The mobile handsets market in India recorded sales of 183 million units in 2011 and a year-on-year growth of seven per cent in 2011, a report by CyberMedia Research reveals. It is this figure that SanDisk, the US-based flash memory producer, is betting on as it embarks on a 360-degree marketing campaign to convert this increasing number of tech-savvy mobile phone users into customers.
But popular perception says consumers are careful about the mobile phone handset they purchase and the applications that can run on it. Isn’t the choice of the memory card a secondary concern? Manisha Sood, country manager and director, India and SAARC, SanDisk Corporation, begs to differ.
Guess how many flash memory devices were sold in India in the first quarter of 2011? A whopping 14.93 million units. In fact, for the first time Indian consumers used nearly 314,000 terabytes of memory last year. “The latest applications a consumer uses on his mobile phone are memory hungry. Without the right memory card, one wouldn’t be able to utilise these to their best,” explains Sood. “The memory used in these phones is nothing but flash memory,” she adds.
However, the consumer is not always aware of how flash memory is used in these devices and what would be the right memory card to store important data or precious memories. This is especially the case with digital consumers in tier II and III cities. For them, the mobile phone is at times the only entertainment device or the only camera and social networking tool. This translates into higher demand for flash cards. In fact, SanDisk’s records hold proof-sales of flash memory devices have gone up in these cities dramatically.
In tune with this, the company has begun its latest initiative — the SanDisk Memory Yatra. Kicked off in early this month in Jaipur, the Yatra coincided with the festival of Holi. Cities like Lucknow Chandigarh, Kochi, Varanasi, Ahmedabad and Kolkata, will also see this campaign. Sood says, “We want to introduce the consumers to some of our new products like the Mobile Ultra card, meant for storing hi-definition video and the Extreme card, which helps professional photographers shoot under extreme climatic conditions. We are timing this campaign with the local festivals, like Baisakhi in Chandigarh, Navaratri in Ahmedabad, Durga Puja in Kolkata. We are holding photography contests for the local people, who are asked to capture their cities during festivals.” The best photographer will win a digital camera and SanDisk merchandise.
SanDisk is also investing in billboards, print advertisements and digital banners. A 30-second television commercial (TVC) was also launched earlier this year. The TVC shows a photographer using a 64 GB SanDisk memory card to take videos at his friend’s wedding, clicking photographs at a shoot and later sharing these pictures with his friends using a SanDisk USB device.
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The flash memory solutions provider is going the extra mile to stay top of mind. Tie-ups are strategic and SanDisk has played that card well. The company works closely with manufacturers of cameras, tablets and smartphones, not only to market products better but also to upgrade its products according to the changes in technology, Sood informs.
According to data collected in 2011, SanDisk emerged as the leader in Indian flash cards market with a 22.2 per cent share, followed by Transcend and Moserbaer. But, Sood insists, this does not stop the company from investing in the future. In 2011, the company invested $547 million on research and development.