THE
TELESHOPPING BUSINESS IN INDIA
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HOW THE INDIAN TELESHOPPING MARKET WAS WON
During the late 1990s, the traditional Indian societal setup of joint families
gave way to nuclear families. In the metros and even some smaller cities, the
number of families where, both the husband and wife were pursuing careers had
increased substantially and there was little time available for shopping
outdoors.
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Teleshopping companies believed that this segment offered tremendous
marketing potential and would easily take to convenient shopping from their
homes. In addition, the networks decided to target the premium-end TV viewers,
with high purchasing power. The growing sophistication among these customers
enhanced their readiness to try new, innovative products, even at a premium.
While deciding on the product-mix, teleshopping
networks focused more on offering innovative and value for money products,
which were not available in the market otherwise. These were primarily,
impulse buying products, aimed at attracting viewers and inducing them to
take an buying decision promptly. Thus, a select range of imported
products were offered that mainly included electronic goods, fitness
devices, home appliances and toys. The networks sourced their products
with help of their agents (both in India and abroad) who identified and
certified the quality of these products. In some instances, the
manufacturers of the products approached the networks directly for
marketing and distribution of their products.
The India-based networks such as ASK
also offered products made in India apart from their imported range. |
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In early 2000,
many local players also entered the teleshopping market and began offering
products on local cable channels.
However, the imported products were more successful as compared to the Indian
products being offered. Analysts attribute this to the novelty of imported
products and the inherent customer orientation towards foreign goods in India.
In the early 2000s, the networks began offering various customized products such
as jewellery with birth-stone, which became very popular. New products were
introduced constantly to attract customer attention and ward off competition.
The products offered were broadly divided into two categories, Utility products
(fitness devices, heathcare/autocare products, household appliances and
electrical devices) and Value-expressive products (jewellery, apparels and, home
decor). The range of product offerings increased through 2001 and encompassed
many more products that included electronic goods, toys, clothes, books and
music (Refer Table II for some of the popular teleshopping products). Utility
products accounted for a majority of teleshopping sales in India, while
value-expressive products registered low sales. Explaining the rationale behind
this, analysts said that Indian customers were used to go to their trusted
shop-keepers for buying such high-value products and liked to ascertain the
product's worth by physically handling and inspecting it.
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TELESHOPPING TRAUMAS
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
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