Social commerce is a booming market in India, currently valued at $5 billion in GMV, with potential to reach $70 billion by 2030. Over 40 million small businesses and entrepreneurs could benefit from social commerce, but several challenges must be addressed.
These include simplified shopping, scalable trust-building, made-for-commerce propositions, smart curation, tools for sellers, unlocking new consumer segments, reimagining high value categories, and building enablers for the social-commerce ecosystem. Indian startups are invited to apply and develop solutions to these challenges.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
1. The startup should be based in India and should have a valid legal registration (or willing to register in the near future).
2. The startup should have a product or service which supports social commerce platforms or an innovative idea to create one.
3. Your team should have a strong desire to build a company and ideally should have experience in building projects in the past.
4. The startup should have a minimum viable product (MVP) or a prototype that demonstrates their solution to one or more of the challenges outlined in the problem statement.
5. The team should have a broad knowledge base to draw upon and an passion in keeping up-to-date with the latest technologies.
6. The startup should have a scalable business model that can generate revenue and create sustainable growth.
7. The startup should be able to demonstrate their potential impact in empowering small businesses and entrepreneurs in India to expand their reach and supplement their income.
8. The startup should be willing to collaborate with other stakeholders in the social commerce ecosystem, such as payment and logistics providers, to build a more robust and seamless social commerce platform.
9. The startup should be willing to participate in mentoring sessions, workshops, and networking events with other startups, industry experts, and potential investors.
10. The startup should be willing to participate in a pitch competition where they will showcase their social commerce solution to a panel of judges and potential investors.
Challenges and Opportunities in Unleashing the Full Potential of Social Commerce in India
Social commerce is a fast-growing market in India, currently valued at $5 billion in GMV. Experts predict that it will surge to $70 billion by 2030. The potential of social commerce to empower over 40 million small businesses and entrepreneurs to expand their reach and supplement their income from other channels is immense. Nevertheless, to fully unleash its potential, social commerce must overcome some challenges.
Simplified Shopping
To minimize drop-offs and improve customer experience, there is a need to develop means for customers to discover, evaluate and buy products on the same platform.
Scalable Engagement and Trust-building Propositions
To build trust and simulate the offline engagement experience, scalable solutions such as video, buyer-seller chats, and peer recommendations are needed.
Made-for-commerce Propositions:
A structured process for sellers to be discovered by potentially interested buyers, expanding their target population in a scalable manner.
Smart Curation, Product Discoverability
A simplified and smart process of product discovery, especially as the number of products available grows exponentially, plus integration of social behaviour-led insights to deliver curated, personalized shopping experiences.
Development of Tools/Applications for Sellers
As the ecosystem of social commerce evolves, sellers will need better tools to manage their business through these channels, such as chatbots, digital storefronts, and order management tools that integrate with various social platforms.
Unlocking New Consumer Segments
To engage the more affluent, urban consumers, there is a need to unlock social commerce for this segment. Use cases like FMCG/grocery, where people in India enjoy buying as a group, might be a way to engage this demographic.
Reimagining High Value Categories
To lower the trust deficit for high value products or services, companies in these categories will find it useful to build social-first models where a community-based product could lower the trust deficit.
Building Enablers for the Social-commerce Ecosystem
Logistics and payments are key enablers to any e-commerce ecosystem, and there is wide scope to build solutions that work more seamlessly with social platforms and social-led businesses.
Others
Anything not mentioned above in the social commerce enabler space.
Deadline:- 31-05-2023
