In inclusion with sentiments and happiness, the festive season comes with deals and offers for buyers to swear by. But with the COVID-19 still being the reason for the forbiddance of offline purchase, usage of e-commerce websites and marketplaces have increased.
Undoubtedly, the Indian e-commerce industry has surged, especially after the onset of this pandemic. Not only has established e-retailers boosted their businesses over this time, but we can see many Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands entering the market and earning profits. To showcase the same, the Indian festive month has solely witnessed a huge difference in terms of sales figures that e-retailers have acquired.
Covering and comparing all the e-commerce festive trends, ANS Commerce’s report throws light on the sales volume along with new marketing ideas and warehousing trends, its partner brands have followed this festive season. Right from the difference in the sales volume from that of the last year, to new marketing trends including digital products, to segment-wise changes, we have curated a whole bunch of trends for you. So let’s dive deeper and take a look at the festive season sales insights!
Comparing offline sales and online sales, many rational minds are opting for the latter than the former. To count a few reasons, no contact delivery is the major intention for people to go online. Not only can you get your products on time, but can also avoid the transmission of the virus. This notion has gotten said popularity from online retail brands, especially amid the Diwali season.
Hoarding clothes and other items was a trend amidst Diwali, but this year, there is an upsurge in the trend, especially on e-commerce websites including both marketplaces and independent brandstores. There is seen 2.5X more sales at 20% – 30% reduced cost with the assistance of marketing optimization, multi-city logistics, and lower order return.
Let’s unpack the sales volume exhibited amid the festive season. The sales have turned out to be a megahit this year as our partner brands reported to have done sales of ~34 Cr. Gross Merchandise Value (GMV). Enumerating the volume of items shipped this year, brands have pegged shipment volume of ~5.7 lakhs of products this year. The upsurge unravels how new-age digital channels such as D2C and omnichannel have become a necessity for e-commerce businesses.
No one can forget the first four months of this year when there was an absolute fear of the pandemic, resulting in a lower number of sales. But did we ever imagine that this Diwali will bring light and prosperity to e-retailers?
To add in the facts there is a clear-cut difference between 2019 and 2020. The report counts in the average order size with an increase of ~20% from that of last year’s. From this. you can absolutely sense how individual customers have spread the hype of online purchases this year.
The major upside to online sales during this pandemic is the non-COD payment option. In fact, there are many brandstores that are declining the option of cash on delivery as cash transfers can potentially become a carrier of infection. This has resulted in a rise of ~58% of the share of pre-paid (non-COD) payments.
Warehousing and fulfillment also play an eminent role when it comes to e-commerce sales. With an almost ~155% increase in the GMV as compared to the year 2019 for the same set of brands, it’s quite obvious that warehousing and supply must have played an incredible role to execute the operations. So, talking about the trends, the Stock Keeping Unit (SKU) on brandstore has increased by 20% – 25%, resulting in better depth and breadth of inventory.
Along with the drift, the preference of brands has also seemed to change with the rising number of stock-keeping. To enable simple, fast, and reliable delivery, brands are seen to get fascinated by multi-city warehouses and omnichannel delivery options.
With sales and warehousing, there’s another aspect to e-commerce that’s been transitioning amid the festive season. Marketers around the nation have come up with seasonal marketing ideas to change the digital attire of their brandstore. Offers and discounts sound like traditional concepts when it comes to incorporating them into marketing ideas, especially in 2020. Each year brands perform something new in terms of marketing, but this year the creativity seemed to go a step further. And, the result has been fruitful as the share of new shoppers has increased.
To head towards victory, marketers, and e-retailers have introduced many digital products to encourage their prospects. This year, there is an upsurge in E-gift cards and warranties.
The main focus remained on customer-loyalty plans, the brands have chosen to use loyalty programs and payment offers to lower customer acquisition costs.
Diwali is the season where you can come up with new offerings as it’s the peak time of the year when people look for new and creative options to gift their loved ones. Keeping that in mind, many new and established brands have expanded their product portfolio and introduced a varied combination of product mix for their customers.
We are well aware of festive traditions – buying new clothes is one of them. Like each year, this year also Fashion & Lifestyle continued to win the race as it is the major contributor in sales.
Health has been a major concern this year especially for new mothers and infants, leading to a spike in the Mom & Baby Care category with 14X.
In the current scenario of washing and sanitizing each item, there is a surge in the hygiene and germ control category itself. The brands under this segment have forced people with their aggressive marketing campaigns to stockpile products such as vegetable wash, surface disinfectants, and sanitizers.
This indicates the fact that this year has been full of prosperity and happiness for e-commerce brands. ANS Commerce has supported its brand partners with brandstore tech, warehouse & fulfillment, performance marketing, and marketplace management.
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