The data you need: Creators grab eyeballs, search grabs wallets

New Delhi: Influencer-led short videos are India’s strongest brand-awareness driver, topping recall at the very start of the funnel, stated AnyMind’s “India Digital Landscape 2025” report.

The report also finds that interactive, immersive formats like in-game advertising can outperform shoppable videos on recall, reinforcing creators and video as the first stop for salience.

AnyMind’s “India Digital Landscape 2025” reorders the funnel by role: social media and in-game ads build awareness; YouTube, OTT and messaging shape consideration; search converts most effectively; and word-of-mouth and D2C sites close the loop.

Creator economy cues

Entertainment dominates India’s influencer landscape, with home-and-living, fashion and beauty close behind. Beyond lifestyle, news, music and food & drink have steady traction; travel, sports and science are niche but meaningful; and automotive, gaming, and education contribute at a smaller scale. Finance, real estate and careers remain relatively untapped, white spaces for efficient creator partnerships.

“The Indian digital order is no longer linear. It’s a dynamic, ever-shifting dance across influencers, mobile platforms, and e-commerce. Brands that harness authentic voices and data-driven creativity will drive the next wave of brand-consumer connections,” said Aditya Aima, Managing Director of Growth Markets and Co-MD of India & MENA, AnyMind Group.

Other findings

The launch note quantifies the mix: influencer-led short videos achieve 53% effectiveness for awareness; at the point of purchase, video ads are the top choice for 31% of consumers. On mobile formats, rich-media interstitials hit ~8% CTR, while classic banners trail under 2%.

In-game ads are the quiet climber. They’re noticed by 43% of users, but only 13% call them the most engaging, signalling headroom for better creative and integrations as gaming scales.

Consideration is video-plus-interactivity. The top ad types here are video, banners and shoppable video. Users describe mobile video as useful and enjoyable; interactive e-commerce units stand out for engagingly delivering information. Evening work-break windows on news apps see higher CTRs, aligning with natural browsing.

Timing matters more than bursts. For awareness, content seen one to five days before purchase is more effective than in-the-moment hits. Near conversion, the window tightens to one to three days, favouring planned consideration pushes over flash promotions.
Search is where intent peaks. Sponsored product content performs best on search results pages; 36% of consumers engage most at this stage, making results pages and PDPs the priority for sponsored placements.

On dayparts and formats, interstitials deliver the strongest CTRs, peaking in early afternoon and mid-evening; video holds steady through the day and rises into late afternoon; static banners underperform across slots.

What the report findings mean for marketers

Lead with short, creator-led video for salience; retarget with interactive commerce units inside a one-to-three-day conversion window; prioritise sponsored placements on search results and PDPs; layer in gaming and rich-media interstitials during lunch and post-work peaks; and pilot creators in underserved verticals like personal finance or careers to unlock incremental audiences, matching how Indians actually discover, consider and buy.

Methodology: the study blends first-party signals from AnyTag (influencers), POKKT (mobile), AnyDigital (digital) and AnyX (e-commerce) with a 615-responder consumer panel across Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.