Brands
Snapdeal crosses 100 million app downloads
Gurugram: Snapdeal, India’s leading marketplace, has crossed 100 million app downloads on Google Play Store.
Snapdeal’s growth, built basis a sharp focus on serving India’s vast and growing value-conscious segment, is reflected in the rapid growth in its app downloads, which have grown rapidly in the last 12 months – climbing from 73 million in October 2018 to crossing 100 million in October 2019, a gain of 37%.
“The 100 million android app downloads are a reflection of our leadership and granular understanding of Bharat-focused e-commerce. We are delighted that our efforts to improve access, convenience and value for millions of users across India continues to grow and deepen the e-commerce market in India”, added Snapdeal.
Snapdeal has made several additions in its app to cater to the comfort and convenience of those starting their online journeys. This includes a continuous feed that is personalized for each user, allowing users to discover relevant products in an engaging way. In addition, the app features SD TV – which has thousands of short product videos highlighting the functionality and salient features of popular products.
Based on feedback from users, Snapdeal has added various fun and engagement activities on its app. More than a million sessions of Spin the Wheel, Scratch Cards, Daily Visits Recorder, Timer-based challenges etc are unlocked every day on the Snapdeal app. These gamification initiatives incentivize users in a variety of ways through instant rewards, special deals etc.
Snapdeal’s growth is also evident from its growing traffic. In October 2019, the monthly traffic to Snapdeal crossed 240 million visits – recording an all-time high.
As per SimilarWeb data of September 2019, Snapdeal with its 848 million visits to its web & mobile sites in the last 12 months is the third-largest e-commerce platform in India after Amazon and Flipkart.
It is more than four times the size of the Chinese e-commerce platform, Club Factory – which with its 205 million visits in the last 12 months is a distant #4 in the Indian market.
Snapdeal is now eight times the size of Paytm Mall, which recorded about 106 million visits to its web and mobile sites during October 2017-September 2018.
Snapdeal’s growth is based on a strategy of pursuing growth basis healthy unit economics while simultaneously maximizing the operating efficiency of the marketplace. As per audited financials for the FY 2019-20, Snapdeal’s consolidated revenues grew by 73% (from Rs 535.9 Cr in FY 18 to Rs 925.3 crore in FY19). Simultaneously, it also reduced its loss by 71% (from Rs 611 Cr in FY 18 to Rs 186 Cr in FY 19).
Pursuant to its Snapdeal 2.0 strategy unveiled in August 2017, Snapdeal has sharpened its focus on the needs of the value-conscious buyers in India. This market of 400 million potential buyers is the fastest-growing segment in Indian e-commerce. In the recently concluded Diwali season, Snapdeal saw growth not just in terms of traffic and app downloads but also witnessed 52% increase in order volumes this festive season, with 90% of its orders coming from non-metro users.
Snapdeal’s growth in traffic and increase in volumes is also due to the deepening of its focus on value-priced merchandise. In the last two years, Snapdeal has added 60,000+ new seller partners, who have added over 50 Million new listings aimed at building a deep assortment of products relevant for value-savvy buyers. Snapdeal now has more than 500,000 registered sellers, who have more than 200 million listings on the marketplace.
Brands
Uber launches hotel bookings feature in partnership with Expedia
From hotel bookings to room service at your door, the ride-hailing giant is making its boldest push yet into everyday life
CALIFORNIA: Uber is done being just a taxi app. At its annual GO-GET product event, the world’s leading mobility and delivery platform unveiled a sweeping set of new features designed to plant itself at the centre of how people travel, eat and shop, hotel bookings included.
The headline move is a partnership with Expedia Group that lets Uber users in the United States book hotels directly within the Uber app, with access to a catalogue that will eventually grow to more than 700,000 properties worldwide. Uber One members get 10 per cent back in Uber One credits on all hotel bookings and savings of at least 20 per cent on a rolling list of more than 10,000 hotels globally. Vacation rentals from Vrbo, Expedia Group’s home-rental brand, will be added later this year. The partnership is expected to expand beyond the United States. From June, Uber rides will also be integrated directly into the Expedia app, with push notifications sent to travellers ahead of hotel check-in to book discounted Uber rides for the duration of their stay.
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Uber, framed the expansion in terms of the modern condition. “Uber is becoming an app for everything, helping people go, get, and now travel all in one place,” he said. “We’re all living through a moment of real cognitive overload: too many apps, too many decisions, too much noise. At the end of the day, our job is to help people reclaim their time, spending less of it managing the logistics of life and more of it actually living.”
Ariane Gorin, chief executive of Expedia Group, struck a similarly ambitious note. “Travel should feel effortless, and this partnership gets us one step closer to offering a seamless traveller experience,” she said. “By connecting our two-sided marketplace with Uber, we’re bringing Uber rides directly into the Expedia app and Expedia Group’s lodging inventory into the Uber app through our Rapid API technology. Together, we’re helping travellers spend less time planning and more time enjoying the journey.”
Beyond hotels, the product announcements come thick and fast. Travel Mode, available within both the Uber and Uber Eats apps, offers curated recommendations on local favourites, tourist destinations, OpenTable restaurant reservations and on-demand delivery to hotel rooms. Uber One International means the membership programme now works globally, allowing members to earn credits on rides abroad that can be redeemed once back home. A new Shop for Me feature lets users request items from any store, even those not listed on the app. Eats for the Way allows riders in select cities booking an Uber Black or Uber Black SUV to have a drink or snack waiting for them in the car. Voice Bookings, powered by artificial intelligence, lets users book a ride conversationally, without touching their phone. And a redesigned One Search bar consolidates results for places, food and items across the entire Uber platform in a single query.
Uber has now logged more than 72 billion trips since it launched in 2010. The question it is now answering is what comes after the ride. The answer, apparently, is everything else. Whether users want a hotel in Paris, a coffee in the back of a car or a snake plant from the local garden centre, Uber would very much like to be the one to provide it. The app economy’s land grab has a new front-runner.
NOTE: The image used is AI generated and only for representational purposes.
