Digital marketing has undergone a massive change over the last couple of years. With the onset of video as content, consumers are drifting away from traditional sources of media to easily accessible digital mediums. More and more brands are optimising advertising and marketing campaigns to reach consumers anywhere in the world, thanks to smartphones becoming a ubiquitous device of content consumption. Sahil Chopra, Founder and CEO, iCubesWire, speaks more about this trend and its future prospects, in a tete-a-tete with Ramesh Kumar Raja. Interestingly, iCubesWire is a leading digital marketing agency in India offering 360° concepts to over 250+ clients across ecommerce, automobile, technology, finance, travel, hospitality and more. The company has carved a niche for itself in the digital marketing space and has earmarked $3 million into its Digital Innovation Fund. Excerpts:
How do you look at the trend of digital marketing in the age of video?
Video marketing has undoubtedly become a crucial component of any winning digital marketing strategy and this isn’t changing any time soon. More and more businesses have begun relying on videos to educate their target audience and provide support through explainer videos. Videos are proving to be efficient in creating recall in the minds of consumers, given their compelling nature. With the number of influencer videos increasing every second, videos will soon dominate digital marketing.
What is the size of digital marketing industry in India?
The digital marketing industry in India has seen a striking boom from 47 billion Indian rupees in the financial year 2015 to around 199 billion Indian rupees in the financial year 2020. The market is predicted to jump up to 539 billion rupees by the financial year 2024.
Can we foresee a major push for digital marketing in the post-Covid era?
Yes. The pandemic, in a way, cornered brands into switching their business from offline to online and the trend will continue even in the post-Covid era. Brands are aggressively embracing digital marketing practices to enjoy the unparalleled reach it offers. Companies are rethinking consumer journeys from a fresh perspective and are transitioning to digital channels to meet the new market needs.
With smartphones becoming a ubiquitous device of content consumption, can we call it the beginning of a new era of content marketing?
Content marketing has seen a lot of changes over the last few years. Consumers are drifting away from traditional sources of media to easily accessible digital mediums. More and more brands are optimising advertising and marketing campaigns to reach consumers anywhere in the world. This shift has led to the rising demand for more personalized content for audiences which will increase the relevance of ad and marketing campaigns and, in turn, reach more consumers. It is the era of tailored-content marketing.
What’s your opinion about the social media platforms that have emerged as major influencers for a brand to grab more eyeballs?
Social media platforms have always been at the forefront of catching the attention of the target audience, but the ways are changing gradually. For example, Instagram harbours a growing community of influencers who have a large number of followers. Brands now actively partner up with influencers to create content that interests and gets more engagement.
| “Social media platforms have always been at the forefront of catching the attention of the target audience, but the ways are changing gradually. For example, Instagram harbours a growing community of influencers who have a large number of followers. Brands now actively partner up with influencers to create content that interests and gets more engagement” |
Among Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linkedin, which is more productive for a brand to get recognized?
Each platform has been designed differently and altogether serves a different purpose. To gauge which platform will work the best for a brand depends on multiple factors. From the demographic groups you wish to target to the type of your business, different platforms require different content strategies for delivering the result you seek. For example, conversational and casual posts are appropriate for Facebook but LinkedIn will have content around business updates and relevant insights.
With people switching to Signal and Telegram, what role digital marketing will play in message marketing?
With over 1.5 billion active users, there is no concrete evidence that WhatsApp may observe a complete departure. Whatsapp has now become a great platform to pursue business communication with potential customers and existing customers. Apps like Signal and Telegram will soon catch up with the same marketing strategy and create a business-friendly environment to carry out information exchange and more.
Short video platforms too are leveraging the trend of video marketing. Do they hold the future of brand visibility?
We share videos at twice the rate as compared to other forms of content. Brands have taken over social media with 30 seconds, short videos emphasising DIY’s, explainer videos, informative videos and how to’s. A short video’s engagement ratio, when compared to a two-minute video, is more and establishes the trust factor in the consumer. With Reels on a roll, it’d be safe to say that short videos are the future of storytelling.
Do artificial intelligence and machine learning have any role to play in video marketing?
AI and ML play a vital role in video marketing from the very start. Thanks to AI-led data analytics, video developers know beforehand what kind of content will be appreciated in the market. Moreover, Artificial Intelligence creates scope for personalised marketing. Despite being in its nascent stage, personalised marketing results in enhanced engagement. AI can monitor your social media platforms effectively and collect data that further helps you to identify what works for you on digital.
Influencer marketing is growing massively day by day; however, content is being compromised if we look at the quality of posts. Your comment please.
Quality will win over quantity on any given day. Brands need to focus more on quality content and select influencers who align with their brand philosophy. We must always remember engaging content is the one that educates and entertains and is distributed on the right social media platform.
What are the challenges and changes we are going to see after the recent curbs (announced by the government) on social media and OTT platforms?
Some kind of moderation on social media was the need of the hour and we might just see more responsible behaviour over social media platforms. However, this change might come at the expense of creative freedom. OTT platforms will need to curate content, keeping in mind the diversity of India and respecting the sentiments of different communities.
