Co-existence is the way ahead: IMC 2015

The two-day Indian Magazine Congress concluded on 24 February at Hyatt Regency, Chennai. The ninth edition of the conference looked was themed as 'Magazines: 2X’ – Engage. Connect. Work.

28 Feb 2015 | 1778 Views | By PrintWeek India

The good news is: magazines ar predicted grow at a higher rate, as much as by 10%, exceeding the 6% growth in 2014. However, engaging the readers with cross media content holds the key to this growth.

Nupur Sharma, head marketing – brand strategy, advertising and digital, Cisco, at a panel ‘Monetising Beyond Print’, said, "To deliver a 360-degree experience to the customer, four elements are essential: (brand) awareness, revenues, experiences and engagement."

"Digital medium will drive engagement and with this advantage co-existence is the only way ahead."

The ecosystem has changed drastically over the last decade but to provide services and solutions that will ‘best suit the audience‘ was absolutely necessary, noted Suresh Ramakrishnan, publishing director, Haymarket India.

Ramakrishnan said profitability in a B2B scenario was not as high as it is in a B2C but the need to re-invent, scale and invest heavily depending on the market ‘cannot be over-emphasised‘.

Citing the example of an in-depth survey done for an MNC, he said customers seek free access when the same survey results are available on the web. But this should not deter those in the B2B space from using digital media, he said. With examples of 360-degree solutions encompassing exhibitions and the like, he made the case for co-existence of print and digital alongside other avenues.

Jim Bilton, MD, Wessenden Marketing, in his presentation on ‘Publishing in the Digital Whirlpool – The drivers of change in the Indian and global market‘, noted that in a scenario of ‘everything, every time, anywhere, anytime’, the three patterns of change constituting the digital flow had to be put in perspective.

According to Bilton, a publisher's journey can be described as 'print only’ (legacy time), ‘print plus’ (bolt-on period) and ‘digital first’ (re-build period).

Every year, the congress brings together the entire magazine publishing fraternity, including magazine publishers, policy makers, media owners, marketers, media planners and buyers, along with researchers and industry analysts under one roof.

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE CONGRESS

1. The magazine publishing business isn’t centered around print anymore. It’s magazine +. With an increasing focus on digital and event consumption.

2. We need to think Millennial. That’s the new generation (those born after 1980). This audience cluster are more prone to paying a premium for authentic, expert content.

3. Audiences dictate the content distribution. Go where the audiences are. Where are they? They are on Mobile, Social, Online, Email, Print, Live Events.

4. Content is the trump card. The more we invest in generating expert, curated content, the more we will attract audiences.

5. The ‘Brand’ plays a key role in the consumer interaction and engagement. Authenticity is key.

6. We live in an ‘Attention Economy’, dominated by mobile, social and visual. Mobile and Social point to consumption of bite sized content. Visual points to the departure from text to visual. As consumers today, we will watch first and read later.

7. Content consumption culture has also been redefined from months to moments to micro-moments. It is multi-device and personalized. A movement towards delivering round the clock content basis the hourly segmentation of the consumer’s life is also being witnessed. From the time he/she wakes up till the time they retire at night. Brands need to adapt to this to ensure delivery.

8. Key advertising trends in print and digital point towards the increasing reliance on native advertising/advertiser content/branded content. Care has to be taken to label these as such. Consumers are smart to realise if they are being ‘sold’ something. Programmatic advertising will be the dominant method.

9. Diversifying revenue streams the mandate now. No longer a requirement.

10. Organisations have to re-structure their DNA to meet the demands of the digital consumer.

Co-existence is the way ahead: IMC 2015

Follow us