Narendra Modi called out loud in search for “Digital India”, and its untapped potential. I for once was excited to finally see someone realize the impending demand of Indian corporate world. Our digital work finds buyers abroad and not within. It had put me to think that who needs “Digital India” support from the Government? Should that necessarily be a large enterprise with a Digital vision? I think it should be companies like gearBoB and Flipkart who are in open fighting it out with the likes of Amazon & ebay(s) of the world.
Someone recently told me the concept of E-commerce portals and the study by logistics firm Gati. It has found that one out of four products sold online in India is returned. In mature markets, this figure is 33%, going up to 50% for some e-tailers. If home trials reduce returns significantly, it could be a huge win-win for e-tailers and customers. I visualize one step further, what if it is done on my laptop or mobile?
World is awaiting platforms where e-tailers could come home not just to deliver products, but to measure you up for a denim jeans, see in advance whether your new sofa will fit the decor of your living room, and even to show you a range of clothing before you decide on one. India’s intellectual capability is known to the world, and we need not reiterate it here.
In e-commerce categories like personal accessories, apparel, furniture and even electronics, customers still like to touch, feel and try before purchase. The e-tailers’ lenient and efficient return policies are only adding up to this problem. As per Gaurav Bajpai, founder of gearBoB they are working on a project called denimtreat.com which will offer virtual trial rooms (for all denim products & accesories) that enable buyers to check out how products look on them via an interactive webcam, these are the options that customers are comfortable with.
"The variation point for online shopping will happen if your screens can become the trial rooms," says Gaurav. This online trial room is an outcome of his interaction with a Noida-based company which is struggling to offer try-and-buy concept in the city, under which customers usually order 3-4 products of different hues and sizes to try at home. He continues “This is painful but unfortunately funded as much as they could. Their delivery executive will wait till you try on the merchandise. You can purchase either one item, buy all, or you have the option to return everything”. And I wondered again, here is Digital India that could come to rescue if Government takes it more seriously.
E-tailer Tailorman sends its tailors over to either your office or home. Be it a suit or bandhgala, the tailor is geared with fabric swatches along with styles for you to choose from on your tablet screen. "The demand for this service is more for men's formal shirts and suits," says Yukta Mathur, founder of Tripgrapher. She adds that this is the level of personalization that can raise the awareness of the brand significantly.
Last year, online jewellery store Purplestone launched its 'Home Try-On' service across the country's top metros. Buyers can choose several pieces from the online store, jewellery consultants then further curate selections based on the buyer's tastes, and these are then brought home. "This service is available for jewellery across price points and currently we get about 50 to 100 requests every day. The average sales conversion rate is 80%, with the average purchase bill being Rs 50,000," says Rohit Verma, CEO and co-founder of Purplestone.
Online premium furniture store Qkea ships high-value sofas, priced upwards of Rs 40,000, and other select furniture items to your home for trials. "We are trying to solve the fundamental problem of consumers wanting to know how a product is and how it would look inside their homes. Conversion rates are as high as 70%," says company founder Rajiv Srivatsa. If there could be a service that asks consumers to ensure that the entire family, all those who are part of the decision-making process, is present during the home trials before a Laptop, I want to invest into it.
Most home-trial offers are free for now. Whether they will continue to be so is not certain. Home trials add to cost, but so do returns. I think there are alot of last-mile vendors ready to explode into the global marketplace through internet. Just for the sake of re-iteration, if things can be made cheap yet effective over the Internet, India is the destination, or let me correct, Digital India is the destination.
more such stories on Litmus News
Someone recently told me the concept of E-commerce portals and the study by logistics firm Gati. It has found that one out of four products sold online in India is returned. In mature markets, this figure is 33%, going up to 50% for some e-tailers. If home trials reduce returns significantly, it could be a huge win-win for e-tailers and customers. I visualize one step further, what if it is done on my laptop or mobile?
World is awaiting platforms where e-tailers could come home not just to deliver products, but to measure you up for a denim jeans, see in advance whether your new sofa will fit the decor of your living room, and even to show you a range of clothing before you decide on one. India’s intellectual capability is known to the world, and we need not reiterate it here.
In e-commerce categories like personal accessories, apparel, furniture and even electronics, customers still like to touch, feel and try before purchase. The e-tailers’ lenient and efficient return policies are only adding up to this problem. As per Gaurav Bajpai, founder of gearBoB they are working on a project called denimtreat.com which will offer virtual trial rooms (for all denim products & accesories) that enable buyers to check out how products look on them via an interactive webcam, these are the options that customers are comfortable with.
"The variation point for online shopping will happen if your screens can become the trial rooms," says Gaurav. This online trial room is an outcome of his interaction with a Noida-based company which is struggling to offer try-and-buy concept in the city, under which customers usually order 3-4 products of different hues and sizes to try at home. He continues “This is painful but unfortunately funded as much as they could. Their delivery executive will wait till you try on the merchandise. You can purchase either one item, buy all, or you have the option to return everything”. And I wondered again, here is Digital India that could come to rescue if Government takes it more seriously.
E-tailer Tailorman sends its tailors over to either your office or home. Be it a suit or bandhgala, the tailor is geared with fabric swatches along with styles for you to choose from on your tablet screen. "The demand for this service is more for men's formal shirts and suits," says Yukta Mathur, founder of Tripgrapher. She adds that this is the level of personalization that can raise the awareness of the brand significantly.
Last year, online jewellery store Purplestone launched its 'Home Try-On' service across the country's top metros. Buyers can choose several pieces from the online store, jewellery consultants then further curate selections based on the buyer's tastes, and these are then brought home. "This service is available for jewellery across price points and currently we get about 50 to 100 requests every day. The average sales conversion rate is 80%, with the average purchase bill being Rs 50,000," says Rohit Verma, CEO and co-founder of Purplestone.
Online premium furniture store Qkea ships high-value sofas, priced upwards of Rs 40,000, and other select furniture items to your home for trials. "We are trying to solve the fundamental problem of consumers wanting to know how a product is and how it would look inside their homes. Conversion rates are as high as 70%," says company founder Rajiv Srivatsa. If there could be a service that asks consumers to ensure that the entire family, all those who are part of the decision-making process, is present during the home trials before a Laptop, I want to invest into it.
Most home-trial offers are free for now. Whether they will continue to be so is not certain. Home trials add to cost, but so do returns. I think there are alot of last-mile vendors ready to explode into the global marketplace through internet. Just for the sake of re-iteration, if things can be made cheap yet effective over the Internet, India is the destination, or let me correct, Digital India is the destination.
more such stories on Litmus News