E-commerce, a sector that created significant buzz in the late 90s, has bounced back. Top e-retailers are showing immense interest in experiential marketing and outdoor advertising. India has emerged as the fastest growing and largest Internet market in terms of number of users in the present time. It is interesting to note that the purchasing pattern of Indian consumers has become non-virtual. E-shops are now looking at connecting with potential costumers extensively on offline platforms.
Another important feature to note is that even the established brands have really small distribution scale, particularly in Tier I and Tier II cities. Thus Online gives these brands a great platform to reach consumers across the country. Online brands thereby use offline communication mediums like on ground activities for not only brand awareness but also for engagement.
Looking at the intensity and galloping growth of the e-commerce industry in India several brands mainly fashion e-retailers took a step forward from online to on ground expansion in the year 2014.Currently marketing spends for e-commerce firms account for 25-40% of their overall spending. Here we look at the broader picture.
To name a few celebrated affairs of this year, Jabong launched ‘The Jabong Online Fashion Week’ in the month of July. Jabong being an online fashion store stepped out of its virtual boundaries to embrace experiential in unique and innovative ways. Jabong with Talenthouse India launched the ‘India Online Fashion Week’, a great example to start with. At this five day festival, Jabong engaged fashion designers and stylists from across the country, hosting several competitions. At this event Jabong had enough engagement for both its participants and viewers. It allowed its guests to pick and shop from the fashion show itself. Thus this experiential activity gave Jabong a leg-up on its competition.
Well not only this it has also become the official jersey partners of Mumbai FC in the Hero Super League.
Another online retailer eBay did an unusual thing which was a gym work out session with ace cricketer Virat Kohli.
eBay, in partnership with NGOs Save the Children India and the Virat Kohli Foundation held a charity auction online. The item that was auctioned was a work-out session with the cricketer. The charity auction received immense response with the highest bidding at Rs 1.57 lakh. The money generated at the auction was given to Special Care Center School to provide aid for 245 mentally challenged and hearing impaired children. Also, the highest bidder at the auction got a chance to have a one-hour gym session with Kohli.
It is said that for eye optical brands that the only way they can let the customer understand the product is through experiential means. Thus this brand- LensKart engaged its potential buyers through on-ground activities such as eye checkup camps in corporate areas across major cities at free of cost. This gave people a chance to check their eye power. By doing this the company gave its buyers a chance to see the LensKart collection and place orders with on the spot.
LensKart.com also provides its customers a home eye checkup program where they can have their eyes checked by a specialist with a minimal fee of INR 100. Lenskart also offers a ‘Try At Home’ facility where they allow consumers to place requests for a set of any 5 glasses which are then sent to their doorstep. After trying them on, if they like it they can finalize purchase and if not, they can return all of them and then call for another set being free of cost.
Another renowned fashion e-tailer recently launched its very own fashion weekend- Myntra Fashion Weekend, in Mumbai. Yes it was none other than Myntra. From Rina Dhaka to Masaba Gupta to showcasing Vero Moda’s collection by Karan Johar, Myntra fashion weekend proved to be a treat to fashionistas. This grand event witnessed the presence of Hritik Roshan, Kalki Koechlin, and a few other celebrities. “Fashion is what gets created, Style is what we put together” and hence by associating with such events we get a close peep in understanding fashion that helps us in styling our range of products,”said Gautam Kotamraju, Chief Creative Officer, Myntra.
Moving further, KOOVS, an online fashion destination collaborated with Nikhil Chinapa for its experiential venture. To celebrate this unconventional, outlandish range and the association of Koovs with Nikhil, an underground gig dedicated to the culture of EDM was organised in Mumbai. Initiating an experiential activity like “Go Underground with NikhilxKoovs”, Koovs has created a lot of anticipation witnessing consumer exhilaration. Providing a spectacular platform to budding artists around the nation, Koovs has built a brand connect with its consumers. “It’s not about brand value; it’s about doing something that our customers find interesting. Putting customers first is always the best way to build any brand and Koovs is always looking at new and interesting relationships within the fashion world and outside – we also have some great collaborations lined up over the next 12 months – but you’ll have to wait and see!” said Mr. Robert Bready, Creative & Retail Director, Koovs.com.
