Online marketplaces in India are trying everything under the sun for boosting their sales and making their presence felt in every sector of the market.
Last month, we saw Snapdeal venturing into the business of selling motor vehicles online for offering an “integrated buying experience”. Under this, the customers would be able to get their vehicle loans approved within two minutes of making the purchase.
As of now, Snapdeal not only allows the users to book 2-wheelers (from Suzuki and Hero) and Piaggio commercial vehicles online, but it also lists Yachts. Yes, yachts!
Following the footsteps of its competitor, Flipkart has also started to list bikes and cars on its portal. In this initial stage, this service is available only in Bengaluru.
The company has partnered up with two local dealers for selling automobiles online. It has signed up with Khivraj Motors for listing Bajaj bikes, and Kalyani Motors for selling Maruti Suzuki cars online.
With this move, these e-commerce giants want to sell everything to their customers. They list home & kitchen appliances, jewellery, automobile accessories, personal care products, gadgets, stationery items, etc. but now, they want to take it to the next level.
“There is a paradigm shift in the way people shop online today, with more and more unconventional categories like automobiles and auto accessories, small home appliances, personal care and jewellery gaining popularity,” said Anil Goteti, VP Business at Flipkart, in an email response to Business Standard.
Why E-commerce Giants Want To Venture Into Unconventional Product Categories?
These e-commerce giants want to retain their customer and hence are offering everything right from everyday items to luxury items like jewellery and even automobiles (now).
If properly executed then this strategy will create a strong brand affinity in the minds of the consumers, as a result they will always check on these e-marketplaces first before making any purchase. And once you have customer’s attention, then all you have to do is offer him something that nobody else can offer, and the customer is yours.
All the leading e-commerce companies have been pushing the customers to buy via their apps for a long time now. These companies track user behavior on their apps, and hence in turn are in a better position to tap them by showing relevant products matching their interests and search queries.
Why Flipkart Ventured Into Selling Automobiles Online?
Automobile accessories has been among the top 10 product categories for Flipkart receiving huge traffic from Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. Hence venturing into selling automobiles online makes complete sense.
“Evidenced through the latest data as revealed by FlipTrends, a comprehensive and in-depth view into how India shops online, automobiles emerged as one of the fastest growing categories online,” said Goteti.
“Following this trend, Flipkart is now ready to expand this category and add automobiles under the umbrella. Ease and convenience of online shopping, for millions of Indians, is what is driving phenomenal growth in the sector and we are happy to catalyze (this for) the automobile industry”, Goteti added.
This (automobiles) is a completely new segment for any e-commerce player in the country. Being a data-based decision, we expect it to grow at a rapid pace in near future. But then, we also can’t be so certain about it. What do you think?
