What India Did Online in 2019
More Indians are online than ever before. Here are the top things we spent our time on in 2019 according to a study by Comscore.
We Shopped, We Watched, We Cheered!
The IPL and the Cricket World Cup got nearly every Indian glued to their screen. Which meant streaming apps like Hotstar, etc., won big! They saw a shockingly huge leap in the number of unique visitors during the IPL season.
Even after 2 months of the IPL season, India just couldn’t get enough of cricket. During this time, even Swiggy saw nearly double the number of visitors, than usual. Following the cricket mania and India’s loss at the World Cup, we decided to go in for a fun retail therapy.
It was interesting to witness the trend shifting from sports to shopping. The month of July served Amazon and Flipkart really well, as they saw a huge spike in their sales.
Besides cricket and shopping, India also got really excited during the release of one of the most loved shows, Sacred Games! Which resulted in huge traction on Netflix, during August. The rest of our browsing habits didn’t seem to have changed as such. YouTube and WhatsApp users fairly accessed the apps during different times of the day.
Trendspotting
So what did we notice this year? We really do love distracting our minds more often than ever. There has been a steady increase in the number of viewers and the amount of time we spend on social media, news, and information sources.
The world is evolving and so are our internet habits. We now spend more time engrossed with the rapid and changing news, than on social media. We enjoy the news, even more, when it’s in video format. News entities such as Network 18 and India Today that mainly promote video content, saw a spike in their viewership.
As mentioned earlier, India has a growing appetite for sports. Sports content witnessed an increase in reach, in the total minutes, and a whopping increase in total views. Women too are warming up to sports mainly on their mobiles.
When it comes to researching products, consumers first look towards e-commerce websites. But online buyers were more spontaneous when it came to buying, they comparatively spend less time researching.
The Future is Local
Although it comes as no surprise, Hindi always dominates the prefered language choices on social media. That’s not to say that other local languages are shying away. There has been a steady growth across regional languages.
Audio has been the new and trending way for brands to be heard, due to its multiple benefits. It very easily overcomes the barriers of literacy, attention etc. unlike text and video. It’s a new and clear way for brands to establish a brand voice and identity.
These trends will evolve and change as we do more varied things online. The gaming industry is in its infancy and there is lots of headroom to grow. What do you think India is going to spend its time on in 2020 and beyond. Let us know in the comments below.
