Marketing experts may expect a seventy percent increase in e-commerce income on November 24, popularly known as Black Friday, according to a recently released report by the Admitad partner network. This study examined Indian internet sales on Black Friday in 2022.
There is no doubt that the expectation of higher sales traffic has influenced the marketing efforts that online businesses have run this year. Nykaa painted the Black Friday space “Pink” in an attempt to draw shoppers looking for significant price reductions on cosmetics.
On Black Friday, the online retailer Cred gave influencers who were ready to replace their phones or watches wrenches or hammers. They also received an unexpected reward for smashing the objects they were going to replace.
Considering that Thanksgiving and Black Friday are essentially American holidays, one could ask why companies would feel the need to modify these culturally specific marketing strategies for use in India. Two American holidays are Black Friday and Thanksgiving.
India is still using this tactic, correct?
Toru Jhaveri, the Stuff of Life’s inventor and strategy leader, says that firms are forcing an American custom on Indian clients, which is culturally irrelevant. It’s occurring, says Jhaveri. She believes many aspirational brands see themselves as global branding opportunities. Corporations arrange sales events in India to provide customers with an international feel.
They can portray their cosmopolitan and global ambitions of having an international consumer base and make it look like their product has a global quality. Toru Jhaveri Founder and strategy lead of The stuff of life
Brands sense a global Black Friday mood. They may promote their globalization and cosmopolitanism goals to attract a global customer base and indicate that their product is unique worldwide. It seems the brand is famous worldwide. She says, “I can’t think of any other response.”
Brand specialist Sai Ganesh, who was once the head of the Dunzo brand, provides another perspective. According to him, people who want to make quick transactions are the main target market for internet retailers. These people want to shop in December or January and did not take advantage of the Christmas deals.
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Black Friday deals facilitate process acceleration and wait time reduction. He believes that many customers who make their purchases on schedule will find them to be highly interesting.
Every retail platform aims to entice consumers with a monthly reward in the hopes that they will buy something. In its simplest form, the package simply says, “Hey, this month offers another reason to buy.” Shops use a similar strategy when they plan events to encourage customers to make purchases. He asserts that the marketing channels remain open, even though it is difficult to use them in November because there aren’t many national holidays.
It defies logic why consumers would be interested in the event, even though it makes complete sense for marketers to use the western concept as a sales slingshot.
Ritesh Ghoshal, director of Crisp Insights and co-founder of the company, thinks there’s a chance for increased consumer awareness given the recent growth of over-the-top (OTT) services and exposure to content from areas where Black Friday and Thanksgiving are major holidays.
There is also a small but rapidly growing band of repatriated Indians and expatriates in the larger Indian cities; people who have experienced these days as retail events and can familiarise the concept in their social circles. Ritesh Ghoshal Co-founder and director of crisp insights
For example, retailers frequently offer fantastic deals during Black Friday. Furthermore, there is a small but quickly expanding community of Indian expatriates and returnees living in India’s major cities. People are familiar with the concept from their own social groups because they have been involved in purchasing activities these days. This market, although relatively small but profitable, determines the amount of money spent on marketing. Digital media is the best kind to use because it has relatively low marketing costs. In addition, the market’s limited reach in a few prominent locations in India renders mainstream media outreach attempts ineffective.
The brand’s impact within its domain
The author of Decision Pinnacle, Deepti Karthik, notes that Black Friday sales frequently start at the same time as India’s winter shopping festivals. This is the time of year when every business has something fresh to offer, and the diaper market is one that is seeing a lot of demand.
As online shopping has become huge, if a price drop happens on one brand it impacts the sales of all other brands. Then it becomes a norm or else Indian brands will face a sales loss. Deepti Karthik Founder of Decision Pinnacle
The country now has access to brands that are provided by foreign businesses, thanks to liberalization. Some international companies, like Zara and Marks & Spencer, offer Black Friday bargains not just in India but in other countries as well. Because online shopping is so popular, price reductions for one brand impact sales for all other brands. She goes on to state, “After that, it becomes the standard, and Indian businesses that don’t comply lose out on sales.”
On the Perfora dental practice website, there was a Black Friday offer available. There will be a fifty percent discount from November 24, 2023, to November 27, 2023. The co-founder of Perfora, Jatan Bawa, has noticed a decline in sales during the Christmas season in their market.
Timing is advantageous, coming after Diwali when the focus shifts from sweets, creating a favourable environment for our offerings. Jatan Bawa Co-Founder of Perfora
Our target group includes individuals who shop online as well as those who have recently returned from or are planning a trip abroad for Black Friday. Our goal is to pique people’s curiosity about living overseas, especially those prospective customers who are examining the US market. He highlights the perfect timing of our products, as it coincides with the post-Diwali period when people’s attention shifts from sweets, creating a positive atmosphere that benefits our offerings.
The challenges of marketing
Despite this, one could also contend that a sizable segment of Indian consumers remain ignorant of Black Friday’s existence. All things considered, given how much significance this industry focuses on sales and marketing, most Indian customers would be thrilled to receive substantial discounts for any reason.
The co-founder of Schbang, Sohil Karia, claims that the timing of the Black Friday sale is the main problem. The US observes the holiday on the Friday following Thanksgiving. This time frame coincides with the conclusion of India’s summer vacation season.
I'm uncertain if India is ready for a Black Friday Sale immediately following the Diwali Sale. A more fitting approach for India might involve creating its unique version of Black Friday in a different month. Sohil Karia Co-Founder of Schbang
Because there are cultural differences across the country, he thinks it might not be as beneficial to just copy and paste the same idea. Nevertheless, companies can take advantage of this potential by carefully leveraging India’s tech-savvy customer base.
After the conclusion of the Diwali sale, I wonder if India will be ready to embrace a Black Friday sale. A better alternative would be to create India’s own version of Black Friday and hold it in a different month that is not as closely linked to important holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas.
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Promoting it in November as an extension of the Christmas shopping rush allows consumers to benefit from deals they might have overlooked during the celebrations. He believes that the secret is to create a story that is so compelling that it keeps drawing people back for more deals even after they have finished their initial Christmas shopping.
Ganesh goes on to say that a business may need to change the way it offers each of its particular products if it has exhausted all of its marketing budget for the holidays.
Investments are not given much thought because they fall so soon after Diwali, when brands spend all of their marketing budgets. The timing of everything is to blame for this. Promotions for Black Friday bargains utilize both earned and purchased publicity. Because it happens after the holidays, brands won’t be under as much pressure from competitors. Brands use traditional or organic media networks to advertise their items during the shorter value-selling periods. They employ public relations, but they don’t invest any longer in brand evangelists or performance marketing.
Is there a way for Black Friday to capitalize on the enthusiasm going on in India?
Experts differ in their perspectives about what the future holds for India’s Black Friday sales.
Because it falls during India’s busy holiday season, Jhaveri of The Stuff of Life believes that in the near future, neither companies nor audiences will be excited about the notion. Jhaveri and Karthik of Decision Pinnacle are in agreement. She also notes that a major reason for the businesses’ huge spike in sales on Valentine’s Day was that there was not another noteworthy event in February.
Bawa of Perfora, on the other hand, believes that the trend will both continue to grow and change. It is probable that this will expand by a factor of thirty during the next ten years, given the increasing popularity of Halloween throughout the years. This might happen at the same time as Black Friday.
“It will take time for traditions like Black Friday to find their place in India,” said Ganesh, “whereas in the USA it comes after Thanksgiving and before the Christmas shopping season.” Black Friday is called so because it signifies the shift in retailers’ profitability from red (losses) to black (profits).
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