Regional Newspapers Are Dying; This Is Your Chance
The print industry’s struggles during the lockdown are a chance for the right businesses to effectively build relationships with customers in regional India.
Indian papers have survived the Internet, and they have survived the Jio Revolution, but they might not be able to survive the coronavirus. A 21-day nationwide lockdown, which might be extended, has struck fear into the hearts of the print barons.
This crisis is the perfect storm of misfortune for them. Due to the direct impact on the lives of every single individual in the country, daily (and sometimes hourly) updates on Covid-19 are popular. However, due to the same lockdown, newspapers can no longer be delivered to their traditional audience base.
Unlike any other time in our short history, everyone in the country wants updates on the same issue as soon as they can get them. And, for the first time since Independence, the Indian print barons no longer control distribution and flow of this information.
So, how can you leverage this fundamental market change?
What Are Newspapers To Regional Audiences?
Before understanding what you can do with this new opportunity, what market gap are you filling?
Unlike the Tier-I stereotype of regional populations, citizens in Tier-II, Tier-III and Tier-IV towns do not believe the messages they so happily forward on WhatsApp. In fact, they struggle to believe anything online that they can’t verify offline.
For example, during one of our user research weeks at Lokal, we talked to a couple of super users in Tiruppur who had been behaving a little oddly. We had an affiliate program with a couple of e-commerce websites to sell electronic devices, and particularly mobile phones.
The users had taken it upon themselves to vehemently comment “fake news!” on almost every one of the articles promoting an e-commerce sale. Bemused, we asked them why they were so certain that we were lying to them.
It turns out, they had gone to their local electronic stores and asked to purchase phones at the prices mentioned on the Lokal app. As is to be expected, the store owner was incredulous and claimed that those prices would bankrupt him.
Clearly, Lokal was peddling fake news! The users claiming fake news were just providing a valuable service. So, why not just leave the app, we asked? Lokal still provided truthful news most of the time, and they assumed this was just a mistake.
That is essentially the service that a smart digital marketer should be capitalising on right now. With the temporary blockade on newspapers, there is no source on verified offline news. There is no publisher or journalist that they can hold accountable for fake news.
All their news must come from their smartphones now. While basic information such as hyperlocal Covid-19 tracking is already in place — pioneered at Lokal over a week ago! — there is a content marketing opportunity to not just acquire but retain regional users like never before.
Digital Companies Are A Fascination, Not A Habit
Audiences in Tier-III and Tier-IV India love the Internet, perhaps more than we do. It is a window into a series of different worlds that many of them will never visit in person.
As such, regional audiences are happy to try almost anything online (within their budget). Market segmentation does not exist, because the market is busy exploring every app, every online product and digital service it can. However, regional audiences have not yet built digital habits.
They are happy to use OLX to discover new phones and good prices, but they still purchase the phones at offline stores. They are happy to use Zomato to check restaurant prices, but they still call the restaurant to see if it open. They are happy to use WhatsApp to spread news, but they go to newspapers to learn if the news is true.
Offline authorities are clearly still important. Newspapers, especially so. They provide verified information on everything from news, to job opportunities, to political developments, to shopping coupons from local stores. Suddenly, all of these various roles have to be filled online.
This is the opportunity. It might not be obvious right now, but it is a marketing practice that is a couple of decades old but just has not been popularised in India because of the continued growth of the print industry.
Content marketing is about weaving stories around your brand that help audiences connect with you on an emotional level. As audiences in Tier-III and Tier-IV India strive to replace the offline authority that was the local newspaper, every consumer-facing business in the region has an opportunity.
You may not be able to build ventilators, train doctors or buy medical equipment, but you can provide information. You can build a bond with your target audiences. You can prime the market for your product or service, when the economic severity of the lockdown is eased.
Are you unsure of how to build an effective content marketing campaign targetting Tier-II, Tier-III & Tier-IV India? Don’t worry, I will be writing about that very topic next week!
If you can’t wait that long, please reach out to me at tarutr@getlokalapp.com, or at malhotratarutr@gmail.com. You can also DM me on my LinkedIn page or my Twitter profile. I would love to talk to each and every one of you personally!
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