"Indian tech companies need to get more out of marketing": Prayag Study

Oct. 6, 2008 - PRLog -- Indian IT and ITeS companies look at marketing mainly as a sales enabler, points out the 2008 Marketing Practices Study that was released on Sep 15, 2008 by Bangalore - based Prayag Consulting.
In other words, tech companies spend most of their marketing focus (figures) on acquiring new customers, and promoting new products. In the process of viewing marketing mainly as a sales enabler, they are also in the danger of ignoring other areas, which could lead to an adverse long term impact.
According to the study, which is in its fourth year, IT firms across the spectrum see marketing as being primarily important for customer acquisition - 87% of firms surveyed said that this was their top priority. This represents a significant jump from the data points of the 2006 study - when only 55% said that new customer acquisition was the main focus of their marketing efforts. While some of this can be explained by the tough business environment, and hence need to augment business acquisition initiatives, the lack of focus on other areas of marketing could have long term impact.
The study also notes that larger IT firms felt that they lost out from not having a differentiated market/brand image - this was the No.1 challenge listed by large companies. "We clearly see this as a corollary of the overwhelming focus on customer acquisition," says Sudha Kumar, CEO Prayag Consulting. "While attracting new customers is a very important business imperative for companies in a growth market, not paying enough attention to your brand could begin to hurt, especially as these customers become bigger. Some of our largest players have realized it and responded through campaigns such as "Win in a Flat World" by Infosys, and "Experience Certainty" by TCS", she says.
Significantly, a large number of participants reported direct correlation of marketing activities and business returns. On an average, sales impact of marketing activities was pegged as between 15% and 30%; other companies also reported reduction in sales cycles since the time they launched sustained marketing activities. "Given the direct translation into P & L benefits reported by many participants, companies may need to look more closely at budgetary concerns expressed by their marketing teams as well as give greater emphasis to the marketing function," points out Kumar. Lack of sufficient emphasis on the marketing function was another challenge reported by most mid-size and large players that participated in the study.
On-line and Internet-based marketing efforts continued to make headway and Prayag reports that the gap between the use of on-line and off-line tools is narrowing. There was a high level of implementation of tools such as Google ad-words, Search Engine Marketing, e-mail marketing, web tracking and online advertising among all study participants.

MBP Quick Facts
•   Only market study that tracks and measures impact of marketing practices of IT/ITES companies in India
•   Analyses directions in which spend and marketing focus of IT/ITES companies are heading
•   Spotlights impact of marketing activities on P&L
•   Highlights marketing best practices of these companies
•   2008 study covered 70+ companies, with revenues ranging from less than US $ 10 million to more than US $ 1 billion. The distribution of these companies reflects the structure of the Indian IT industry

About Prayag

Prayag provides comprehensive marketing solutions for companies in the high technology industry. We focus on the IT, BPO and Engineering services domains. Over the last seven years we have contributed to the marketing programs of several corporations, ranging from global technology majors and top tier Indian IT and BPO companies to emerging companies and start ups. Based in Bangalore, the preferred global IT outsourcing hub, and with a presence across India and the US, Prayag has shaped the marketing trajectory of several IT and BPO service providers that leverage India based offshore delivery models. In addition, Prayag is also working closely with several global corporations that are targeting the Indian market.

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Prayag operates in the hi-tech marketing consulting domain. Prayag’s unique approach to client engagements arises from a combination of deep domain understanding, relentless focus on operational excellence including technology enabled work processes, and total customer commitment.
Prayag is today a preferred partner for three Fortune 50, three of Top 5 IT Services and three of top 15 BPO organizations, among others.