Digital marketing as an effective tool for advertising in India: A critical review

Abstract

Digital marketing is a very promising advertising tool in the developed nations where internet penetration is almost as deep as up to 80% of the population size. However, in developing economies and especially in case of India, the use of digital marketing as an effective tool for advertising needs to be examined in detail. The dynamics of the Indian market are quite different and challenging at the same time, due to a fairly low internet penetration as compared to the total population size, in addition to parameters like poverty and illiteracy which have a major impact on how businesses implement their marketing spends effectively to drive business growth. The literature review takes into account the current advertising practices in India, the reasons for their success and popularity. The current media consumption of the Indian population, and their readiness to embrace digital marketing as a preferred source over traditional medium. The data gathered reveals very interesting but critical facts about Indian consumers.

While internet penetration and digital media use and consumption is definitely on a steady rise, the Indian consumer is still very traditional in the way they consume media and make their buying decisions. The touch and feel phenomenon is still a very important part of the whole shopping experience and a crucial factor for making a purchase. The cash on delivery model has definitely made shopping from the digital marketplace and e-tailers fairly popular, however, a large part of the Indian population is yet not very savvy or confident about using digital payments and cash transactions still remain the preferred choice of payments amongst most including a large part of the educated class in the higher age bracket. This paper uses secondary data from books, research papers, reliable websites, and marketing journals to establish facts and draw conclusions.

The conclusions of this study reveal that while digital marketing is definitely a very promising tool for effective marketing and advertising, and its popularity is gaining momentum, its applicability in the Indian market given the peculiar characteristics and traditional mindset of the Indian consumers, is still not at its complete potential. The Indian market will need a significant amount of time to embrace digital media and make it their preferred choice for reaching consumers for brand promotion and business growth. For any business to strive for growth and increase in revenue through sales, successful marketing, and advertising would have to rely on a well-thought marketing and media mix that involves the use of both the traditional and digital media based on the type of business, industry, and target consumer base.