AskmeBazaar gamifies year-end sale

HYDERABAD: Online marketplace AskmeBazaar has launched a gamified sale platform, Santa The Price Slayer, for its year-end sale. Much like AliExpress’s strategy for increasing customer engagement ahead of its Single’s Day sale this year, the game ensures customer stickiness and return to the website.

“The users are asked to choose the product and can go on to play the game for discounts within the margin provided by sellers,” said Manav Sethi, group Chief Marketing Officer and head of digital strategy at Askme. Launched earlier this week, the gamified platform has resulted in 10% increase in traffic and 20% increase in time spent, he added.

The online marketplace which sets up store fronts for offline merchants has been aggressive in adding new categories such as grocery and furniture this year. It was also reported to be on the lookout for raising US$ 100 million of funds to expand its e-commerce business.

The slow buying period during the year-end has seen multiple marketplaces incentivising customers to buy online through curated deals and games.