India, a land of diversity, a multilingual country, where the water doth changed every two miles and dialect every four, don’t be shocked if I say that more than 19,500 languages are spoken in India as a mother tongue as it’s a  fact. 

When one doesn’t compromise with their outfits, their food so then why with their language? Eventually,  It’s a matter of one’s comfort zone. As the PR industry is evolving with time, it understands the public concern and therefore most Public Relations companies emphasizing Regional PR to be in the race. 

Brands need to analyze and act accordingly to the age, taste, preference and region of their target audience belongs too. Simply, If you want to serve a Punjabi then serve him Lassi, not Dosa and the same goes with a south Indian. So, If a brand desires a stronghold in a particular market then it has to mold itself accordingly. 

One can only connect with the other if there is any kind of communication, and therefore brands try to convince the audience by creating high-quality and engaging content, an audience can connect with, a language in which people are sunk in. 

As I said before, language differs from one state to another, therefore a brand has to communicate and deliver its message differently in a different region to convince its natives. In India, people need a connection and eventually, an attachment to the product or services, if a brand manages to build connectivity then consequently it rules the market. 

Key Facts

Time Internet Report

• Out of the 90 million+ surveyed digital users, more than half are non-English readers and more than two third of Hindi readers are also reading English.
• Regional languages have surpassed English with a 66% share in overall content consumption.
• Across all regional languages, News as a genre sees the highest content consumption at 67%, followed by Sports at 17% and Entertainment at 16%.
• Among female users, the Gujarati language sees the highest online content consumption at 44.78%.
• Results of the study highlight that content consumption in regional languages among younger audiences is fast growing, with consumption among Indians in the 25-34 age group being the highest.

The evolution of PR in the digital age and Regional PR

From Newspapers to blogs, from Press release to emails, from a reporter to a blogger, the PR industry has seemed a gradual but tremendous shift towards the digital segment. This pace of shift is going to accelerate further in the coming years. Thus keeping in line with the changing media scenario, where digital is expected to become increasingly dominant has become very important. But simultaneously focusing on print media is also essential as it has its own salient features.

Coming back to regional PR,  as regional and hyper-local media is growing very fast, and this trend is expected to continue going forward, there is no doubt in saying that the regional PR is going to play a major role in the coming years. The dominance of digital platforms, which cater to regional and local readerships is imminent, and this is where regional PR will come into the picture. Also, PR as an industry is nearing a saturation point in metros, and future growth has to come from smaller centers, like Tier II & Tier III cities, and small towns. 

Local and Vocal

Every brand needs to be LOCAL as well as VOCAL, that’s what regional PR agency stands for. Communicating the defined brand message most conveniently and tailoring it towards the hearts and minds of the target audience is the key to success. A regional twist to a national story can help the localized audience to closely connect with the brand, and help it to write it own success story. 

WHAT ATTRACTS Audience?

A thought provoking and interesting story is something that a reader wants to hear. You can’t serve anything to audience, only a relevant and appealing story can be acceptable. A brand should ensure to tell such a story with that an audience can connect with and relate to. 

A Good connection is what a brand need

Like the consumer, the press and digital influencers also belong to different regions and towns with varying restraints, requirements and beliefs. Good relationships with journalists and social channels along with the knowledge of local publications is crucial for the success of any brand. Regional PR consultants deal with their local media regularly and hence are more in tune with their needs, likes and of course what makes them tick. Which ultimately help them to attract more audience. A reader have a keen interest in relevance PR generated stories. Therefore brands should focus more on creating user-friendly content to attract their audience. 

Importance of Regional PR

Two places are not the same, it’s crucial for a brand when entering regional markets to recognise every region. Turning your brand to a regional one can add great value and can be crucial to the success of a national or indeed global brand campaign. A national brand PR campaign needs to be rolled out beyond the national press and into the regional and local media. The potential to be opportunistic is so much greater when the relationships with media are tightest and proximity to the consumer is closest.

Conclusion

In conclusion, be it any brand or media company they need to create content keeping in mind the regional aspect of their target public. Regional support for a brand will provide invaluable insight into both consumer and media behaviors which in turn can increase brand engagement and loyalty. And that is what PR is all about!