Winning the 2022 Festive

Season with Optimal Media

Strategies
A PLAYBOOK BY MMA, GROUPM,
& AMAZON ADS
Contents

Introduction 03
Consumer sentiment around the festive season 05
Role of digital channels 10
Recommended marketing strategies 17
Case studies 25
Key takeaways for marketers 30

02
 Introduction

The 2022 Diwali festive season will be an unprecedented test for marketers.

As consumer behavior stabilizes post the two covid-impacted years, consumer behaviors have been permanently transformed. Consumer journey
has become more complex and non-linear, with digital likely to play a key role among 75% of all consumer journeys this festive season. While
consumer sentiment remains positive this festive season with 35% consumers likely to increase their festive spends from last year, the uncertain
macro-economic environment is leading to consumers being more cautious before spending. As a result, 67% of all consumer will research more
this festive season than last year.

This represent both a challenge and an unprecedent opportunity for brands. Marketers who can re-think their media strategy in line with the
changing consumer behavior will find huge success. This playbook can help marketers prepare for the festive season by understanding:

• What consumer sentiments/ behavior to expect this festive season?

• What role will digital play this festive season?

• What marketing strategies can help brands win?

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

03
Methodology Used
The report is based on two primary studies conducted in August 2022, along with proprietary data insights and
perspective from senior industry leaders

Consumer Survey Brand marketer Survey

Format: Online survey Format: Online survey

Target Group: Marketers in Mid-Large

Target Group: Active Internet Companies across categories
Users in India (n=3,000) e.g. FMCG, Durables, Automotive,
Banking (n=107)

Time frame: August 2022 Time frame: August 2022

04
What consumer sentiments
and behavior to expect this
festive season?
Consumer sentiment around festivity is optimistic
35% consumers are likely to increase their spends this festive season

Change in festive spends (as compared to last year) Reasons for increase in spends

Increase in lifestyle spends 53%

23%
35%
Life events (e.g., marriage, promotion) 49%

16% Pent-up demand 44%

26% Mobility-related spends (post COVID) 42%

Need for celebration 36%

Higher Same Lower Not decided

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

Survey question: Q1. Compared to your last year festive purchase on Diwali, how different will be your spends for this year’s upcoming festive purchase?; 06
Q2. Please select the reasons due to which you think your spends for this upcoming festive purchase will increase this year.
Consumers will also remain cautious, spending more time on research
67% consumers will spend more time researching than last year

Change in research before purchase Search Volume on Amazon.in

(as compared to last year) (indexed to Mar’22)

20%

13%

67%

Mar Apr May Jun Jul

Higher Same Not decided

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000; Amazon internal data
Survey question: Q1. Compared to last year’s Diwali, how different will be your research (ex. Checking/ Comparing products, prices etc.) for the products that you are planning to purchase in this year’s Diwali season? 07
Consumption themes remain similar to last year
Categories such as auto and home décor are likely to relatively grow this year

Purpose of festive spends Top categories of interest Change in

rank from
2021

Gifting 39% Mobiles & Accessories 38%

Fashion and Accessories 28%

Celebrations 39%
Home Décor and Furnishing 27%
Lifestyle improvement 33% Home Appliances 25%

Home renovation 31% Electronics 24%

Two/ Four-Wheeler 24%

Investment 25%
Personal Care & Grooming 23%
Leisure 19% Insurance 14%

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

Survey question: Q1. For what purposes are you likely to spend during this upcoming festive season?; Q2. Which of the following products are you planning to buy during the upcoming festive season? 08
Product quality, offers and discounts remain the primary deciding factors for
consumers

Factors affecting consumer decision journey

Product features & Quality 53%

Price Offers & Discounts 44%

Warranty & Guarantee 39%

Brand of the product 33%

Payment options (e.g., EMI, COD) 32%

Reviews & Ratings 26%

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

Survey question: Please select the top 3 factors which help you in deciding the purchase 09
What role will digital play this
festive season?
Customers have already started researching
Brands should look at building visibility now to ensure maximum coverage

Current stage of product/brand choice When will they start researching products

100%
Decided both product and brand 40%
80%

60%
Decided the product but not brand 30%
40%

20%

Not decided product or brand 30% 0%

September October November

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

Survey question: Q1. Please select the option that best describes your purchase.; Q2. By when are you planning to start searching. 11
~75% consumers journeys will be ‘digital’ influenced
Engage consumers online in order to drive consideration

76% Key channels for product research

Consumers will research or purchase
products online Online shopping (e.g., Amazon) 50%

Online search (e.g., Google) 35%

Offline Stores 31%

Social media (e.g., Facebook) 29%

41% Review portals (e.g., Quora) 29%

Consumer journeys will be ‘digital only’
Brand's own websites 25%

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

Survey question: Q1. From which of the following options are you planning to research; Q2. From where are you planning to buy. 12
Amazon.in will be a key product research and shopping platform
Amazon is a key destination to build consideration, among online and offline shoppers

66%
Consumers journeys* will involve
amazon.in

70%
Online shoppers likely to buy on
amazon.in

*buy or research for categories which are listed on amazon.in, e.g.,

FMCG, Fashion, Electronics, Smartphones, Durables etc

Source: InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3000

Survey question: Q1. Which of the following online shopping websites are you likely to visit for research before making the final purchase?; Q2. From which of the 13
following online shopping website/ apps are you considering to buy?
Brand marketing spends are likely to follow consumer sentiment
Most brands are looking to grow their overall marketing spends this festive season

Change in marketing spends during festive season Marketing objectives for the festive season
(as compared to last year)

Consideration / Lead-gen 52%

8%

Brand campaign 47%

34%
59% E-commerce/ Online sales 42%

Product launch 31%

Offline Footfalls 29%

Higher Same Lower

Source: MMA Brand marketer survey Aug’22, n=107

Survey question: Q1. As compared to last year, how are you looking at your overall marketing spends for this festive season?; Q2. What are the key marketing 14
objectives for the festive season? (choose 2 most important objectives)
Digital would be a key marketing channel for brands
Most marketers are increasing their spends on digital with median digital spends at 40%

% digital spends during festive season Share of digital spends

(as compared to last year) (% of marketing spend)

Median: 40%

12%

28%
60%

Higher Same Lower

Source: MMA Brand marketer survey Aug’22, n=107

Survey question: Q1. As compared to last year, how will the digital marketing spends look like this year?; Q2. Which are the important digital platforms from a marketing 15
perspective this festive season? (choose at max 4 most important platforms)
Marketer Outlook: ‘Digital' would be a crucial marketing touchpoint

“ Digital plays a pivotal role in our media strategy all through

the year but it’s of particular significance in festive season as
these days consumers are completing the entire journey of
festive shopping online driven primarily by choice and
“ We are excited and are getting ready to market in the age of
algorithms. With the first non-covid festive season in 2 years,
we are hopeful that consumers and demand will witness a
bounce back. In order to capture demand, we have an
convenience. aggressive 3600 marketing plan in place ranging across ATL,
The entire funnel of discovery to commerce is digitally BTL, Influencers and E-commerce. Execution eats strategy for
enabled making it imperative for us to focus our efforts too in breakfast, at L’Oreal we live by this mantra, in order to
the same direction. maximize what lies ahead of us.

”
- Anjali Krishnan, Consumer Experience Lead,
India & Bangladesh, Mondelez India
”
- Saloni Shah Javeri. Head of Media & Digital,
L’Oreal India

16
What marketing strategies can
help create recall and drive
performance?
Brands should focus on reaching relevant audiences, breaking the media-clutter,
and leveraging efficiency metric to measure true imact

Top recommendations to maximize recall and

performance during festive season

1 2 3

Reach relevant audiences using Break the media-clutter Measure true impact of
micro-segmentation based on through engaging formats marketing channels through
deterministic signals and high-intent touchpoints efficiency metrics

18
1 Reaching ‘right’ audiences

Identify qualified audiences based on probability of consumption

Relative ‘affluence’ Consumption propensity*

NCCS A Offline purchases Online purchases

50% 3.1 2.8 1.5 0.7
38%

Amazon Shopper Internet User Amazon Shopper Internet User Amazon Shopper Internet User

Refined lifestyle & self-care habits**

Health and Wellness Trend-setters Travel and Leisure

32% Exercise Freaks

Follow a exercise regime 29% Early Adopters
First to try new products and tech 23% Domestic Tourist
Takes frequent domestic trips

Source: Kantar-Amazon Ads consumer study April’21, n=5186 ; *no. of product categories purchased during Oct’21-March’21 ; ** amongst amazon.in audiences
19
1 Reaching ‘right’ audiences

Leverage audience signals across their daily routine and consumption indicators
2000+ Amazon audience cohorts: Relevant signals to identify relevant audiences
based on life-stage, lifestyle, content consumption and in-market signals

Content consumption Persona segments* Consumption of services**

Prime Video IMDB Tech. Exercise & Fashionistas OTT subscription Food delivery Bill payments
consumption-based consumption-based enthusiasts fitness -females consumers consumers consumers
audiences audiences

In-Market Researchers* Affluence, Demographic

Large Baby Fitness Top Amazon Geographic

appliances consumers*** (Pin-code Level)

*based on consumer browse/purchase signals seen on amazon.in ; ** based on payments signals seen in the Amazon Pay environment; *** based on overall spends
/no. of orders placed on amazon.in in the last 13 months 20
2 Break the Clutter

Drive visibility across digital touchpoints

Engage audiences with ‘impact’ awareness formats in the lead up to the festive season

Impact visibility Build Consideration with Drive conversions

to build recall researching festive shoppers

Video ads Custom audio

Programmatic Instream through experiences
sites/apps ATF Herofader Off-Amazon display

Drive sales from Remarket on

search through native non amazon.in
Homepage takeovers, instream video, Stores Sponsored Brands Video placements inventory
Sponsored tiles brand integration
3-4 weeks prior 1-2 weeks prior
Dussera Diwali
to Dussera to Dussera

Pre-festive period Pre-peak festive period Peak festive period

21
2 Break the Clutter

Leverage content marketing and personalization to drive recall with shoppers

Engage consumers through rich, personalized, and interactive content

Amazon Stores Rich detail pages Gamification Personalization*

(A+ content)

*Dynamic Creative Optimization (DCO) creatives

22
2 Break the Clutter

Build for both traditionally online and new-to-online shoppers

Voice and Vernacular are more preferred among new-to-online shoppers

Preference among new-to-Amazon

shoppers for Voice and Vernacular
1.8X
1.5X

30%
online consumers will be
celebrating the first festive
season online this year*

Voice Vernacular

Existing New to Amazon

Source: *InMobi Pulse – Amazon Ads Consumer study Aug’22, n=3,000; Amazon internal data
Survey question: How long have you been shopping online? 22
3 True impact of advertising

Holistically measure impact through efficiency metrics

Supplement primary metrics with efficiency metrics to evaluate performance at each
stage of the funnel

Primary metrics ‘Efficiency’ metrics

Awareness Reach, CTR Lift in Top of mind recall*

Consideration Landing page-views Share of page-views

Conversions Sales % New customers**

*lift in branded searches on amazon.in ;

** through new-to-brand customers % amongst conversions on amazon.in 23
Case studies: How have brands
achieved their festive objectives
through Amazon Ads?
Case Study

Ferrero Rocher Moments leveraged Amazon festive advertising to drive gifting sales
Combination of search and display advertising was leveraged to drive performance

Approach

• Objective was to reach high intent audiences for festive gifting opportunities during
the Diwali festive season and Super Value Days
• 2-pronged campaign:
• Display ads: Drive awareness among in-market audiences through customized
festive creatives and banners across high-engagement placements
• Search ads: Build native visibility within search results on amazon.in by building
coverage over festive and gifting keywords

“
For Diwali 2021, Amazon Ads helped us to effectively target and leverage the accelerated demand for chocolate
gifting during Festive. The brand was able to scale up gifting business and convert high intent and in-market
audiences early on in their consumer journey. Media investments were used to deploy a full funnel strategy on the

”
platform, this along with relevant messaging helped drive consideration and sales during the campaign period.

6.05 Mn 55K 17%

Results: Ad-impressions Click garnered Conversion Rate 25
Case Study

Adidas leveraged Fire TV to promote their brand campaign with Deepika Padukone
Reached audiences through a full screen experience on the homepage

Approach

• The brand wanted to reach out to new users on Connected TV and promote their
brand campaign. The Fire TV ads campaign consisted:
• 2 day 100% SoV video campaign on the ‘In Line Display banner’ slot on the
home-screen
• Audiences were exposed to a full-screen brand video (which started playing as
the user clicked on the In Line Display slot).The video covered a trailer of the
new brand campaign featuring Deepika Padukone.

11.8 Mn 2MM+ 0.56%

Results: Impressions delivered Household Reach Click-through rate 25
Case Study

Mondelez leveraged Search + Display ads to achieve 100%+ Sales lift

Focus product targeted search & display campaigns paid strong dividends

Approach

• Campaigns were segmented basis Gifting & Non-Gifting Cohorts enabling granular
control for budget optimization
• 2 pronged approach:
• Display ads to reach gifting cohorts with the creative highlighting Hero SKUs
with offers
• Sponsored ads campaigns to promote focus packs

313 Mn 0.46% 105%

Results: Ad-impressions Click-through rate Increase in sales 25
Case Study

Nokia leveraged Amazon Ads to achieve 7.5x RoI

Leverage of display & search ads to build optimal visibility with festive shoppers

Approach

• Identification of relevant audience cohorts across lifestyle , in-market and search

signals
• Deployment of a 3-pronged approach:
• Driving product discovery through premium display ads on the amazon.in
homepage slots
• Engaging intent shoppers in search through Sponsored ads to drive
consideration
• Remarketing to detail page viewers to improve conversions
• Ad-creatives focused on product benefits and variants

27 Mn ~1.5% 7.57x
Results: Ad-impressions Click-through rate Return on Ad Spend 25
Key takeaways

Consumption sentiment is Leverage ‘intent’ signals and Leverage ‘efficiency’ metrics

cautiously optimistic around cover key digital touchpoints to enrich performance
festive shopping and digital to get into consumers’ evaluation approaches
channels will play a key role consideration set
in the decision journeys

26
Thank you

MMA GROUPM AM AZON ADS

CONTRIBUTORS CONTRIBUTORS CONTRIBUTORS

Moneka Khurana Ritika Taneja Neeraj Rai

Country Head & MMA India Board Head of Ecommerce, GroupM India Sr. Marketing Manager, Amazon Ads
Member, MMA India
Suhen Singhal
Rudrashish Nag Manager - Marketing, Amazon Ads
Director - Membership & BD, MMA India
Ishan Chawla
Sr. BDM, Amazon Ads