60% India marketers plan to increase technology spends in 2019

Epsilon released the commissioned study ‘Marketing in India is personal, not just business’ conducted by Forrester Consulting. The findings revealed the huge chasm between what marketers believe they need to do to reach consumers, and what consumers actually prefer.

The study analysed the marketing techniques used by Indian brands and the areas they could improve to optimise their Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI). The findings indicate that 74% of marketers use marketing technologies to reach consumers via SMS while only 2% of consumers prefer to receive marketing updates through this channel.

The online survey of more than 600 people that included both consumers and senior marketing professionals in decision-making roles from retail, consumer packaged goods, financial services, insurance and travel, and hospitality brands in India. The study sought to understand the use of marketing technologies across targeted industries and its relationship with consumer expectations regarding advertisements, loyalty and brand engagement.

Key finding of the survey:

• 63% of  Indian consumers prefer personalized marketing and are inclined to purchase from brands that provide relevant content and offers
• About 78% of consumers expect companies to have a mobile app (50% regularly keep in touch with their most frequently-purchased brand on their mobile apps), and 68% feel frustrated when a website is not mobile-friendly
• In the next 12 months, 60% of marketers plan to increase their technology spends
• 71% plan to increase spending on advertising and marketing performance measurement solutions
• 72% of the 25-34 years old read product reviews online
• 63% of Indian consumers are not willing to share personal information with companies to receive more relevant advertising however over 90% will give up information for perks and benefits
• Consumers require transparency and privacy protection, but only 15% of marketers in India consider preparing for GDPR as a priority 

Ashish Sinha, Country Head, Epsilon, said, “This research is a barometer for marketers to guide them in reorienting their strategies and priorities to serve their consumers better and more effectively. We need to help marketers understand what they are misreading when it comes to customer engagement. The study helps understand consumers and their predilections to help marketers evolve. For instance, the study found, although about 92% of marketers in India consider improving their ability to personalize capabilities as priority in marketing, the Indian market is unfledged in terms of data and technology readiness, cross-channel expertise, and in bridging organizational silos.”

He further added, “It is a big challenge for marketers to opt for and use the right technology to help them make sense of data and make triable marketing decisions as fast as possible. Matters like privacy are sensitive areas for Indians and hence, marketers need to sustain a balance between personalization and privacy.  Indian marketers need to find good partners with proven expertise for strategic guidance around collecting, cleansing and integrating consumer data and break down the internal data layers to improve their ROMI.”

Marketers need to better understand how consumers want to be served in order to align their (Enterprise Marketing Technology) EMT investments and optimize their omnichannel marketing.

Additional findings from the consumers surveyed include:

Indian consumers prefer personalized marketing

With respect to personalized marketing, the study highlights that 63% of  Indian consumers prefer personalized marketing and are inclined to purchase from brands that provide relevant content and offers. Loyalty programs executed by brands play a key role in customer acquisition and user experience where offers through email and SMS are the most popular tools being used by the marketers currently.

Consumers expect brands to have engaging digital experiences

The survey also affirmed that regardless of age, gender or social background, consumers have high expectations of digital brand experiences. About 78% of consumers expect companies to have a mobile app (50% regularly keep in touch with their most frequently-purchased brand on their mobile apps), and 68% feel frustrated when a website is not mobile-friendly.

Additional findings from the marketeers surveyed include

Marketeers propose to increase their technology spends to deliver personalized experiences

The study also indicated that in the next 12 months, 60% of  marketeers plan to increase their technology spends. Findings indicate that increased technology investments will help deliver personalized experiences as 92% of marketers in India consider improving personalization capabilities as a top marketing priority.

Marketers to focus on improving ROI of marketing

As improving the ROI of marketing is a principal initiative for 80% of the marketers in India, it’s no surprise that 71% plan to increase spending on advertising and marketing performance measurement solutions.

Click here to read the full report.

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