E-tailers go all out to keep sellers happy

Offer cars, foreign trips, office makeovers to top sellers

Sellers with e-commerce players in the country would get more than a pat on their backs if they help the firms in gaining the top online marketplace tag. E-tailers such as Flipkart, Amazon and Paytm Mall are picking up a trick or two from old-school sectors such as the automotive industry, and are now giving away shiny new sedans, trips to Europe and the US, gold by the kilo and office makeovers to their top sellers.

After earning more than a billion dollar in gross merchandise value (GMV) during its mega Big Billion Day sale, Flipkart is now sharing the bounty from the windfall with its 100,000-plus sellers. It is giving away prizes - three new cars, trips for two to international destinations, smart televisions worth lakhs and office makeovers via interior designers - to its top 100 sellers. It is also rewarding employees of the sellers.

The company has been scaling up its rewards and recognition programme over the years and is organising the biggest yet this year. "We are giving away a brand new sedan and two hatchbacks. A few people will get their whole office changed by a team of interior designing professionals. We will take care of the costs. Also, there are holiday vouchers for couples. We had our biggest festive sale yet and it was because of sellers that we achieved success, so it is only fair that we celebrate it with them," said Nishant Gupta, director-marketplace, Flipkart.

The company has kept aside a massive budget for this and is planning to increase it in the coming years. "We will give away more cars, holiday vouchers after the next festive sale. As we grow, so would the rewards and recognition process. We want to ensure each seller of ours is happy and proud to be associated with us," Gupta said.

Global marketplace giant Amazon has made the rewards and recognition process a year-long thing - it gives incentives to its sellers for a variety of different things. "Sellers are awarded for most in-demand fulfilled by Amazon selection, for selling maximum number of products in a section, achieving the highest amount of sales using Amazon sponsored products. From brand new iPhones to smart televisions, we give away a lot of gifts to our sellers," an Amazon spokesperson said. However, the biggest prize they offer to their sellers is a chance to fly to the Amazon headquarters in Seattle and interact with the leadership team.

Not to be left behind, Paytm Mall, which had its first festive sale this year, is giving away gold by the kilo to its sellers.

The trend of incentivising dealer partners has been quite popular in the Indian automobile industry. Leading carmakers such as Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Honda and Hero MotoCorp, among others, take their dealer partners on foreign trips every year. Early this year, the country's biggest carmaker took 300 dealer partners on an all-paid trip to Australia. Hyundai, the second-biggest carmaker, took 400 dealer partners to Berlin and Warsaw.

These trips usually last for five-seven days and dealers are accompanied by the top management of the company. Besides rewarding them for their performance, the trip is also used as a platform to apprise the dealers of the company's future plans and business strategy. Brijmohan Munjal, the late chairman and founder of Hero MotoCorp, had started this trend of taking dealers on foreign trips.