Online Classified Industry in Mobile

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Table of Contents        

Introduction        2

Key problems        2

Part A - Proposed Solutions        2

Recommended Solution and Approach        3

Success Metrics for Indic and User Acquisition        3

Part B - Revisiting Monetization Strategy.        3

Proposed Solution        3

Enhancement Proposal        4

Marketing Plan        4

Revenue Streams for Feature        4

Success Metrics for Video Classifieds        5

Mockups        5

Introduction

With the incorporation of technology in online classified industry and the advent of mobile technology, consumer experience starts as soon as he/she opens the app. It is therefore important to create a deep connect with the customer throughout the customer journey. Furthermore, the existing solutions available in the market fail to tap into the full potential of internet penetration in India. There exist multiple touch-points that can be leveraged by our classified website to enhance consumer buying and selling experience.  The three basic consumer touch-points that can be capitalized on are as follows:

1. Enabling online classified service for native language speakers on mobile
2. Introducing novel formats for classifieds to enhance buy/sell experience on the platform
3. Offer value added services for repeat customers

Key problems

• User Acquisition:         
  Nearly 99% of native language users in India (non-English users), access the internet from their mobile phones. As per a Google-KPMG report, growth in India’s language internet user base increased 5X from 42 million in 2011 to 234 million in 2016. The language user base is expected to grow to a number as precise as 536 million in 2021. The current solution fails to address the needs of this segment effectively.

• User Engagement/Retention:

The average user attention span has drastically reduced over the past several years. Furthermore, it is of paramount importance to keep the user engaged in the classifieds business. However, with the current formats available on classified websites user attention is difficult to catch.

• Monetization:        

Current monetization model extracts maximum utility from customer per visit and doesn’t rely on increasing the frequency of interaction with the users. However, with increased engagement users could be roped in to a subscription based revenue model. Furthermore, newer classified formats such as video would also enable increased ad revenues from newer formats.        

Part A - Proposed Solutions

The following solutions could be implemented to address the problems identified above:

1. Enable audio & text based native language/multilanguage support for non-English speaking users:
   In the new world users interact with mobile devices differently than before. To acquire new users LocalClassifieds.com should enable both text and voice support for native languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Gujrati and Marathi. Language could either be auto detected from device settings or be prompted from the user upon service initiation. All existing features of listing, searching and chatting should be enabled to take voice inputs. For chat functionality users should be provided with a translate feature. This would vastly help NewClassifieds.com acquire newer customers.  
   
2. Introduce new ‘Video Classifieds’ feature on the website/app:

As per KPCB’s latest report on internet trends, online media content would continue to be dominated by video format. Video engagement metrics are much higher than all other formats. LocalClassifieds.com should therefore introduce video classifieds feature for its users. The feature should allow users to upload 15-30 second videos of their ads. This would help LocalClassifieds.com introduce video content on the platform. The new format could then be monetized using premium subscription model, 3rd party video ads & subscription based self-serve ads for advertisers directly.    

1. Introduce subscription based model:
   Current monetization model could be improved with enabling subscription based premium services to the users for a small fee. The premium services could include early access to flash deals, free shipping, customer support for buy/sell activities on the platform. This would allow LocalClassifieds.com to attract and retain repeat customer while proving better value to them.

Recommended Solution and Approach

As of today current and potential customers feel helpless while using the internet due to language barriers. Not having a mechanism to enable non-English speaking users to use classifieds platform alienates them from the service. Introducing ‘Indic’ by LocalClassifieds.com that would enable native language support on the platform. Indic would not only help Localclassfieds.com get fresh users on the platform but also give its existing user community more autonomy to use the service in the language they find comfortable.
Support for Indic should be enabled with the following features:

1. Enable voice input for searching and listing an ad in native language:

The existing features of listing and searching an ad must also be cognizant of the new languages introduced in the app. User should be able to get relevant results based on the voice queries made in the new language. Listing feature could also be enhanced to help him target users only in his selected language.

1. Auto detect user’s language settings and use the language as default:

The application should automatically detect the language set in the device settings. As the user opens the application for the first time, the user must be given a list of supported languages with the device language set as default. The user should now be able to select his/her preferred language and proceed working with the app. Furthermore, user should also be able to switch language to a different language as per his requirements.