Despite that fact, the share of the overall advertising market within the country remains quite small.
Online and mobile marketing in India is taking off at a rapid rate – regardless of the fact that it had a low point from which to start – and this is proving to be quite promising to those who are focused on advertising within the country.
This is also a promising development for companies that rely on online ad revenue for their existence.
According to the national trading head of digital media at the WPP media buying agency, GroupM, whose name is Praseed Prasad, who spoke of mobile marketing in the country, “Mobile advertising in India is the fastest growing among all verticals in the digital advertising space. This is primarily because consumers are spending more time on mobile Internet activities as compared to desktops, subsequently growth in desktop Internet is fast getting saturated.”
The Internet Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) recorded a 29 percent growth in the year that ended on March 31.
That said, as much as the advertising channel is looking highly promising and is growing at a considerable rate, it continues to represent only a small fraction of the total market. It has been estimated that it makes up only about 10 percent of the total ad spending. But its rise is on the way. From 2012 to 2013, there was more than a doubling in the spending on mobile ads.
The IAMAI associate vice president, Nilotpal Chakravarti, was quoted to say that “It is one of the fastest growing channels along with social media. Every brand is looking to have its presence on the mobile platform either through apps or through their mobile site.”
As the mobile marketing channel progresses along its growth in India, it continues to have a small base. Moreover, it is also falling behind the growth that is being experienced in internet and data consumption over smartphones and tablets in the country.
While this may be interpreted as a failing within the mobile marketing industry, to a certain degree, by some, others are viewing this as a tremendous opportunity. They feel that it is clear that the channel is set to skyrocket and they are making sure to stake their claims within the space before it becomes crowded.
Success in advertising over smartphones is beginning to require this vital component.
Although location based marketing may not be the entire issue when it comes to mobile, it is easily proving itself to be the most important factor over this channel, says a new report from Thinknear.
The company specializes in this area and is now claiming that it is vital to advertising success on smartphones.
General Manager Eli Portnoy of Thinknear, a mobile advertising firm that focuses on location based marketing, explained that “The phone is a portable device we carry in our pocket and is a part of what we are doing all day and every day. You have your phone with you when you are commuting, when you are at work, when you are seeing friends, when you go home. It’s ubiquitous. And you use it to interact with your world and what’s important to you.”
That said, Portnoy pointed out that many businesses forget how precise location based marketing can be.
He pointed out that many mobile marketing firms and advertisers forget that smartphones are an exceptionally portable device and that people take them along no matter where they go. This makes it possible for “very precise location capabilities.”
Using the geolocation technology that is built into the majority of smartphones, these days, can give companies the ability to better understand who their main customers actually are and what they typically do. This insight can be invaluable to being able to provide those consumers with just what they want, at the time that it is most relevant to them.
The main issue standing between companies and their ability to actually obtain accurate location data, which they can then use, is the same as the one standing in the way of the use of many other parts of the mobile marketing industry. While the technology is out there, it isn’t always possible to use it to capture the valuable data. Portnoy explained that “Users have to have their GPS on, give the app permission to use their location, have a clear line of sight to a GPS satellite, and so on.”
Therefore, not every impression will provide usable location based marketing data. However, there are ways around it and firms such as Thinknear appear to be able to help to provide strategies that will guide companies and show them the mobile ropes.
