Digital transformation and digital disruption are leaving no industry untouched and affecting the Media and Entertainment industry too. Digital disruption has upped consumer expectations manifold and created digital rivals. Companies that are basically digital natives, which are giving the MEA industry a chase for their money. It is actually a double whammy; India’s media industry is consolidating. A slowdown in the economy, dip in revenues as well as digital disruption are making it challenging. Media organizations should leverage digital technologies like enterprise software to streamline business and increase efficiency of operations.

Print media leveraging digital transformation

Advertisements form the biggest part of newspaper’s revenue. Sales staff are on the move. Timely sanction of advertisement discounts and meeting production deadlines is important. Digital disruption forcing them to reinvent to chase demanding customers. In such a situation, traditional business models need to be rethought. Media enterprises need to innovate to stay relevant and forge business models to thrive in digital world.

“We started incorporating features to reach out to public and consolidate base. We are successful. Application mobility is necessary for representatives to meet audit requirements for accountability, especially for newspaper ad business. Staff member satisfaction improved as sales team can use tablets to connect,” said Sarbani Bhatia, Senior Vice President, IT, Dainik Jagran, in a media interview.

The company implemented digital technologies for business processes as part of digital transformation initiatives. The organization’s portal integrates enterprise resource planning (ERP) software like organizational mass mailing, business intelligence, and management information system. Workflow is streamlined as users get an integrated and intuitive interface.

‘A chunk of the sales staff members can connect through tablets and receive approvals from managers as they are on the field. This ensures there is no need to get back to get stuff done. This can enhance business agility and efficiency for media organizations. ERP can give an edge to operations. Organizations use outdated systems like spreadsheets or pen/paper to manage accounting as well as business operations. Digital technologies help small players leverage business,’ said Shashank Dixit, CEO, Deskera.