Guest Post:  Aaron Syed Jaffery (@aaronjaffery) is Managing Partner of global digital sport consultancy NineteenEightyFour (nineteeneightyfour.co).

Continuing the TIMBI – Social Media and Emerging Markets series, this week here at NineteeEightyFour have taken a look at social media usage and trends in India.

Now considered one of the pillars of global economic growth, India has experienced significant changes in its socioeconomic and digital environment. A study by Ernst & Young found ever more integrated rural markets driving India’s exponential growth, making it the second fastest expanding economy in the world.

Social media has taken off in India too, and reports say that Indian organisations use social media more than the global average, but we’d argue not necessarily better. So, with nearly 62million Facebook users and 33million Twitter users, as well as a booming digital sector, we thought we’d take a closer look at who’s doing what on India’s biggest social media platforms.

Mobile networks

India’s mobile market is the corporate version of a Delhi marketplace. Overcrowded and hyper-competitive, the market lacks the sophistication of their Western counterparts. In a very short space of time, mobile phones have gone from a luxury only the rich and famous could afford, to a mass market product. However, with customers more concerned about price rather than features or functions, smartphones and 3G have struggled to gain traction in a price sensitive market. And yet despite this, India’s mobile internet market is growing at a rate of around 9%.

The popularity of mobile in India is far from surprising. In a country of vast proportions the mobile phone is changing peoples’ lives. Farmers can access information about crop-prices, and healthcare has become reachable in whichever remote location the user happens to be. India is experiencing what the West saw 10-plus years ago – how mobile can change life for the better.

So, with competition high, a price-sensitive customer base, and no way to lock customers in, it’s clear that mobile firms are turning to marketing as the way to ensure market share within the sub-continent.

And our study found that India’s social media users are tech mad! Mobile network and handset providers dominate the top 5 brand pages on both Facebook and Twitter. And a mobile network inspired campaign even occupies the number one space on Facebook, which is usually reserved for only the most high-profile celebrities.

Vodafone, India’s second largest mobile network, has invested heavily in social media. Vodafone ZooZoos and Vodafone India rank as the number one brand on both Facebook and Twitter. ZooZoos, the unofficial mascots of Vodafone India, were unveiled in 2009 as part of their sponsorship of the Indian Premier League, and have gone on to become India’s first global viral hit.

The brainchild of Ogilvy & Mathers, the original ZooZoos campaign consisted of 30 adverts focussed on TV and Facebook. As the campaign developed an official YouTube channel was created, which quickly grew to the second largest channel in India. Rich content gave ZooZoos a story and positioning in their own right, no longer simply activating Vodafone’s IPL sponsorship.  And despite the recent spot-fixing controversy surrounding the IPL, Vodafone’s sponsorship hasn’t faltered but evolved, with a 360° ZooZoos campaign having launched this IPL season.

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Despite the success of ZooZoos, other key IPL sponsors such as Pepsi are focussing a lot more  investment on social platforms than Vodafone.  For Pepsi their global social strategy may pay dividends, but it lacks the imagination to gain major traction in the Indian market, and instead they play second fiddle to their sponsorship partners on this occasion.

In terms of handset manufacturers, Samsung has recently dethroned Nokia as India’s top handset manufacturer, taking a majority market share of 31.5%. Samsung’s strategy has been to provide the most diverse set of handset prices on the market – something that appears to have worked given the price-conscious consumers. However, Nokia has a place close to the population’s heart, as it has been the number one handset manufacturer in India for quite some time. Nokia remains top of the fastest growing Facebook pages in India, and this appears to be continuing the love affair in the short-term at least.

Cricket Mad

Unlike Western markets, sports brands and celebrities do not feature heavily in the top 5 most followed pages on Facebook and Twitter. The exception can found in Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, who has India’s 5th most popular Facebook page.

In terms of the most followed sports brands on Facebook, cricket rules. Cristiano Ronaldo’s ability to transcend markets has allowed him to be the single representative from the World’s most popular sport. But in a passionate cricketing nation, it is the Indian Cricket team and Indian cricketing superstars such as MS Dhoni who shine through.

Hope springs eternal in the marketing powerhouse of football, with Manchester United the most popular football club in India on Facebook, taking 7th place. Lionel Messi may be disappointed to learn however, that he doesn’t quite make the top 10, pipped instead by WWE Legend John Cena!

It’s all going down on Bollywood Boulevard …

OK, we made that up, but to the Indian market Bollywood is hugely important.  The Khan trio –  Shah Rukh Kahn, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan, of no blood relation – are the undisputed kings of Bollywood, each able to carry a film in their own right. The media reports them at loggerheads in real-life, and now they can be witnessed at loggerheads on Twitter, each fiercely competing for the top Twitter profile positions.

Other Bollywood stars, Amitabh Bachchan and A.R. Rahman also feature in the top overall Facebook and Twitter pages. Amitabh Bachchan’s profile has allowed die-hard fans to get within personal reach,  pertaining to the celebrity obsessed culture common place in Europe and the US, and giving him particular social media fame. Whilst A.R. Rahman, nicknamed the ‘Mozart of Madras’ having won numerous awards for his music composition, has rightfully earned his place at the top of the social media ranks.

Spiritually aware

And finally, how could we forget the Dalai Lama, the global legend and most followed Twitter profile to come from India. When you consider that the most popular Twitter profiles to come from the UK consist of Harry Styles and his 1D band members, it makes you feel a bit uncultured.