTube, OTT, Snapdeal, and Udaan. If you want your ecommerce business to be ahead of the curve when the digital marketing revolution is in full swing, we’ll get you there.