High Time for FMCG Brands to Occupy Mobile Screen Space

Indian FMCG sector has reached that stage in its lifecycle where it is poised for an exponential growth and there are clear indicators for this scenario in the market. The income levels of the working class and the rural population has been increasing at a phenomenal rate in the last few years.

There is a market segment out there waiting to be captured for all kinds of consumer goods. As per report of India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), about two third of the revenue from FMCG sector is generated from urban market, whereas only one-third is from the rural population. This is quite in contrast to the urban rural demographic profile according to which the majority of the Indian population is living in rural areas. Of course, there is an issue of the income-driven demand, or rather lack of it in rural areas, but the increasing income level in rural areas is also translating slowly and slowly into brand consciousness among rural masses.

The single biggest reason, however, for the projected upswing of the market in FMCG sector is the digital revolution taking place in India at phenomenal speed. India stands at the threshold of rapid growth in Internet usage and e-commerce activity. According to a study by Internet and Mobile Association of India and IMRB International, India has already surpassed the US market to become the second largest base of internet users in the world after China. The study also indicates that the online penetration here could reach well over 50 percent by the year 2020.

The growing demand can be encashed by manipulating technology. FMCG sales were traditionally driven through retail outlets with a market driving or push strategy by local vendors. Marketing of the product was usually done on radio, TV or daily newspapers. The Internet boom signaled a paradigm shift from retail stores to websites. Brands improved their visibility by enhancing their web presence.

The digital revolution through mobile phones or smart phones is bringing about yet another revolutionary change, which has not so far been well captured by FMCG market players. It is surprising to note that despite the huge number of mobile phone users in India, the e-commerce market is a very small percentage of the total market size in FMCG segment.

Mobile phones could offer FMCG companies the chance to create greater shopper loyalty because of ease of purchasing experience. However, to achieve any significant success on this front, FMCG brands need to first of all reinvent or rewrite their relationship with shoppers. They have to spend less time thinking about how to influence a single purchase decision and think more about what better ways they could devise to connect with individual shoppers of different demographic profile on an ongoing basis.

Market experts believe that to make you mobile app a hit it is essential to make it relevant and provide a good user experience. Brands while creating an app must focus on how their prospective customers will like to interact with them. By simply replicating their existing web presence and transporting that concept to mobile screens will not serve the purpose. Companies need to invest in having the right kind of features as well as functionalities on their apps to help their brands evolve and grow.

In the coming years, rural population of India will be the main customer base driving the growth of FMCG Sector. App in all Indian languages by Anant Computing Platform is a brilliant concept to interact with customers with the idea to speak with them in a language that is understood by them. AppWallet feature allows companies to push their campaigns through mobile apps downloaded by the customers. With an automatic update feature, the customer has the information about the latest and most updated product launched by businesses right at their fingertips.