India’s Digital Consumers Race to Win The Next Billion Intensifies

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The 20,000 Foot View:  A large portion of the globe’s next one billion digital consumers are going to come online in India. These consumers are characterised by swift adoption of digital spending habits, having leapfrogged PCs and experiencing the internet for the first time via mobile phones. The leaders of this shift to the online world are messaging app users, music streamers and video subscribers – collectively representing the most sophisticated consumer bases in India. They spend a large proportion of their time with digital content – a considerable amount of these consumers have three or more digital subscriptions to content. Their relationship with advertising is complex and nuanced. They are adept at avoiding unwanted messaging and, conversely, even more proactive in seeking the messages from brands that they want to hear. Crucially, when presented with the right digital purchase opportunity, a majority of video subscribers in India will spend digital cash. 

Key Findings

• Amidst a climate of ad skipping, monetising India’s consumers via messaging apps will become critically important
       of Indian consumers switch their attention away from TV ads, rising to        of messaging app users,        of music streamers and        of video subscribers         of Indian messaging app users skip ads online compared to the weighted average of       
• Well targeted, hyper-local adverts deployed via music streaming services are an alternative way to reach Indian consumers that use ad blockers
       of Indian video subscribers use desktop ad blockers compared to the weighted average of               of Indian messaging app users use mobile ad blockers compared to the weighted average of       
• Mobile ads that don’t include purchase opportunities will fail to exploit the growing appetite for consumer goods in India 
• Indian consumers display significant propensity to purchase in a mobile context;        of video subscribers pay to download apps or make in-app purchases
       of Indian messaging app users pay attention to relevant advertising, compared to the weighted average of       
• Indian video subscribers are        times more likely to have three or more digital subscriptions, creating targeting opportunities and challenges for digital brands

Companies and brands mentioned in this report: Eros, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, FlipKart, Google, Hike, Paytm, Reliance, Spotify, Tez, WeChat