Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors, talks about the future of content in the digital era and how 4G connectivity will change content creation and consumption in the coming years
BY ALIEFYA VAHANVATY
How do you see the nature of content creation and consumption online changing over the next five years?
With the introduction of 4G connectivity services, the overall digital penetration across India is set to increase manifold. The benefits of 4G connectivity are many – be it better connectivity, download speeds, seamless buffering with fewer interruptions, improved quality of audio and visuals with reduced lag, and better real-time streaming experiences. Collectively, these benefits are set to enhance the digital experience for viewers, thereby building on the multi-screen experience making it more favourable. As such, there could be a spike in content being created for consumption across different platforms reaching out to viewers at varied touch points.
Is short-form content like 24 a more attractive option for digital audiences rather than long format Balika Vadhu kind of soaps, which find greater traction on TV?
The attention span of Indian viewers tapping digital mediums at the moment is relatively short, translating into visible affinity towards certain formats and characters. It can probably be attributed to low Internet penetration and bandwidth availability that viewers are likely to consume finite series over longformat shows.
You are a very active user of social and digital media – which platform(s) do you think will emerge strong and be the future of content?
More than platforms, it will be the superiority and variety in content that will help to drive viewership. Over the past few years, there has been a proliferation in the number of hand-held devices and/or smartphones which are present in every household. The steady rise in the number of devices available at a consumer’s disposal along with their penetration will prove to be a major driving force to deepen engagement with the second-screen.
What would be your tips for a winning digital content strategy that will fly in the future?
The key is to keep content at the core of every strategy being designed or developed for viewer engagement. Any broadcaster developing a strategy needs to delve deep to gain consumer insight into what people would like to watch and what people like to share. The advantage that the digital medium offers is the use of analytics, which provide an understanding of consumer likes and dislikes in real-time, giving a brand the opportunity to tweak their strategy for a winning proposition.
Creativity or analytics – which do you think would best help the content creator get ahead?
Creativity is and will always need to be at the core of the business. Analytics is an important tool that empowers the creative team to better understand the nuances of consumer behaviour, and customize and curate the content accordingly.
What do you think are some of the biggest mistakes made in the area of marketing digital content?
The biggest mistake the marketers are making is by joining the bandwagon of monetization without clarity at a time when their strategies are highly dependent on valuation. Another key folly is that while every brand is looking to venture into digital marketing, they are still not considering this field as a mainstream business. Due to this oversight, they are not taking the big bets and engaging in the risks that digital content creation and management requires of its stakeholders.
The large social media platforms that increasingly dominate our digital lives are making subtle moves to be the deliverer of content, not just signpost it and direct us to the publisher’s domain.
What’s your take on this? Are you happy about this trend or worried that it will mean you don’t own or control the delivery of your content?
In my opinion, this trend is changing and will continue to evolve in the coming years. In recent years, there has been a drastic increase in the number of content owners and broadcasters. This has seen every media outlet take complete charge of the content they have created and launching newer digital platforms to showcase their exclusivity and innovativeness. Social media will continue to play an important role in promoting and marketing the specially curated products and programmes, but the primary content will reside within the core business of the broadcaster available on their mainstream platforms.
