India Inc is a poor ‘Net user

GEETA NAIR / Pune

Most Indian companies seem to be content using the Internet solely for sending e-mail rather than utilising it as a value-added tool for business. They appear to be unwilling to use the Internet for information dissemination as well as a medium to do business. “The domestic industry by and large has been somewhat myopic and even ignorant about the benefits and the need to incorporate the Internet as part of its marketing and business strategy. The fundamental power of the Internet as a low-cost and highly effective tool for disseminating information is being undervalued,” states a study conducted by ValueNotes Database.

ValueNotes is a leading provider of business intelligence and research, and is one of the largest aggregators of information on Indian business and finance. It conducted the survey following global reports that pointed out the poor leveraging of the Internet by Indian companies. It covered a cross-section of 50 big and small companies.

Nearly 72 percent of senior management personnel interviewed in various companies said that their objective was to establish a ‘Web presence.’ The average age of the corporate website in India was about 3.5 years. Less than half the respondents from the corporate sector believed that their website was meant to attract prospective clients. Only half of these companies have separate sets of messages intended for different target audiences; mostly, the communication is the same for all visitors. Over 75 percent of the companies surveyed had no idea about how visible their corporate website was, or how many visitors they got.

78 percent said that the website was meant to promote the company’s products. Over 90 percent said that the target audience for their website was customers. Less than 50 percent said that the website was also targeted at investors. Only 50 percent of the respondents felt that their website had adequate visibility.

ValueNotes also found that most corporates were not aware about search engine registration and optimisation. When it comes to managing websites there is not much to cheer about. The annual budget for website maintenance ranged from Rs 5,000 to a few lakhs, depending on the size of the company. The frequency of maintaining and upgrading websites also varied drastically across companies. While some said they updated every few days, others said that updation was done on a monthly or quarterly basis. Only 11 percent of the respondents said their company website was updated on a daily basis.

None of the respondents interviewed had a clear idea as to how many pages were added to their website every month. Generally, decisions as to what went on the site appeared to be a team decision, with the final say being that of the CEO or managing director. About 44 percent of the companies had outsourced maintenance of their websites.

“There are endless discussions about India becoming a global power with an international presence. The Internet is undisputedly the primary medium of communication, and this is where corporate India needs to build its capabilities. Not only must corporate India open its eyes to this fact, but it must also utilise the Internet to the fullest,” the study said.

“Websites must become windows to the world and provide a crystal-clear view of the company’s strengths and capabilities. Only then can a strong and forceful image of corporate India be built in the global environment,” concludes the ValueNotes study.