Right platform key to promotional communication from brands: Survey

In a survey aimed at finding the extent and effects of marketing spam on consumers and marketers, big data analytics marketing platform spocto has found that marketers need to find the right platform in order to get response from the customers.

"The study brings to light a burgeoning problem in the space of marketing today. An increasingly digital world may have given the brands more avenues to reach out to the consumers but it has also led to a wastage of budgets, increased expenditure and low conversion rates, because of spam," said Sumeet Srivastava, CEO, spocto.

"Consumers today are more responsive than ever if approached sensibly on a platform of their choice. Marketers need to combine technology with thorough research in order to target the customers at the right time at the right platform," Srivastava added.

The study was conducted with a sample size of 5,000 consumers and marketers each across 10 Indian cities, a company statement said on Monday.

A whopping 68 percent of marketers agreed to be spamming consumers with multiple messages on different platforms -- social media, email, calls and SMS. But most marketers said they remain in the dark about the number of times they connect with a consumer on different platforms.

The study found seven out of 10 consumers receiving multiple messages on different platforms from the same brand (or 'spam') within a week's span, and that if consumers receive a promotional message on a platform of their preference, the response rate could be as high as 68 percent.

It was also found that 83 percent of the consumers want personalised content but only 58 percent of the marketers personalise the communication.

In the survey, e-commerce, food, banking, financial services and insurance, travel, education, jobs and real estate emerged as the sectors that send maximum spam messages.

Marketers unanimously agreed that improvements in targeting methods could reduce their marketing budgets