Affiliate network Admitad analyzed more than 500 thousand online orders that Indian users made in the two weeks of Independence Day and Raksha Bandhan celebrations, and compared them with the results of July and Independence Day celebrations last year.
According to the network, the total amount Indian users spent online in the last two weeks grew by more than 5% compared to that of last year.
However, the growth cannot be called record-breaking – it rather reflects the overall growth of e-commerce in the country. The average check of purchases over this period rose to 3500 INR. The cities with the highest number of online orders during the holidays were Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Patna, Jaipur and Bengaluru.
A triumph of mobile shopping
Users had no time to order from their computers during the festivities. More than 50% of the total orders were made through mobile devices. Indians preferred to shop literally on the go, with a couple of clicks from their smartphone screen.
Last year, the share of mobile shopping was also higher than on ordinary days which means that the trend of mobile shopping during festive periods is increasing every year – brands should definitely look at how they are engaging with mobile shoppers and offer them additional benefits during the festival season.
Indians dressed up for the occasion
According to Admitad’s calculations, the most popular category this holiday season was Fashion including outfits, shoes, and accessories at about 39%. Other popular categories were electronics (19% of orders), home goods (12% of orders), beauty products (9%), travel (6%) and sport goods (2.5%).
The record-breaker in terms of order growth compared to the “ordinary” period in July was the category “Electronics” – its online sales increased 12% during Independence Day and Raksha Bandhan. The home and child goods industry also experienced growth by 9% and 7% more respectively during the holidays.
Neha Kulwal, Managing Director, APAC & India, Mitgo, said, “Brands were prepared for the holidays – this is evident in the sources from which customers came. For example, affiliate stores took the leading position in the number of attracted orders – every 5th order was made through affiliate stores. This shows the importance of affiliate campaigns throughout the marketing funnel.”
Affiliate stores, cashback and media attracted customers
Coupons and cashback took the leading position in performance marketing. Admitad’s data showed that 16% of Indian clients used coupons. Not only this, users applied coupons 25% more often than in 2023.
Despite the holiday euphoria – Indians didn’t miss out on their gains. More than 15% of orders were inspired by generous offers of cashback services which led to Cashback sales growth by 28% compared to last year.
Contextual advertising was also among the most effective tools, with an 11% increase in the number of brands incorporating it into their holiday marketing strategy in 2024. Brands also focussed on recommendations of content platforms and online media which witnessed a growth of 13%.
Brands should consider these insights as they prepare for an active fall season. Festival season, Black Friday and other large-scale events are ahead that are sure to attract millions of shoppers. But only those brands that make the right use of fresh trends will be able to win the battle for their attention.
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