Festive Gifting goes Digital with e-cards

GURUGRAM:
Snapdeal, India’s leading value-focused marketplace has seen digital gift cards gain in popularity over the past few days as users look for safe and convenient gifting options for friends and family. Instantly delivered over email, these include gift cards of travel, entertainment, food and retail brands etc.

While the overall sale of digital gift cards has increased by 80% over the last festive season, gift cards relating to online brands like Big Basket, Grofers, Myntra, Nykaa, Urban Company have seen maximum growth this year. For this Diwali season, Snapdeal has an expanded range of gift cards from leading retailers like Fabindia, Raymonds, Levis, Zivame, Croma, Decathlon, Westside, Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop, Home Center, Big Bazaar, Bata and many more. The e-cards can be used both in the online and offline stores of the brands.

The highest discount on gift cards has been for OTT & content platforms – SonyLiv and Zee5 cards are available at 50% & 25% discount respectively. A 365-day access to Hungama is available at a 50% discount. Tinder subscription is priced at a 29% discount. Digital e-cards from travel businesses like Makemytrip, Yatra. Thomas Cook, Cleartrip, and Ola are also some of the most sought-after gift options as many have started taking short trips, staycations and workations with the ease of travel restrictions. These offer discounts upto 10%.

The F&B range of gift cards has an extensive selection and includes Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Dominos, Chaayos, KFC and leading restaurants in metro cities. Many of these offer attractive discounts. This year, Snapdeal has added a healthcare category with e-gift cards from Cult Fit, Netmeds, Medlife, Nuayurveda, Callhealth, Apollo Health and more.

Digital Gift cards are also popular as a Karva Chauth gift with jewellery brands such as Kalyan gold jewellery, PCJ diamond and Voyla offering deals with 5% off. “Festive season is the time to exchange gifts with friends and family. Over the years, gift cards are becoming more popular, especially with metro users. Based on inputs and past trends, we had increased the assortment to cover a wider range of gifting options, with attractive discounts on many popular options”, said a Snapdeal spokesperson. “We have also seen gift cards usage grow significantly for online brands, OTT platforms & wellness offerings– a reflection of current lifestyles”, the spokesperson added.

Most of the e-cards come with a one-year validity. In addition to the instant discount on card purchase, these cards also provide an opportunity to increase the total discounts by using the gift cards on the many online and offline sales which will happen over the next few months. Snapdeal has concluded two editions of its ‘Kum Mein Dum’ Diwali sales. The second sale concluded on November 1, ’20. It also has four uniquely themed e-stores for the festive season including stores for Karva Chauth, Dhanteras, Bhaiya Dooj and one for all lighting needs for Diwali.