2. Study Overview
Profiles online NRI from various parts of the world (demographic as well as
economic status)
Captures how they are connecting with the Indian homeland:
– Physical connectivity (traveling to India)
– Communicational connectivity (calling India)
– Financial connectivity (transferring money and making investments in India)
– Informational connectivity (content sought about India)
– Media connectivity (mediums used to stay updated about India)
Also highlights their current frequency, mode of consumption and brand
preferences in the these connectivity areas
Compares and contrasts the distinct NRI markets – ‘US+UK+Europe’,
‘Gulf’, ‘Asia Pacific’ and ‘Others’ - on all the above aspects
3. Methodology
Online survey among NRI from various parts of the world between in
February-March 2010
Response collection using geographically targeted ‘contextual search ad
campaign’ on Google, as well as from some country-specific ‘online
panels’ who have NRI as panel members (US, Canada and UK)
Sample size of 1,549 online NRI from various parts of the world:
West based NRI – US / Canada / UK / Western Europe (576)
Asia Pacific based NRI – Asia Pacific / Australia-New Zealand (216)
Gulf based NRI - Middle East (549)
Other NRI – Eastern Europe / Africa / Central and South America / South Asia (208)
Findings reported at the 4 NRI ‘regional group’ level. The ‘overall NRI’ level data
also cumulated and reported after making it representative of the NRI population spread among these 4
geographical regions using the 2009 NRI Population Statistics from the ‘Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs’
5. The Online NRI
• Overall 1 out of 4 online NRI has a PIO status (highest in the West)
• 2 out of 3 have been living in the current country for longer than 3 years
• Almost 1 in 3 online NRI lives alone (highest in the Gulf)
• Majority are ‘above 30’ years in age (more ‘mature’ in the Gulf and West)
• More of them belong to ‘South’ India (especially in Gulf and Asia Pacific)
• Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam are the biggest native languages (Gujarati, Punjabi stand out
in the West more)
• More of them come from the smaller ‘tier 3’ towns in India (less so in the West)
6. Their Economic Status
• Majority achieved their ‘highest education’ in India itself
• Gulf ones are relatively the most employed (and more ‘salaried’ employees)
• Overall, about half of the employed online NRI work in the corporate sector
• Even in the West only 1 in 5 works in the IT sector
• Almost half of them have more than 1 earning member in the family
• 1 in 3 have family incomes of over US$5,000 per month (highest proportions in the West)
• Over half of them have cars (significantly higher car ownership in the West)
7. Their Internet Usage Behavior
• 3 out of 4 online NRI access internet from home (more in the West)
• 1 in 5 also access internet from mobile phone (more so in the West)
• Gulf ones check ‘Indian Content’ online most frequently (West ones do it least frequently)
• Timesofindia.com is the most used website overall to check Indian content
online
• 1 in 2 online NRI buys Indian products/service online (most in Asia Pacific, least in West)
Of those who do, only 1 in 3 spends over US$100 monthly buying from these sites
• Gift items for relatives in India, Indian movies/music DVDs and Books &
magazines are the most bought items from these websites (Flowers for relatives in India
also popular in West , Ayurvedic products in Gulf)
8. Most Used Websites
Online Activity Top Website % Use Most (All Online NRI)
General news about India Timesofindia 26%
Business & economic news from India Economictimes 17%
Financial info from India (quotes, rates, etc) Moneycontrol 13%
Jobs in India Naukri 62%
Real estate info in India 99acres 17%
Social networking in India Facebook 35%
Professional networking in India Linkedin 39%
Matrimony Bharatmatrimony 39%
Friendship/Dating Orkut 25%
Picture sharing Picasa 22%
PC to PC net telephony with India Skype 44%
PC to Phone net telephony with India Skype 18%
Check travel/tourism info about India Makemytrip 12%
Travel products for India Airindiaexpress 15%
Online shopping from India (non-travel products) Indiatimes 19%
Transfer money online to India Icicibank 19%
Indian video / picture galleries Youtube 30%
Indian cinema Bollywood 14%
Indian music Raaga 19%
Indian sports Cricinfo 32%
9. Their Indian Connectivity
• 3 out of 4 online NRI cite ‘family’ as their main motivation for both staying
connected with India and for traveling to India (more so the Gulf and West ones)
• Gulf ones follow happenings in India the most frequently. Indian ‘news
channels’ are the most popular ‘offline’ medium to stay connected with India
• More Gulf and West based ones travel to India. Asia Pacific ones travel to India
the most frequently
• 1 in 3 book their air tickets online (West ones do so significantly more)
• 3 out of 4 online NRI call India at least once a week (Gulf ones most frequently)
• ISD calls from mobile phones is the most popular mode of calling India (highest
among Gulf NRI, West ones use calling cards relatively more)
10. The Financial Connection
• 4 out of 5 online NRI remit money to India (Gulf ones do so the most)
• Online, Bank and Third Party Cash transfers are all equally popular remittance
modes among them (Online most popular in West, Third party cash transfer in Gulf)
• Almost half of them own a house back home (more so from Gulf)
• While 4 in 10 have a rupee bank account, only 1 in 10 have a foreign exchange bank
account in India
• Less than 1 in 10 have invested in mutual funds/shares
• House, Land and Gold are the most sought after future financial investment options
• Residential ‘flat’ between 1,000-3,000 sq.ft. is the most sought after property
among online NRI (more so among the West ones, Independent house sought more by Gulf ones)
11. Some Other Most Used Brands
Activity / Service Most Used Brand % Use Most (All
Online NRI)
Airlines to travel to India Air India, Emirates 21%, 12%
Telecom company to call India by landline British Telecom 13%
Telecom company to call India by mobile Etisalat 15%
Calling card to call India Reliance 13%
Indian rupee bank account SBI 22%
Online money transfer ICICI 19%
Offline (banking) money transfer Western Union 15%
Third party cash transfer Western Union 66%
NDTV 22%
News TV channel
Sun TV (Asia Pacific) 19%
Zee TV 24%
Entertainment TV channel
Asianet (Gulf) 21%
Newspaper The Times of India 35%
Magazine India Today 44%
13. List Of Reports
NRI Online 2008 Overall Report Supplementary Reports
• Overall NRI level findings on: 1. Financial Investment and Remittance
Demographic and economic profile Supplementary Report
Online connectivity Financial connectivity
Informational connectivity All info about NRI investing in India
Emotional connectivity
Media connectivity
2. Calling India Supplementary Report
Communicational connectivity
• Comparative reporting of the above All info about NRI calling India
information among the 4 NRI groups –
West-based NRI (US/Canada/UK/
3. Traveling to India Supplementary Report
Europe), Gulf-based NRI, Asia-Pacific
Traveling connectivity
based NRI, Other NRI
All info about NRI traveling to India
14. Information Areas Covered
Demographic and Economic Profile
Current country of residence, residence status, years living there, years living outside India
Gender, age, family size, native language, preferred language of reading, city of origin in India
Current occupation and industry of work if applicable, educational qualification, monthly household
income in US$, earning members in the family, vehicle owned
Physical Connectivity
Frequency of travel to India, purpose of travel, destination cities, mode of ticket booking, most used
brands, preferred airlines for flying
Communicational Connectivity
Frequency of calling India, purpose of call, cities called, mode of calling, most used brands
Financial Connectivity
Frequency of making financial remittance to India, modes of remittance and most used brands,
financial assets owned in India and most used brands, likely financial and real estate investments in
India in next 1 year, type and size of house likely to invest in, city where likely to buy property
* Most used brands reported only where achieved sample is sufficient
15. Information Areas Covered
Informational Connectivity
Preferred medium to stay connected with India, frequency of usage and most used media brands –
entertainment TV channels, news TV channels, newspaper and magazines
Online Connectivity
Net usage dynamics - years of experience in using internet, places of accessing internet, frequency of
usage, time spent on the net
Most used websites from India – overall, for general news and events, business & finance news,
financial investment info, travel/tourism info about India, search/book travel tickets, buy non-travel
products, check real estate info, search jobs in India, matrimonial search, seek friendships in India,
social and professional networking, picture sharing, check Indian cinema, music, picture/video
gallery, sports, glamour/lifestyle, science & technology info, astrology and spiritual/religious content
Online buying from Indian websites – frequency of buying, average monthly spends, products bought,
most used websites
Emotional Connectivity
Motivation to stay connected with India, Indian role models, likelihood of returning to India
* Most used brands reported only where achieved sample is sufficient
16. Price of Syndicated Reports
Report Price (Rs.)*
* 10.3% service tax extra
Main Report 150,000
Supplementary Report 150,000 each
Main + 1 Supplementary Report 250,000
Main + All 3 Supplementary Reports 450,000
• Payment Terms : Immediate on delivery of all reports
• Delivery Timeline : All reports immediately on order
• Report Delivery Format : PDF
