With the rise of Internet penetration in India, SME-related search and allied services are likely to undergo a significant transformation. Getit Infomedia (Getit) is one of the key players in this fast evolving landscape. Getit is building a formidable presence in India’s local search market through acquisitions and alliances with global Internet brands.
India’s SME ad market has already changed significantly when voice-based directory services (notably, Justdial) expanded this market and gained market share against traditional print classifieds / yellowpages services. In our interaction, Getit’s CEO indicated that with increasing Internet penetration, the SME ad market is likely to expand and undergo another significant shift
Getit Partnerships & Expansion
Getit expanded its SME relationships by acquiring Infomedia’s Yellowpages and AskMe. It is strengthening its presence through alliances/partnerships with more than 20 leading B2C firms – including global Internet brands such as Google and Yahoo. In our recent interaction, Getit’s CEO highlighted his strategy to diversify into allied SME services that ranged from improving web presence of SMEs to enabling e-commerce.
Getit is a key player in the emerging Internet-based local search ecosystem. It has 1200 feet on street, 300 telesales people, one of the strongest SME directories, and the strongest portfolio of alliances and partnerships with many B2C firms.
Jaspreet Bindra, CEO of Getit said,
There are 12 Mn SMEs. Less than 3m SMEs have an online presence. So, the market is still underserved. That said, the opportunity is not only about capturing the advertisement spend. The opportunity is to enable them in having an online presence.
I believe that Google will be the largest player in India’s local search market. The eco-system will also evolve and become increasingly specialised. In the US, for instance, Google’s local search results are based on data aggregated from many primary and secondary data providers. As such, it is important for Getit to have alliances with leading Internet brands.
Justdial has been successful in creating a brand and expanding the SME advertisement market. However, as local search increasingly moves online, I believe global Internet brands will play a larger role. There is no doubt that Google will be the largest player in local search in India.