Digital
Mind the attention gap: How brands can retain the attention span of their consumers
Mumbai: The digital age has brought many benefits to consumers, such as convenience, choice, and access to information. However, it has also created a new challenge for brands: how to capture and retain the attention of their consumers in a crowded and noisy online environment. According to a Microsoft study, the average human attention span has dropped from 12 seconds in 2000 to eight seconds in 2015, which is less than that of a goldfish. This means that brands have only a few seconds to make an impression and persuade consumers to engage with their content, products, or services.
The attention gap is a serious problem for marketers, as it affects the effectiveness of their campaigns and the return on their investments. According to a report by HubSpot, 91% of consumers are more likely to shop with brands that provide relevant offers and recommendations, and 72% of consumers expect brands to personalise their communications. However, only 22% of consumers are satisfied with the level of personalisation they receive from brands. This indicates that there is a mismatch between what consumers want and what brands deliver, which leads to lower engagement, loyalty, and conversion rates.
How to bridge the attention gap
To overcome the challenge of the attention gap, brands need to adopt a customer-centric approach and create content that is relevant, valuable, and engaging for their target audience. Here are some strategies that can help brands achieve this goal:
● Use data and analytics to understand customers: Brands need to leverage data and analytics tools to collect and analyse information about their customers, such as their demographics, preferences, behaviors, needs, and pain points. This will help them segment their customers into different groups based on their characteristics and interests, and tailor their content accordingly. For example, Netflix uses data and algorithms to recommend personalised content to its users based on their viewing history and preferences.
● Create compelling stories that resonate with customers: Brands need to craft stories that connect with their customers on an emotional level and convey their value proposition in a clear and compelling way. Stories can help brands capture the attention of their customers, build trust and credibility, and inspire them to take action. For example, Airbnb uses storytelling to showcase the experiences of its hosts and guests, and how they can discover new places and cultures through its platform.
● Use multimedia and interactive content to enhance customers’ experiences: Brands need to use multimedia and interactive content formats, such as videos, podcasts, infographics, quizzes, games, etc., to deliver their messages in a more engaging and memorable way. Multimedia and interactive content can help brands attract the attention of their customers, stimulate their senses, and encourage them to interact with their brand. For example, Nike uses interactive videos to showcase its products and features, and allow its customers to customise their own shoes.
● Optimise content for different channels and devices: Brands need to optimise their content for different channels and devices that their customers use, such as websites, social media platforms, mobile apps, email newsletters, etc. This will help them reach their customers where they are, provide them with a consistent and seamless experience across different touchpoints, and increase their chances of engagement. For example, Starbucks optimises its content for different channels and devices by using responsive design, mobile-friendly features, social media integration, etc.
Giving his two cents on this rapid transformation, Wing Communications CEO & founder Shiva Bhavani said, “We believe that in today’s competitive market, it is not enough to just create content for our clients. We have to create content that matters to their customers. That’s why we use cutting-edge tools and techniques to understand the needs and preferences of our clients’ target audience and craft personalised and relevant stories that capture their attention and inspire them to take action.”
Conclusion
The attention gap is a reality that brands have to face in the digital age. However, it is not an insurmountable obstacle. By using data and analytics, creating compelling stories, using multimedia and interactive content formats, and optimising their content for different channels and devices, brands can bridge the attention gap and retain the attention span of their consumers.
The article is authored by Wing Communications CEO Shiva Bhavani.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
