Description
The e-commerce market in India was valued at INR 4,947.60 Bn in 2019 and is expected to reach a value of INR 8,641.10 Bn by the end of 2025, expanding at a CAGR of ~14.42% during the 2020-2025 period. To stay afloat in the competitive market, e-commerce companies are incorporating advanced technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), voice recognition, fintech, robotics, virtual reality, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in their online platforms.
Market insights:
E-commerce companies are using virtual and augmented reality (VR & AR) to create virtual showrooms/stores which can provide real-life experiences to customers. These showrooms feature detailed product previews and imitate in-store experiences, which further increase customers’ satisfaction and reduce product return rates.
Payment choices including credit and debit cards, net-banking and e-wallets cater to ~30% of online sales when compared to the cash on delivery (CoD) payment option in India. With support from the government’s Digital India initiative, cashless payment solution using Fintech is expected to enhance the e-commerce market in India. Consequently, e-commerce companies are incorporating Fintech-based payment platforms like Apple Pay, Google Pay and Amazon Pay to improve the security and efficiency of online payment methods.
Artificial intelligence allows e-commerce businesses to identify patterns and trends, which help retailers understand customers’ requirements better. Using AI and ML, e-commerce companies are offering marketing strategies, personalized suggestions, voice-based chatbot assistance and visual searches. Amazon uses machine learning technology to improve address quality, which facilitates timely delivery of packages to its customers.
From managing warehouse to making deliveries, robotics has helped boost e-commerce business operations. In 2019, Flipkart Internet Pvt. Ltd. deployed 100 Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in its Bengaluru sortation center to increase its efficiency by 60%.
By 2021, 70% of the retailers across the world are expected to use IoT technology in their businesses to improve customer experience, enhance supply chain management and unravel new opportunities to increase their net revenue. Indian e-commerce companies are heavily investing in IoT devices such as sensors and RFID tags, among other devices, to achieve real-time visibility in their warehouses. Apart from instantaneous tracking and monitoring of warehouses, these IoT devices also eliminate chances of human errors while handling goods.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, majority of the e-commerce logistics players have moved completely to online payment methods. One such method is OTP-based contactless delivery wherein the delivery executive drops the package at the customers’ doorstep without any physical contact, and verifies the delivery through an OTP sent to the customers’ smartphone. Amazon and Flipkart have already implemented this to method to ensure the safety of customers and delivery executives.
Companies covered
• Adobe Systems India Pvt. Ltd.
• Akamai Technologies India Pvt. Ltd.
• Amazon Internet Services Pvt. Ltd.
• Cloudflare, Inc.
• Google India Pvt. Ltd.
• IBM India Pvt. Ltd.
• Microsoft India Pvt. Ltd.
• Neustar Data Infotech (India) Pvt. Ltd.
• NGINX Inc.
• Oracle India Pvt. Ltd.
