MxMIndia

Category: Digital

  • Across nearly all industries, use of Big Data and Mobile to drive innovation lags their perceived importance

    BCG report maps journey of innovative companies in India

    By A Correspondent

     

    In the 2014 list of most innovative companies released by the Boston Consulting Group, technology and telecommunications companies once again lead the pack, holding down all of the top 5 spots in 2014, 7 of the top 10, and 21 of the top 50-the most since 2010. The consumer products industry holds 14 of the top 50 spots, also the most since 2010.

     

    BCG has surveyed more than 1,500 senior executives in a wide range of countries and industries since 2004 to help cast light on the state of innovation in global business. In its new report, ‘The Most Innovative Companies 2014: Breaking Through Is Hard to Do’, the firm reveals the 50 companies that international executives ranked as the most innovative. Many of these companies have demonstrated impressive staying power over the years: Apple has been number one every year since 2005; Samsung and Google switched places again at numbers two and three; Microsoft and IBM round out the top five and TCS amongst the Indian companies has entered the list.

     

    The biggest change in the 2014 top 50 list is the decline in the number of auto companies. Only 9 auto companies are in the top 50 in 2014, and only 4 ranked in the top 20. This compares with 3 automakers in the top 10 places in 2013, as well as 9 in the top 20, and 14 in the top 50 spots. Automakers also reported both a 26 percent decline in innovation priority, with 62 percent assigning it a top-three position, down from 84 percent last year.

     

    In 2014, BCG again asked respondents to name up-and-coming companies-companies that are still relatively young or have yet to reach the scale of the top 50 global giants but are making themselves known for innovation. WhatsApp, Square, Rakuten and Wipro lead this list. There was 50 percent turnover on the up-and-coming list, with only four companies returning from 2013. Last year’s up-and-comers all leveraged mobile platforms in one way or another; this year’s list comprises more varied innovators: consumer products, auto, media, and big-data companies.

     

    The 2014 report examines the factors that separate breakthrough innovators from other companies. It found that breakthrough innovators are strong innovators first-they excel at the fundamentals that define successful innovation programs. But they stand out from strong innovators in three ways: they cast a wider net for ideas, they use business model innovation more, and they have cultures geared toward breakthrough success. Almost half of breakthrough innovators reported generating more than 30 percent of sales from innovations over the past three years, more than twice the average for all companies.

     

    Neeraj Aggarwal

    “Innovation isn’t getting any easier. Too many companies want to shoot for the moon while their innovation programs are barely airborne,” said Neeraj Aggarwal, a BCG Senior Partner & Director. “It is no longer enough to be good at incremental innovation. Breakthrough innovators are especially effective at bringing together the pieces required for radical innovation such as management, governance, and organizational design that can have a major impact on any company’s innovation program. Breakthrough innovators corral them all.”

     

    The 2014 survey found that only 13 percent of respondents have a significant ambition to deliver radical innovation. More than 40 percent of these would-be disruptors indicated that their companies’ innovation capabilities are average at best. Executives from companies with strong innovation capabilities-and disruptive ambitions-represent just 7.6 percent of the sample.

     

    While technology companies lead the list of those seen as most innovative, respondents in multiple sectors said that there will be limited impact from digital technologies in their own industries in the next three to five years. Less than half of the respondents in the telecommunications, financial services, pharmaceuticals, consumer products, retail, energy, and manufacturing sectors, among others, said that big data and mobile will have a big impact. Less than a third in each sector said that their companies are targeting big data and mobile in the innovation programs.

     

  • LTD is an essential service for anyone looking at digital media buying around the world

    Logicserve Digital unveils digital inventory service LTD

    By A Correspondent

     

    Accredited digital marketing agency Logicserve Digitalhas launched Logicserve Trading Desk (LTD). The service aims at disentangling the tedious job of digital media buying and planning, with expertise in choosing the right inventory.

     

    Armed with a comprehensive understanding of the latest technology, global expertise, performance-driven insights into the digital market and healthy relationships with the publisher network; LTD is an essential service for anyone looking at digital media buying around the world. It aids in identifying and allocating the inventory at competitive rates. LTD is a combination of tapping market’s nerve, categorizing media buckets and analysing the performance in real-time.

     

    The advantage that LTD provides ranges from access to the best DSP/RTB platforms, assistance in digital inventory buying, comprehensive multi-media approach, retargeting, optimisation, creative assistance etc. With a 360 degree service, inclusive of impressions across display, mobile, video etc, LTD becomes a single platform for multiple media buying.

     

    “With each media buying platform reciprocating in a unique manner- identifying, tracking and optimising can be a cumbersome task. Hence, we have introduced Logicserve Trading Desk where the client’s life is simplified and spends optimised,” Prasad Shejale, Co-Founder & CEO (India), Logicserve Group.

     

  • The e-commerce major’s strategy for India: Stick to the concept of sister site Junglee.com

    In India, Amazon persists with Junglee in cart

     

    By Shelley Singh

     

    It’s been 16 months since Amazon, the $75 billion American e-tailer, launched a full-f ledged online marketplace in India. It’s been three months since its founder Jeff Bezos committed $2 billion of investments to its Indian operations. Even as those operations add new products, suppliers, warehouses and employees, Bezos is not letting go of the earlier life that marked Amazon’s entry into India.

     

    Amazon made a soft launch in India in February. It dusted out a property it had bought in the US way back in 1998, Junglee, and launched it in India as a price-comparison website: users could compare the price of, say, a washing machine across not just online stores but also offline ones. As it waited on regulations, as it prepared the ground for a hard launch, Amazon used Junglee to test the waters, and observe online habits of Indians. Amazon is now immersed in those waters, but it’s not giving up Junglee.

     

    In fact, it’s taking its sister site — the two share infrastructure – to the next level, tailoring it to flank its main marketplace (amazon.in). Amazon has not adopted this double-play strategy in any of its other 12 markets. It’s a strategy none of its rivals in India have adopted. “Comparison shopping sites have not worked globally,” says Niren Shah, managing director, of Norwest Venture Partners, a venture-capital fund. “But Amazon faces tough competition from local players and is now using Junglee as a flanking strategy – a test platform to try out categories and products before offering them on amazon.in.”

     

    Some of the progress made by Junglee in the past few months offers a glimpse into Amazon’s larger gameplan for it. From just Yellow Pages kind of listing and price comparison, Junglee now also enables transactions, including from websites that compete with amazon.in. From leaving the buyer and seller to connect with each other, beginning October 8, Junglee began offering them Amazon’s payment gateway to make things easier. And a big – and visible – lister of products on Junglee is its big brother, amazon.in.

     

    The Bigger Picture

    Junglee has 102,300 sellers – about eight times the number on amazon. in. Of these, only about 2,300 have an online presence and most compete with amazon.in: for example, Jabong, Myntra, Limeroad, Quikr and Lenskart (Flipkart and Snapdeal are absent). Amazon accommodates its online rivals on Junglee because it adds to its value proposition, it gives it a vantage point to observe and make some money out of them (5-15% of the sale price). For online retailers, Junglee is another window for potential buyers. In fact, a seller of baby products who did not want to be named says Junglee’s comparison-shopping feature makes “being on it a necessity” even though under 5% of his sales came from here.

     

    Of the 250,000 visitors who come to the website of online furniture retailer Fabfurnish daily, about 5,000 come via Junglee. “Our referrals have tripled in the last one year. But in absolute terms, it’s very small,” says Vikram Chopra, co-founder & CEO. “We believe Junglee will become relevant as more furniture players enter the market.”

     

    For Amit Agarwal, country manager of Amazon and who also oversees Junglee, the offline piece is what gives Junglee its main relevance. He trots off statistics: more than 90% of retail in India is unorganised; e-commerce accounts for less than 1% and organised retail is just 8% of the $500 billion Indian retail sector. “Via junglee. com, we are trying to organise retail in India, and bring offline stores to list online,” he says. “(The idea is) to eventually help consumers buy anything, anytime, anywhere and for sellers to expand their market reach.” The big marketplaces like amazon. in, Flipkart and Snapdeal allow only those sellers who are capable of doing business online. Junglee is different in that it also allows sellers who operate only in the offline mode.

     

    Typically, they are very small and uninitiated in the business ways of the Internet. Being on platforms like Junglee gives them additional reach and a feel of the online space. Say, a buyer in Koramangala in Bangalore, after some comparison-shopping on Junglee, decides to buy a Micromax A116 phone. Junglee presents him a list of sellers — online, offline and individuals – stocking this model, their prices and location. “He will be directed to online stores and physical stores in his locality (Koramangala)”, says Mahendra Nerurkar, who heads Junglee in India and reports to Agarwal. “He will have the option to connect directly with the physical store via contact details on the site.” Both Mr Agarwal and Mr Nerurkar hope, in time, such offline buyers will come online.

     

    The Amazon Picture

    Even as that happens, there’s plenty for Amazon India to leverage from Junglee. “Junglee is an ideal place for a first-time online shopper and a first-time online seller to experience e-commerce,” says Ankur Bisen, senior vice-president, retail & consumer products, Technopak, a consultancy. Adds Sanchit Vir Gogia, chief analyst and CEO, Greyhound Research: “It’s a de-risk strategy for Amazon to try out new portfolios and products before offering them on Amazon.” Mr Nerurkar says, unlike Amazon.in, Junglee shares user data and analytics with other sellers as well, via weekly reports.

     

    “This creates an open and neutral marketplace,” he adds. Last month, Junglee launched an Android app to enable mobile transactions; it claims 650,000 downloads so far. Mr Nerurkar declined to share details on business generated from the site. But what is clear is that with transactions, Junglee comes closer to amazon. in. The central difference is that in how they facilitate a transaction, amazon.in is a far more active intermediary than Junglee.Yet, Amazon does not want to mix up the two. “There are sellers with no online presence,” says Mr Nerurkar. “They can’t be on Amazon.in and Junglee is a platform for them. If you start clubbing the two, it will pollute the experience on the other.”

     

    In an online market that is expanding at rapid speed, Amazon is keeping Junglee. “Junglee was a great entry strategy for Amazon,” says Mr Shah of Norwest. “Now, e-commerce is growing in India. I don’t see them shutting it down – at least for another couple of years. After that if they don’t get traction, they could take a re-look.”

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2014, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • The India Client Council is a forum where some of India’s leading marketers can listen, inspire and share ideas about the future of marketing

    Facebook announces rollout of India Client Council

    By A Correspondent

     

    Facebook has announced the next step in its efforts to better serve its partners – the India Client Council. Comprised of a diverse group of leading client and agency partners, the India Client Council is a forum where some of India’s leading marketers can listen, inspire and share ideas about the future of marketing.

     

    Sachin Bansal

    “Facebook has been one of the key growth partners for Flipkart and the e-commerce industry at large. As a Council member, I’m really keen on engaging in an open and transparent idea sharing platform with other people in the Indian ecosystem to find ways in which we can grow not just our business, but trade and commerce in general.” – Sachin Bansal, Flipkart

     

    In India and around the world, the rate of people with access to digital services and devices is skyrocketing, and for many here the mobile phone has already become a true lifeline, providing information about market prices, healthcare, banking, employment and entertainment.

     

    This rapid acceleration of mobile presents businesses with unprecedented opportunities to reach their customers, but also new challenges. Facebook is committed to helping businesses navigate this changing landscape, and the Client Council makes our clients and agency partners a key part of this journey.

     

    The India Client Council list comprises Delna Avari – Head of Marketing and Communication Services, Tata Motors; Sam Balsara – Chairman and Managing Director, Madison World; Sachin Bansal – CEO, Flipkart; Mohit Beotra – Head of Brand, Airtel; Sonali Dhawan – Director of Marketing, South Asia, Procter & Gamble India; Sujit Ganguli – Head of Corporate Brand and Communications Group, ICICI Bank; Ashish Kashyak – Founder and CEO, ibibo Group; Heavent Malhotra – Managing Director, Jabong; Daniel Meynen – Marketing Director, RB India; Ronita Mitra – Senior Vice President, Brand and Consumer Insights, Vodafone India; Vishal Sampat – CEO, SMG Convonix; Samir Singh – Executive Director, Hindustan Unilever; Jasmin Sohrabji – Managing Director, India and Southeast Asia, OMG; CVL Srinivas – CEO, GroupM; Vineet Taneja – CEO, Micromax; Sandip Tarkas – President of Customer Strategy, Future Group.

     

  • Talenthouse India has partnered on this initiative as an outreach partner and will reach out to its 10,000+ registered fashion community pan India

    Myntra Fashion Incuabtor to boost careers of young fashion designers

    By A Correspondent

     

    Myntra has announced the launch of Myntra Fashion Incubator that will provide young aspiring fashion designers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build and scale their brand idea into a sustainable business venture.

     

    Talenthouse India has partnered on this initiative as an outreach partner and will reach out to its 10,000+ registered fashion community pan India on its platform to encourage young talent to leverage from the programme. The aim is to inspire young budding talent and Talenthouse is using all its resources through its digital and on-ground efforts.

     

    The one-year ‘Designer in Residence’ program will provide mentorship, infrastructure and capital support to the selected applicants and give them the unique opportunity to showcase their work at various platforms of relevance. The selected candidates will receive financial support to create merchandise for one full season and get an opportunity to retail their merchandise nationwide on the Myntra platform.

     

    Abhishek Verma, SVP, Myntra Fashion Brands said, “This fashion incubator initiative is an attempt to strengthen our commitment of building sustainable and aspirational fashion brands within the country. With the help of Talent House, we will unearth hidden talent from every part of India and give them a platform to make it big in the Indian fashion space.”

     

    Niloufer Dundh

    Commenting on the launch, Niloufer Dundh, Sales Head, Talenthouse India said “India has over 1500 fashion institutes that churn out over 200,000 graduates each year. This budding talent has a lot of potential and we at Talenthouse India like to associate with endeavours that convert classroom learnings to create business for the artist community and add value to their life. We are delighted to partner with Myntra on this project as it provides a dynamic opportunity to aspiring fashion talent.”

     

  • The number of visits on the virtual mela as well as time spent surpasses any offline brand activation initiative organised during the festival in India

    GroupM’s Grand Diwali Mela draws huge response

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Grand Diwali Mela organised by GroupM in association with Google, Amazon.in, LINE, Games2Win and Hungama.com met with a huge response with over 55 lakh visitors patronising the event. The ‘Grand Diwali Mela’ saw very high engagement with users, who spent time getting product samples @ Re.1, enjoying movies and videos, playing games and greeting each other via the LINE messenger. The number of visits on the virtual mela as well as time spent surpasses any offline brand activation initiative organised during the festival in India.

     

    The event received an overwhelming response with over 55 lakh visitors, the majority of which came from mobile phones with over 45 per cent women visitors. On October 24th, Diwali day, the mela received over 4.6 lakh visitors. In all mela visitors spent over 125,000 hours browsing various brand and entertainment stalls in the mela besides which many more hours were spent on partner sites – Amazon.in, Games2win and Hungama.com.

     

    The ‘Grand Diwali Mela’ emerged as the largest online sampling platform for brands. Over 150,000 samples were shipped across India, with 70 per cent samples going to Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns. The samples ranged from skincare and household products relevant to both men and women. To celebrate the partnership LINE Messenger came out with a set of special edition stickers for the ‘Grand Diwali Mela’.

     

    CVL Srinivas
    Rajan Anandan

    On the success of the Grand Diwali Mela, CVL Srinivas, CEO, GroupM South Asia said, “We are excited about the success of the first Grand Diwali Mela. We were able to create a great platform for consumers to come and sample products and interact with brands. It is also heartening to see the reach of the virtual mela was not restricted to the metros but filtered down to smaller towns where the digital penetration is growing exponentially. We also have seen a distinct spike in access via mobile phones, a clear indicator that India is opening up readily to mobile data and communication.”

     

    Rajan Anandan, VP & Managing Director of Google India, said “I would like to congratulate GroupM and all the participating partners for the success of the first Grand Diwali Mela. The fact that majority of the users experienced the mela from their mobile phones goes onto show the growing importance of mobile devices in India. With over 150,000 samples being tested on the platform, the initiative is likely to open up newer ways of engaging buyers online for brands and marketers on the mobile phones. Online brand activation during festivals is a brand new territory and I am confident that we will be able to scale this further next year.”

     

  • Sanchit takes on the role after two years as Digital leader for South Asia & South East Asia

    Sanchit Sanga promoted to Head of Digital Services, APAC at Mindshare

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sanchit Sanga

    Mindshare APAC, the global media agency network part of WPP has appointed Sanchit Sanga to the role of Head of Digital Services for Asia Pacific to be based in Singapore.

     

    Sanchit takes on the role after two years as Digital leader for South Asia & South East Asia. In his new role as Head of Digital APAC, Sanchit will focus on the continued development and delivery of Mindshare’s digital services to marketers, working closely with the regional in-market digital leads and global teams.

     

    Mindshare continues to focus on expanding their digital services from digital performance product integration, to working with GroupM partners like Vocanic to offer innovative Social solutions, to building an in-house Mobile Marketing practice – partnering with innovative start ups like Footmarks. As part of the drive to continually raise the quality of the digital product, Mindshare has increasingly focused on aspects such as precise audience targeting and multi-screen planning, working with partners like Crayon Data, Xaxis and the Mindshare Trading hubs.

     

    Ashutosh Srivastava, Chairman, Asia Pacific & CEO, Global Growth Markets, Mindshare Worldwide, commented on the appointment: “We are privileged to have highly talented people like Sanchit in the Mindshare family. Over the years, Sanchit has developed trusted relationships with our clients, which continually assists us to lead the industry in digital thinking. It is an exciting time to be in our business, where our understanding of media, technology and effective data usage is becoming more and more central to brand success.”

     

  • Candidates can either participate individually or as a two-member team

    Zivame.com to host its first Hackathon

    By A Correspondent

     

    In a bid to attract the attention of top notch engineering talent in the country, Zivame.com is conducting its first ever Hackathon on November 14th at its office premises in Bangalore. The all night Hackathon will start at 10am on November 14 and will go on till noon on November 15, when the results will be declared. The applicants can click here to register online for participation. Candidates can either participate individually or as a two-member team.

     

    Shyam Krishnamurthy, CTO, Zivame said, “While Zivame is a lingerie company, what sets us apart is our tech expertise. The entire consumer experience is driven by tech – from the website to the delivery to feedback.  Our technology makes the organization future ready, data driven & poised for scale. Therefore, we are always looking for exceptional engineering talent to be a part of our team. A hackathon helps replicate real life coding problems that we want to test our applicants on, in a fun and engaging, yet professional atmosphere.”

     

    Zivame is looking for both front end and back end developers to be a part of the hackathon. For front end, a team should have PHP, JavaScript, CSS3, HTML5, MySQL, Postgres, Mongo DB, HBase, Cassandra, Linux Operating System, Git, SVN and Magento as part of their stack. For back end, a team should have Python/Java, Scala, API Integration, MySQL/Postgres, MongoDB, Redis, Linux Operating System, Git, and SVNas part of their stack.

     

    The challenge for the hackathon will be announced on the spot. Emphasis of the hackathon will be on a candidate’s coding practices – reusable and maintainable code. Once a candidate applies, the Zivame team will send them relevant material to help them to start preparing for the event. The participants will be Zivame’s guests and will be offered lunch and dinner on November 14. Since the event will require candidates to work the entire night, they are requested to bring their own linen while basic sleeping facilities will be provided by the company.

     

  • India's largest online retailer, Flipkart, could begin another round of mega fund-raising as it expands its product range catering to a widening base of customers.

    Flipkart set to raise $1.5 billion in another round of mega fund-raising

    By Radhika P Nair

     

    India’s largest online retailer, Flipkart, could begin another round of mega fund-raising as it expands its product range catering to a widening base of customers. The Bengaluru-based firm will seek funding of about $1.5 billion and has begun shortlisting potential investors, according to two people with direct knowledge of the developments. “Talks haven’t begun yet and Flipkart is looking to target only a few investors that they want on board,” said one of the two persons directly involved in the process. “The fund-raising process is expected to begin in January 2015.”

     

    Flipkart, when contacted, declined comment on its fund-raising and investment plans. The company has raised a total of $1.2 billion this year and has just completed a round of festival sales marked by steep discounts. “At the pace at which it is making investments, Flipkart will deploy most of the funds it has raised by around mid-next year,” said the source.

     

    Discounting still accounts for a chunk of Flipkart’s monthly costs, with promotions costing it at least Rs 70 crore each month, according to a person who works with Flipkart at a strategic level.

     

    The company has also identified very specific areas to pump in money to ensure its goal of doubling in size by next year.

     

    Post the blockbuster festive season sales of October, when the company shipped around 80 lakh items versus 50 lakh on average, the company has revised its internal targets to reach sales of $4 billion by the end of the current fiscal, according to sources.

     

    A major area of focus is increasing the categories in which they have leadership. “It has built a lead in fashion with the Myntra acquisition. The same push needs to happen across categories,” said Manish Saigal, managing director at advisory firm Alvarez and Marsal.

     

    “Furniture and packaged food will be launched very soon,” said a person directly involved in the process. The teams are being built for these product categories.

     

    Rival Amazon India recently launched its gourmet and specialty foods category with over 155 Indian and imported brands. Amazon is yet to launch furniture. Snapdeal, on the other hand, already has a presence in these segments.

     

    “There are aggressive existing competitors and large offline players could come in very soon. It makes sense to extend its leadership now,” said Arvind Singhal, chairman of retail advisory Technopak.

     

    The seven-year-old company will launch a wider range of lifestyle products and consumer durables. It already has its range of tablets and digital accessories (Digiflip), apparel (Flippd) and home appliances and personal healthcare products such as sandwich makers and hair dryers (Citron).

     

    According to a person directly involved with the process, Flipkart will put more marketing muscle behind in-house brands.

     

    “We have seen how Myntra’s inhouse brands have performed and scaled. That is what will be done with the new brands.”

     

    For Myntra, its portfolio of about 10 in-house brands accounts for about 20% of overall sales. Its biker brand Roadster is already a Rs 100-crore brand.

     

    Flipkart’s stake acquisition in consumer appliances service provider Jeeves Consumer Services should be seen in this light. “When they have their own brand of appliances, they will have to handle servicing, warranties and other such issues.

     

    They can’t do this all on their own,” said one of the persons who spoke on this matter. A Flipkart spokesperson said through this (strategic) partnership, Jeeves will provide exclusive value-added services in ecommerce to Flipkart customers across India.

     

    “Flipkart and other marketplaces will have to invest humungous amounts into logistics and fulfilment if they want to cover even rural areas,” said Technopak’s Singhal. Flipkart has a delivery network of about 300 locations and is intending to expand its reach to even small towns.

     

    In each of these areas, Flipkart is also looking at acquisitions.

     

    When Flipkart appointed former Canaan Partners associate Nishant Verman as its M&A head earlier this year, its HR head Mekin Maheshwari said inorganic growth is a strong component of the vision to make Flipkart a $100-billion company. Snapdeal and Amazon have also made their intentions clear to acquire companies in areas ranging from mobile technology to payments.

     

    “The over-arching theme will be acquisitions as they try to bridge existing gaps and scale up faster,” said Alvarez and Marsal’s Saigal.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2014, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • AOC has initiated the first of its kind campaign on twitter under hashtag #Myaocmobile

    AOC enters tablets, smartphones category; undertakes promotional campaign on twitter

    By A Correspondent

     

    AOC India, that designs and manufactures a wide range of LED and LCD displays for global distribution, has created an innovative launch campaign for its smart-phones in India.

     

    AOC India, which is foraying into tablet and smart-phone segment with its wide range of mobile phones/tablets, has initiated the first of its kind campaign on twitter under hashtag #Myaocmobile, where customers will get to choose the date of the launch on the basis of the buzz and comments around the product.

     

    A dedicated micro-site has also been developed for the same, where a live ticker with a countdown and linked to Twitter will highlight when the product will be launched.

     

    Commenting on this, Atul Jasra–Business Head, Mobile Phones & Tablets said, “Through this unique campaign, we are giving an opportunity to the customer to decide on the date of the launch. Since social media has increasing become the go to platform for companies to interact directly with the customers, we decided to use Twitter as part of our engagement drive. We hope to generate lot of excitement and interest regarding AOC’s wide range of smart phones and tablets, which will be yet another quality product with wide range of apps and customer friendly features.”

     

  • The mess-up evoked the ire of hundreds of online shoppers, who took to social media to accuse the e-tailer of cheating them in the name of a 'big sale'.

    Snapdeal leaves shoppers high and dry on sales day

    By John Sarkar

     

    Snapdeal, one of the country’s largest online retailers, did a Flipkart on Tuesday, failing to deliver on its promises of big discounts and speedy deliveries on its Savings Day sale. The mess-up evoked the ire of hundreds of online shoppers, who took to social media to accuse the e-tailer of cheating them in the name of a ‘big sale’.

     

    “After spending crores to advertise for today’s sale, Snapdeal payment checkout page is not working,” tweeted Rohit Bhardwaj.

     

    With bitter memories of cancelled orders, out-of-stock products and website crashes on Flipkart’s Big Billion Day sale, online shoppers were hoping that its rivals would have worked out a seamless strategy to handle surges in demand.

     

    But at 7am on Tuesday, when Snapdeal started its sale, shoppers were confronted with numerous surprises including a blank site, discounted products that were conspicuous by their absence and checkout pages that did not work. It reminded them of Flipkart’s Big Billion Day sale when millions of online shoppers were left high and dry despite the e-tailer raking in Rs 600 crore in 10 hours. Later, Flipkart founders Sachin and Binny Bansal tendered a public apology for not meeting the expectations of their consumers.

     

    “Snapdeal cannot get its site to open on their sale day. At least Flipkart got that right,” tweeted The Greater Fool.

     

    While a Snapdeal spokesperson refused to comment on the day’s proceedings, industry leaders said that e-tailers in India and their logistics partners are not yet ready to handle huge spikes in demand that are usually witnessed during flash sales and festivals. “You cannot build so much of extra capacity that it will remain unused for the rest of the year,” said Praveen Sinha, co-founder of Jabong, an online fashion and lifestyle retailer.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2014, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • The company aims to generate a high buzz across all the mediums through its 360 degree brand campaign

    Irrfan Khan to be the face of IndiaMART in India

    By A Correspondent

     

    Online marketplace for businesses IndiaMART has appointed Irrfan Khan as the new face for its upcoming mega brand campaign, which is set to be rolled out soon. Popularly known for playing dynamic roles as an actor, Irrfan Khan will be the luminary pull in IndiaMART’s 360 degree brand campaign which would drive the brand philosophy ahead in the times to come. The campaign would seek to highlight the fact that IndiaMART is the gateway to fulfilling all the key requirements of buyers across the globe.

     

    Speaking on the association with Irrfan Khan, Dinesh Gulati, Director, IndiaMART, says, “IndiaMART has always stood apart for its deep commitment towards its clients, along with displaying responsibility, integrity and passion. Irrfan’s persona speaks a lot in line with these principles, and he also brings with him a certain sense of familiarity that a common man is able to connect with. Getting him on board was a natural and popular choice towards elevating the company’s corporate identity. We welcome him to the IndiaMART family, and sincerely hope to create a strong impact in the minds of our SMEs and people at large.”

     

    The company aims to generate a high buzz across all the mediums through its 360 degree brand campaign and seeks to connect with millions of buyers and sellers across the country.