siliconindia | | July 201819rect sales, they expect to see at least a lead capture, or a social media follow or a newsletter subscription ­ basically some form of permission or feedback.The problem with this expectation is that it tends to undermine the value or impact of consumption alone. It is possible to collect accurate consump-tion data on almost all digital platforms and even if consumer response is not tangible, the campaign still works out, exactly like traditional media. This is useful in driving growth, because con-sumption data can propel a marketer in the right direction to reshape the strat-egy and iterate till conversions happen.Do something cool to get their attention!Contrary to what a lot of people believe, viral content does not always happen by chance. Virality can be planned and strategically manufactured. In order to do that, it is important to understand that we live in an age of information overload, which has led to the drastic shrinking of attention spans. In such a scenario, content quality becomes more important than content distribution. A good distribution strategy ensures that the right people see your content at the right time, which is important. Howev-er, in order to make it viral, the content has to be good enough for these tar-geted early adopters to further endorse it, thereby accelerating organic shar-ing so that, at some point, people just want to consume your content under peer pressure.This formula can be effectively used to bring growth. The way it works is that you don't target sales or conver-sions directly, but create engaging con-tent that gets you the attention you need to make your pitch. The role of digital media is inevitable in this strategy be-cause no other form of media has the ability to generate the kind of virality that digital can. Consumers them-selves can turn into broadcasters in a jiffy, and that's exactly what a growing business needs.Target your niche and per-sonalize your messagingAnother facet of digital media is that the consumption is very personal, es-pecially with phones. Not denying that there are households that share devices among family members, but the nature of the medium is such that it allows personalized consumption at a level un-attainable by any other form of media. The best part is that even audio-visual communication can be served this way.For a growth marketer, this is an in-credibly powerful tool because you can use data to target a niche audience that is relevant to your business and person-alize your communication to crank up the conversion rates.Grow with referrals and start cultivating evangelistsIt has been said that real growth does not come from the story you tell your customers, but the story they tell their friends. Word of mouth is indeed the most powerful driver of growth, be-cause it is impartial and incorrupt-ible. The beauty of digital media is that it not only makes referrals easy and effortless, but also allows for expansive reach.Marketers need to ensure that they provision for referrals via P2P messaging and social media. If a business wishes to incentivize such referrals, digital offers ways to make the gratification instant as well as satiating. To further fuel growth, marketers should also leverage the clout of social media influencers, keeping in mind that the promotion doesn't dilute the authenticity by appearing crummy or obvious. The Indian market boasts of over 460 million internet users and promises continual growth, especially in rural areas. Some experts believe that digital penetration could even surpass television in the next 3 yearsNivesh Jain
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