Mygate aims to generate over Rs 160 crore from advertising in FY25

Delhi: Founded in 2016 by Vijay Arisetty, Abhishek Kumar, and Shreyans Daga as a tech company specialising in community management and security solutions, Mygate ventured into advertising in 2021 amid the pandemic. Fast forward to 2024, and the company is now poised to generate over Rs 160 crore in ad revenue this fiscal year.

During an interview with BestMediaInfo.com, Rohit Jindal, Chief Business Officer at Mygate, said that the platform derives 60–65% of its revenue from advertising. 

In FY24, the company recorded revenue exceeding Rs 100 crore, marking a growth of around 35% compared to the Rs 77 crore it posted in the previous fiscal year.

Last year, Mygate made Rs 65 crore from ads, added Jindal.

For the record, the primary revenue drivers for Mygate include subscriptions from Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) and advertising partnerships with brands that advertise on the platform to reach over 4 million families through the Mygate app.

Jindal further revealed that monetising through ads wasn't initially part of the platform's plan. The first ad on the platform was inbound and started offering ads driven by brands' increasing demand to reach the affluent audience residing in gated communities.

He explained, “During the e-commerce boom, gated communities experienced a surge in footfalls from delivery personnel. This influx highlighted the need for a solution to authenticate people entering societies, leading to the launch of Mygate in 2016.”

Mygate has established partnerships with various e-commerce players to create a seamless and secure delivery experience for its users. 

He continued, stating that advertising initiatives began when brands observed increased app usage during the pandemic-induced lockdown, coupled with the absence of outdoor advertising opportunities.

“Many brand executives reside in premium gated communities and utilise the app daily. Recognising its potential, they approached us to leverage it as a marketing medium. Swiggy, in collaboration with its media agency Havas Media, was the first brand to approach us to advertise its then-new service, Swiggy Instamart,” added Jindal.

Over time, Mygate has collaborated with numerous brands, including Amazon, Myntra, Asian Paints, H&M, Ikea, Tanishq, Swiggy, HUL, Samsung, and others.

Mygate enables brands to target a premium audience residing in more than 25,000 societies across 27 cities in India. The app also minimises ad expenditure spillage and maximises ROI since its users are approved community members, early adopters of new products and services, and decision-makers.

Throwing more light on Mygate’s plan to increase its community base on the platform so that brands can target a larger audience, Jindal said, “We aim to double our communities to 50,000 in two years and over one lakh in the next five years. 

Currently, there are approximately 1.5 lakh gated communities in India, of which Mygate is present in around 25%.

Jindal shared that not just digital ads, but the platform also offers brands offline activation offerings. 

“We have an in-house creative team that assists brands in creating customised content that our users prefer while adhering to the brand guidelines,” added Jindal.

However, not every brand can advertise on Mygate. "The first question we ask ourselves and the advertiser is what is so special about your offer for our users, and accordingly, we decide whether to accept the ads. The day we introduced ads on Mygate, we decided not to bombard our users with ads. Along with that, the brand has to be relevant for our community," commented Jindal.

Also, this is one of the reasons why Mygate doesn’t incorporate programmatic advertising on the platform. “We want to maintain full control over the ads that appear on our platform. Our users are primarily families, so we need to ensure that the content on Mygate is appropriate. By carefully selecting and onboarding relevant brands and offering various promo and discount codes, we ensure maximum value for our users,” he said.

When asked if advertising on Mygate is expensive, Jindal answered, “The platform helps brands target premium audiences sharply and in the most effective manner. Hence, I wouldn’t call it expensive.”

Having said that, even with the first-party data in hand, the platform ensures full user privacy and doesn’t allow user-level targeting.

Ad rates on Mygate differ based on the premiumness of the societies and their pin codes.

Jindal added, “Advertising happens based on impressions. We avoid bulk deals because we want our consumers to learn about different brand deals. Therefore, we don’t allocate all ad inventories to a single advertiser. Currently, we have a large portfolio of 2,800 brands advertising with us.”

In terms of new offerings for advertisers, Mygate has introduced a social feed similar to Instagram and Facebook in which brands can show large video banner ads. 

Most recently, Mygate introduced its new corporate brand identity as “The Living Experience Tech Company” and unveiled a new logo. It offers various services, such as discovering local service providers, accessing an exclusive classifieds platform, availing a range of home services, and facilitating property purchases.

According to news reports, Mygate is planning for an IPO in the next three years and already facilitates society maintenance payments of over Rs 3,000 crore every year.