Reach and frequency will always remain the core elements of media: Vishal Chinchankar 

Vishal Chinchankar, CEO, Madison Digital & Madison Alpha on the changing landscape of the Indian Advertising & Marketing industry. 

Digital acceleration in the last two years has been unprecedented. The ‘always on’ consumers, need ‘always on’ platforms where communication is transparent and precise. 

In Social Samosa & Quora’s series, Advertising and Marketing Thought Leaders, Vishal Chinchankar, CEO, Madison Digital & Madison Alpha talks about the changing landscape of the Indian Advertising & Marketing industry. 

Chinchankar shares how always-on platforms such as Quora work for various brands and the roles the platform plays in engaging with high-intent audiences. He further speaks about changing consumer behaviour, media trends, and more.   

Edited Excerpts: 

With the changing consumer behaviour, any tips on what brands & agencies need to keep in mind before creating a media blueprint?

The next set of internet users will be those who will be exposed to the internet for the first time on a smartphone. Thus communicating the message on a 6-inch screen is going to be the key.

The new-age beauty and skincare industry has been built almost entirely on the back of influencers, the new-age celebrities.

Furthermore, brands need to invest in 'data clean rooms' to prepare for a cookieless future. It is also vital that they focus on building an end to end user journey - from awareness to sales - in order to gather a single view of each user.

While the penetration of digital marketing is way higher than it was 2 years ago - brands still tend to stick to the basics. Any tips on how brands can leverage platforms such as Quora to reach the consumers directly?

Reach and frequency will always remain the core elements of media. Even if the focus of media is currently on conversion, we still need to keep an eye on reach and frequency. Optimising only on lower funnels might lead to short-term gains, but the brand will lose in the long run.

For high intent platforms like Quora, one should take advantage of these platforms to reach lower hanging users. This will guarantee better conversions. Then, extend the funnel to grow the brand.

In terms of social media marketing, what kind of success have you seen on platforms such as Quora? 

Platforms like Quora are an ‘always on’ medium for a lot of our brands. They are excellent and highly effective in addressing high intent users, but they also help in building relevancy among the correct set of users.

What are some of the key media & marketing trends seen in the Indian context?

Is video on new platforms the next new frontier?

• The big growth in Indian digital marketing will come from regional markets. A testament to this change is the growth of homegrown short video apps. Even large players like YouTube and Amazon are seeing their growth driven by regional markets. According to the most recent FICCI report, by 2025, 50%+ of OTT viewing time would be spent watching regional content.

• Additionally, DMPs and DSPs have evolved, helping brands reach consumers with hyper-personalised communication. However, given data privacy concerns that are raising eyebrows, there is a rush towards creating a technology that allows marketers to view their customers while not compromising on the user's privacy.

• Many predicted that the OTT story would slow down after the pandemic. But in reality, we have seen a drastic shift in user behaviour. While OTTs continue to grow, acquiring subscribers remains their biggest challenge. In order to scale, OTTs must find a balance between their SVOD and AVOD offerings.

• As of 2021, the Indian influencer marketing industry was worth INR 9 billion. Over the next five years, it is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 25%, reaching INR 22 billion.

•  When it comes to connected TVs, the market for Connect TVs grew by 40% last year. As per MediaSmart's report, in India, connected TV is watched daily for an average of 2 hours by each user. By comparison, it's equivalent to approximately 3+ hours on linear TV, which, in my opinion, is a sign that it is a big growth opportunity waiting to be leveraged.

Also Read: Jai Lala, Zenith Media on the evolving app economy & opportunities to reach the digital-first consumer 

As consumers get more aware & digital-savvy, the power of intent plays an even bigger role. As a marketing veteran, what is your opinion on the power of intent & how can it be used to drive full-funnel objectives?

We can very effectively use the high intent users to build a brand using a 3-step approach – Isolate, Expand, Target

A) Isolate:

Digital helps us identify the high intent users. But if we only focus on them, the pool will dry up soon. Thus, the brand may become a victim of preaching within an echo chamber.

B) Expand:

With digital, we have the unique opportunity to build on the users' interests and expand them based on multiple data strategies.

C) Target:

Now, we can target these users and build the brand more effectively than relying on a spray-and-pray approach.