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October 3, 2016
Vivina Vishwanathan, Mint
Mumbai, 3 October 2016
If
you are an online shopper, you will find yourself in the midst of the
annual festival sales offered by various e-commerce companies. This
year, e-commerce companies, such as Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal
kicked off their annual sales from the first week of October.
Flipkart’s
Big Billion Days 2016 began from 2 October and will end on 6 October.
Day 1 is for fashion, home d�cor, televisions and home appliances. Day
2 is for mobiles and mobile accessories. Day 3 is for all other
electronic items and days 4 and 5 are for the complete range of
products.
Amazon’s Great Indian Sale ends on 5 October while
Snapdeal’s Unbox Diwali Sale will end on 6 October. ShopClues offers a
10-day sale which ends on 10 October.
Deals and offers
The
discounts range between 10% and 70% depending on the product and the
website you shop from. Along with this there is an additional cash back
offered by banks if you use their debit or credit cards.
For
instance, SBI’s debit card holders get an additional discount for
buying on Flipkart during the sale period. “SBI’s credit card holders
can avail 10% instant discount of up to Rs5,250 during the offer
period. This is in addition to discounts given by the merchant,” said
Vijay Jasuja, chief executive officer, SBI Cards.
He further
said that merchant-offered equated monthly instalments (EMIs) have been
a big driver of sales. “We anticipate EMI purchases to contribute
significantly to the overall card spends this year too,” said Jasuja.
Banks tied up with e-commerce companies expecting more spends.
“Last
year, we saw a growth of over 30% in our total credit card spends
during the festive season. E-commerce spends rose considerably, upwards
of 45% during the same period,” Jasuja added.
Similarly, HDFC
Bank Ltd has offers for Amazon customers, while American Express has
tied up with Myntra and ShopClues to give additional discounts.
Keep in mind
Experts
say that compared to the last 2 years, the discounts are lower this
time. “If you notice, the message around discounts and offers has been
very subtle and e-commerce companies are now focusing more on
sustainability.”
Hence, consumers will, in a way, get less
discounts than in the last couple of years,” said Ankur Bisen, senior
vice-president, retail and consumer at the retail consultancy Technopak
Advisors.
The retailers know
that consumers will buy and sensitivity to discounts is lower during
the festival season. “There is a large segment that still buys around
the festivals and we are seeing overall growth in consumption,” said
Devangshu Dutta, chief executive officer, Third Eyesight, a retail
consultancy firm.
But to make
the most out of what is on offer, shop around. Some companies give
additional discounts if you buy through their app. So, you may get
instant deals if you download the app and then buy.
Check your internet connectivity to avoid any glitches. Also, by registering with the websites, you can checkout faster.
Using
credit cards and debit cards can give you additional discounts.
Remember that no e-commerce platform offers additional discount for
cash on delivery. Hence, choose the mode of payment wisely. Clean your
browsing history as most of the e-commerce firms use algorithms to
understand what you need and that could impact the prices.
Happy shopping.
(Published in Mint)
