By Archit Agarwal
India’s annual festival season typically commences around September and continues through to the end of the year. During this festival season, the spike witnessed in online shopping is nothing short of astonishing! In fact, in the year 2023, the GMV of e-commerce during the Indian festive season reached over 900 million Indian rupees. Consumer tech brands usually take advantage of this surge by creating discounts or promotions targeted to capture festival shoppers. But in such an eclectic and competitive market as India, capturing the attention of the shoppers requires more than just attractive offers on the products alone. This is the main reason why AI-powered hyper-personalisation is becoming increasingly important to stand out in order to maximise this festival surge.
Hyper-Personalisation in India’s festive landscape
Deep cultural and emotional connections between consumers and brands characterise India’s festive season. People often purchase gifts not only for themselves but also for family, friends, and communities, fostering a communal shopping experience. During this time, hyper-personalisation of the shopping experience can offer unique interactions for each consumer, tailored based on real-time data analysis of preferences, purchase history, and behaviour. Some shopping platforms have begun to employ AI to understand consumer tastes and expectations across regions, languages, and religious practices, delivering personalised experiences. This is particularly crucial in India, where consumer preferences vary significantly across different demographics.
Personalising Indian festivals with AI-powered insights
Optimising the shopping experience during festive Indian seasons such as Diwali or Dussehra with personalised product recommendations is key to creating an enjoyable shopping experience for consumers who purchase home decor items, gifts, and ethnic wear during these festivals. AI-powered personalisation plays an essential role in satisfying customer festive needs by analysing customer preferences and shopping behaviours to deliver recommendations tailored to these festive necessities. Multiple e-commerce platforms employ artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse browsing patterns and suggest relevant products, like ethnic clothing, festive lighting, or decor for users’ purchases based on individual likes. Thus, improving the user experience while increasing conversion rates during festive rushes.
Regionalised festive offers enhance cultural relevance
Hyperpersonalisation allows brands to provide regionalised festive offers tailored to regional celebrations. Given India’s diversity, festivals like Diwali often generate increased interest in home decor and tech gadgets. Onam and Pongal festivals might drive consumers to shop for traditional garments or kitchen appliances. Several platforms utilise AI to analyse customer shopping patterns and deploy hyper-localised deals tailored specifically for each region or culture. Such strategic localisation ensures brands connect deeply with consumers across regions, strengthening brand loyalty while maximising sales during festive periods by tapping into specific cultural contexts.
Festive customisation and enhanced consumer engagement
Festive customisation also enhances consumer engagement by creating an enjoyable shopping experience on platforms. Some e-commerce brands excel at using AI to deliver tailored landing pages featuring festive decorations—such as Diwali-themed banners, greetings, and notifications about products for the special event—to their shoppers, making their experience both more satisfying and engaging with festivities. Festive customisation not only elevates shopping experiences but also fosters feelings of involvement with festivities that help bring about purchase excitement among consumers.
Boosting customer loyalty through personalised rewards
During India’s festive seasons, consumers look for more than transactional relationships from brands they buy from. They usually look for brands that reflect their values and traditions and foster a sense of community and belonging. AI can assist brands in building long-term customer loyalty by offering tailored rewards during these high-engagement periods. For instance, a popular e-commerce website uses AI to personalise its loyalty program so customers get special access to products during Diwali and other festivals, ultimately increasing customer lifetime value through repeated purchases.
Addressing data privacy and fairness in AI
AI-powered hyper personalisation can be powerful yet also raise concerns over data privacy, particularly in India, where consumers have become more sensitive about how their personal information is being used. Transparency and compliance with India’s growing regulations on data protection are vital in building trust with customers; brands must clearly communicate how they use customer data for personalised offerings while adhering to laws such as India’s Personal Data Protection Bill.
Fairness in AI algorithms is also paramount. Brands must ensure their AI systems do not perpetuate biases, especially in an array of countries like India where cultural sensitivities and regional differences must be respected. AI systems should be trained on inclusive data sets in order to avoid any inadvertent discrimination through recommendations or offers.
Leveraging Hyper-Personalisation to stay competitive
India’s festive season can be incredibly competitive, with brands contending for consumer attention. By providing real-time data and tailored experiences, consumer tech brands can not only boost sales during Diwali and Christmas but also build lasting relationships that extend well beyond these festive seasons. Due to India’s complexity and diversity, hyper-personalisation will become both a competitive advantage as well as essential for long-term brand survival and success. Those who successfully implement AI-powered personalisation during high-traffic periods will see tangible advantages such as customer satisfaction, loyalty, and revenue growth.
The author is co-founder, Crossbeats. Views expressed are personal and not necessarily those of financialexpress.com.
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