Digital marketing is probably one of the biggest parts of the marketing spectrum today. The internet and the various websites being some of the biggest platforms for communication, social media marketing is reaching new heights every day. We now live in a day and age where you can be in any part of the world and know what is happening in the other part. Isn’t that awesome?
Though digital marketing is on the high and rise, it comes with a major flaw. That is, the language that is predominantly used in web-based social networking, is English. Though that is good on a global basis, when it comes to India, it is becoming quite problematic. As we all know, India is a country of vast culture and rich heritage. But, that also means that it is a country with a diversified range of languages.
Due to housing a number of languages, the domination of English in digital marketing poses a problem because out of the 74% literates, only 10% can read English. Now, that’s a HUGE margin and digital marketing companies need to make up for it. Google Data shows that 94% development rate has taken place for the utilization of Hindi content. Due to this, worldwide companies have started concentrating on regional languages as a tactic to cover a larger audience.
Why Regional Languages are Important in Digital Marketing?
The significance of regional languages is not going unnoticed at all. Today, Google underpins dialects like Bengali, Hindi, Tamil, Marathi, Gujarati, etc. among various others. A staggering 127 million internet clients devour digital contents in regional languages every day, in India, and global networking platforms have realized this that if they don’t go for regional languages in India, they may very soon lose all significance.
Anyone involved in digital marketing knows how important the target audience is. The only way you can increase the number of your target audience is by posting content of a language the prefer. That is why digital marketing in regional languages has become an important issue in India, since village and sub-urban areas have access to the internet as well now.
Another reason why regional languages are important when it comes to digital content marketing, is because the quantity of digital marketing in regional dialects is very less, compared to the size of its audience. This creates a huge opportunity window for industries and startups, to capture the audience by introducing content in local dialects.
Growth of Hindi Content Consumption
As I mentioned previously, there has been a growth of 94% in Hindi content consumption, as per Google Data. This shows the impact of regional languages, and global companies have kept this fact in mind and are focusing on local dialects as a part of their strategy. An example of this is the shock of Facebook users who witnessed the login page in Hindi script. This was followed by Pinterest launching their Hindi version, allowing Indian users to use the translated Pinterest version.
Higher Response and Engagement Rates by Users
The use of regional languages in digital content will definitely help companies by getting a better rate of user engagements and responses. You can easily measure this with social media responses and advertisements. Now, several brands are targeting their customers on the basis of locations with regional digital content, which is helping them getting a higher reach and reap the benefits of that. It is a given that you cannot reach out to all places with the same language, right?
Newer Internet Users
A significant amount of people in our country use the internet daily, whether it is through their desktops or through their mobile phones. A major part of this internet-using population comprises of people residing in the rural and suburban areas who communicate solely via their local languages. So, you cannot expect them to read social content in English. If you want them as your consumer, you need to reach out to them through their regional language. Thus, to acquire newer and more internet users, you need to utilize regional languages to educate the people of your product or services.
Availability of Regional Content will Boost Internet Growth by 24% in Our Nation
Of the literate 74% population in India, only 10% can read in English while the rest consume content in their vernacular medium. Remaining 66% are literate in their regional languages. According to a latest study conducted by Internet and Mobile Association of India and IMRB International, regional content availability can boost the growth of internet By 24% in our nation.
With more than 70,000 newspapers being printed in India and around 90% are either printed in Hindi or other regional languages, the significance of regional languages cannot be underestimated. Realizing the importance of regional content, mobile app developers in India are also recognizing the need for local app distribution platforms.
Integrate Content Marketing and Social Media
The ultimate goal for you to participate in social media and digital content marketing, is to drive traffic back to your site for you to convert them into potential leads. Without pitching to big brands directly, content marketing looks at developing relevant digital content that creates awareness among people. It has become an important marketing factor for the fund-crunched startups to give competition to the bigger brands. But for that, it is very important for your content to be unique and engaging. After your content is up and running, the final task is to reach your target audience, which is best done with the help of regional languages.
Thus, as you can see, regional languages are equally as important as English. Yes, it is true that a major portion of digital marketing websites are in English, but in order for you to grow your business, you need to reach out to a larger audience. To do that, you need regional languages to tap into their emotions as well. So, go ahead and start posting digital content in regional dialects and your consumer base will be bound to reach newer heights.