Digi Marketing To Digi Transformation

The Indian education sector -- private and public -- is growing, and being up scaled by the Government and the Universities all over India. The education sector is also as we know largely characterised by the youth, and millenniums. We may call it as the high potential digi-generation. Reading, watching, downloading, and greatly interactive, within the overall organisation, scope and expansion of the digital media and its growth in India today. 

The exchange4media.com, as part of the Business World Group, recently organised a one-day Conference in Mumbai on the theme of Digi Marketing and its Transformation, in all forms, shape and size today and in the next few years. Digital media so far being a small player of Rs. 19,800 crores (roughly 5% of all advertising expenditure) in 2018, is ready to becoming the third largest medium at Rs. 24,900 crores, and growing at 31%, by 2021, according to the exchange4media.com and Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) Digital Report released at the conference in Mumbai.

At the release, at a panel discussion preceding, Mr. Rajan Anandan, Vice President, South East Asia and India, along with Mr Vivek Bhargava, CEO, DAN Performance Group outlined the growth of the Digi Media in respect of facts and figures from the research, and the reasons and areas of the expected growth and the challenges offered. 

They, two on the panel, in their discussion attributed this growth and development to a chain of  “3 Vs” in the nature, scope and use of the digital media, namely – VIDEO, VOICE AND VERNACULAR. They went on to list and explain the HOW of this in some detail:

1. Cost of devices coming down! Taking smart phones as an instance. There are plenty of brands and the prices have really come down drastically. Making for their availability and usage being so easy, thus leading to the benefits being refered to in the discussions.
2. Cost of data has come down! With automation – hardware and software -- and its predominant usage. The Big Data is a case in point, whatever the field and area of activity in business and industry.
3. Voice and Voice data is yet another factor. What with the internet of things (IOT), and user numbers multiplying rapidly. All adding up to coverage, reach and depth in user-ship for varied purposes – communication and entertainment included!
4. Video – the Digi mode! Online and offline. Video is the order of the day, in most professional areas today. The scale and opportunity is still huge and vast. 
5. The newest is Voice! All of us now know about the Google speakers! It’s an area worth knowing and taking note of and studying. To grow and grow in the coming days for marketing, communications, entertainment, and the rest of many other areas of use within our current technology revolution. It will be have to be as they say “action focused” i.e. voice leading to and followed by desired action.
6. Vernacular – in the net, video, voice and everything! In India vernacular communications and working in local languages is of utmost importance, and so it is in digital media. Like google.com being in languages. In language/vernacular rendition of information, data, entertainment, communication lies the future of digital media in India, and requires utmost attention and great amount of investment. It is beginning to happen, and will have to be provided a massive focus henceforth and in the near future. We all need to be geared up for it!

In all this, the education sector becomes the cradle. The youth have to be aware and prepared. They need to be formally trained and build on their available personal and natural abilities and capabilities. Thereby leading to their personal and career growth and success, in India and in the global arena, where India is now making its presence felt and be accepted.

Sushil Bahl

BW Reporters Sushil Bahl is a corporate professional, author and academician with over 35 years experience in communications industry, B-School academics, and comment writing. He is currently editorial lead in BW Businessworld.