OREANDA-NEWS. October 8, 2012. Research commissioned by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS) a leading IT services, consulting and business solutions firm, has shown that during 2012, the average-size company (USD 11.2 billion in annual revenue) will spend between USD 13 million and USD 22 million to market, sell and service digital mobile consumers through their mobile devices. The study – The New Digital Mobile Consumer: How large companies are responding – shows that by 2015, investment levels will rise to between USD 22 million and USD 26 million annually.

The race to engage this consumer segment is not evenly matched. In 2012, companies in Asia-Pacific will spend far more on responding to digital mobile consumers than companies in North America, Europe and Latin America. In Asia-Pacific, on an average, companies will spend USD 2.41 million per USD 1 billion revenue; the other three regions trail this level of investment with USD 1.43 million being spent in North America, USD 1.59 million in Europe and USD 1.63 million in Latin America.

Looking ahead to 2015, levels of investment will grow with spending per USD 1 billion revenue to increase to USD 1.98 million in North America (versUSD 1.43 million in 2012); USD 1.76 million in Europe (versUSD 1.59 million); USD 2.85 in Asia-Pacific (versUSD 2.41 million) and in Latin America a remarkable USD 2.72 million (versUSD 1.63 million).

N Chandrasekaran, CEO and managing director of Tata Consultancy Services, said: “The digital consumer is an exciting and complex customer segment that global corporations have to understand and engage with. These consumers are diverse in their need, their interactions are flexible and often conducted ‘in motion’. Keeping their attention means being able to serve their dynamic needs by leveraging the power of digital and mobile technologies to engage with them.”

Mr Chandrasekaran added: “Businesses addressing this smart consumer segment must collect high-quality data to understand them in real time; engage them in new and innovative ways; and reinforce their relationships through flawless technology interactions.”

The study also reveals that investment levels are driven by organisations that recognise fundamental business changes are needed to win the loyalty of consumers.

The TCS study makes it clear that the digital mobile consumer is a highly influential profile of customer. Recognition of their potential impact on the business is such that 82 per cent of “leader” firms said they have made the digital mobile consumer a unique market segment. A striking number of these firms (85 per cent) created a new product and service offering for digital mobile consumer.

In contrast, there are businesses across all four regions which are failing to address the opportunity presented by the digital mobile consumer. Just 28 per cent of “laggards” have made the digital mobile consumer a unique market segment, while only 30 per cent of such firms have created new product or service offerings for this audience.

Companies that participated in the study are exploring innovative ways to engage the digital mobile consumer. Leading companies are not limiting their mobility strategies to just smartphones and tablet computers but are looking at ways to improve the entire experience that consumers have – beyond the purchase transaction – and are starting to transform the way consumers research, buy, use, adopt and troubleshoot their products and services when they are on the go.