462 million Indians are online, almost 35% of the country’s population. That’s massive! It means that India has the second largest online population in the world, and the country still has a long way to go in terms of development.
This makes India a very attractive destination for businesses wanting to expand internationally, but the country has a unique set of quirks that you need to understand in order to succeed.
Here are three things you need to be aware of if you want to succeed at digital marketing in India.
1. Social media
If you are targeting India, then you need to make sure you have a presence on social media. This is because the medium is very popular, with the average Indian spending 1 to 2 hours on social media every day. The most popular networks are Facebook and YouTube. The top types of content that Indians like to consume on social media are video, funny content, news and educational content.
2. Ecommerce
Ecommerce in India is growing in popularity. Currently, 60 million Indians buy online, with this figure set to rise to 175 million by 2020. The most popular ecommerce platforms are Flipkart, Alibaba and Amazon India and the most commonly purchased items are clothing, electronics and beauty products. The vast majority of Indians prefer to pay cash-on-delivery, but a growing proportion are becoming comfortable with online payments. If you are considering selling in India, then you should be aware that Indians are easily put off by high delivery fees and long delivery times.
3. Mobile
More than 79% of Indians accessing the internet do so through mobile, 20% ahead of the global average, meaning that your Indian website needs to be optimised for mobile. The apps market is facing some struggles in the country. App retention is a big issue; initial promotions tend to work well in persuading people to download apps, but not in engaging users.
I hope this has given you a useful introduction to digital marketing in India. For more in-depth information, download our free guide below.

Anna Giulia Novero

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Hi Anna, All the 3 points make sense but I feel Local SEO should make it to the list as a separate point for the year 2018.