Telcos to divide users into segments like FMCG companies

India's top telcos Airtel, Vodafone and Idea , along with new entrant Reliance Jio, seem to have gotten inspired from the FMCG sector to deal with the rising competition in the market. They have now decided to divide users into segments just like the FMCG industry, and come out with plans targeted at specific groups.

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The fierce competition is an outcome of Reliance Jio's entry offers launched in September 2016, under which it offered free voice and data services. This led to more than 100 million people subscribing to Jio in 170 days. This stirred up a sense of consolidation amidst the incumbent companies.

Experts say that the companies would now divide their users on parameters like usage and spending patterns, location, lifestyle and occupation, other than bifurcating them on the basis of age group and gender. This would help them understand the exact expectations of a group, following which they would be able to accordingly serve them plans.

Earlier, they used to offer blanket discounts to all subscribers.

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Vodafone India, the second-largest telco in the country, has come with plans aimed at its young users, called Vodafone U as well as one aimed at farmers, called Vodafone Kisaan Mitr. While Vodafone U offers special friend-to-friend calling offers, data loans and special offers on brands like Amazon and Uber, Kisaan Mitr offers real time information on weather and market prices.

These telcos are also said to be approaching residential welfare associations, schools and colleges to study their customers for the purpose of bifurcation.

(Image source TopYaps)