Meesho’s Soumitra Choubey on democratizing e-commerce for millions of Indians

Meesho has unveiled the latest edition of its trend-setting Meesho Trends campaign with fashion influencer Nancy Tyagi. This campaign is especially addressed to the sensitivity of Generation Z consumers. “This audience segment, known for its emphasis on self-expression through fashion, fits perfectly into the core identity of the Meesho brand. Meesho has been strategically using creative content as a cornerstone of its brand strategy for the past few years,” says Soumitra Choubey, Associate Director – Brand Marketing, Meesho.

Meesho’s creative campaign vision is based on a multi-agency approach. Meesho partners with both established players such as DDB Mudra and specialists such as Moonshot Creatives to ensure exceptional quality and strategic execution. Meesho also relies on its in-house creative team to further enrich the creative process.

In a conversation with Storyboard18, Soumitra Choubey, Associate Director of Brand Marketing, Meesho sheds light on the inspiration behind the Meesho Trends campaign and delves deeper into the importance of Gen Z as a core demographic, explores the strategic role of digital media investment, and more.

Could you elaborate on the broader goals of the Meesho Trends campaign, in particular the focus on this event? Additionally, we appreciated the insight into the strategic rationale behind selecting Nancy Tyagi as a key contributor.

Meesho Trends caters to the needs of Generation Z consumers. Known for their emphasis on self-expression through fashion, this audience segment fits perfectly into Meesho’s core brand identity. For several years now, Meesho has been strategically using creative content as a cornerstone of its brand strategy.

Understanding Generation Z’s perspective is most important. This demographic, consisting mainly of students and young professionals, wants the opportunity to showcase their individuality through style. This desire, however, is balanced by an emphasis on fiscal responsibility. Meesho Trends solves this problem by catering to their fashion aspirations while ensuring an affordable price.

This focus on creative content led us to explore the concept of an ecosystem of content creators for campaigns. Nancy perfectly illustrates this concept. A pioneer of the Meesho Mall Creator program, she has been creating engaging Meesho Mall content on YouTube for years. Her channel serves as a rich archive, showcasing her ability to identify trends and translate them into effective content.

Our year-long collaboration with Nancy marks a successful partnership. We see her as a natural fit to inspire the next generation of Gen Z creators. This event provides a platform to celebrate her achievements, learn from her expertise, and ignite the spark of creativity in the Gen Z community.

How important is Generation Z as Meesho’s target audience?

Meesho sees Generation Z as its core audience for future growth. We are witnessing an increase in the number of Gen Z users under the age of 25 joining the platform. This demographic, either entering college or starting their first career, is very fashion conscious and self-expressive. For them, authenticity is the most important thing. They have a strong sense of self-confidence and express their individuality freely, unencumbered by judgment. Importantly, they look for value alongside self-expression. This convergence of style, authenticity and affordability is a perfect fit for Meesho.

Could you provide an overview of its key mechanisms to better understand the Meesho Trends campaign?

The Meesho Trends campaign was a strategically executed initiative that aimed to establish Meesho as the leading Gen Z fashion platform. It was divided into three distinct phases:

The campaign launched in January and focused on traditional media channels. This decision reflected a strategic understanding of the importance of reaching a wide audience, especially those who may not be active on digital platforms. The digital channels on TV have been specifically selected to cater to the younger demographic, ensuring that the message resonates with Meesho’s core target audience. This phase was a great discovery and the introduction of Meesho Trends as a separate sub-brand in the Meesho ecosystem.

The campaign turned into a social media competition. The aim of this phase was to engage a wider range of users of all generations in India. The competition encouraged participants to express their personal style and showcase their creativity regarding fashion trends. He created an interactive platform where users could discover new trends and shop directly through Meesho. Commitment was the main theme. The Meesho team actively engaged with participants for 60 days, reposting videos and engaging with users, especially on Instagram, to generate excitement.

The campaign then concluded with a ceremony to select the top five winners, one from each of the five different cities. Content creator Nancy Tyagi is taking part in this final phase, further expanding the campaign’s reach and impact within the Gen Z community.

Can you expand on the role of digital media investment in the Meesho Trends campaign?

Through a series of trials and adjustments, Meesho has identified an effective media investment approach that leverages the strengths of digital and traditional media.

The strategy starts with leveraging TV channels that suit Meesho’s target audience. This creates a strong brand foundation in a specific demographic group. Following the foundations of television, Meesho is expanding its reach through established digital channels such as YouTube and Meta (formerly Facebook), maximizing brand exposure. Further engagement is fostered by building affinity on platforms like Snapchat, where Meesho delivers content tailored to users’ specific interests. Meesho also leverages organic content creation on Instagram and Facebook to continually increase brand awareness.

For high-impact events such as product launches or campaign activations, Meesho strategically uses influencers such as outdoor banners and billboards. This creates a sense of excitement and buzz around key events. The statement goes a step further by highlighting a specific example – a five-city outdoor media plan. This initiative personalizes the campaign experience for competition winners. Content created during the event will be displayed in the winners’ cities, inspiring a sense of pride and accomplishment.

What lesser-known market trends and detailed consumer insights are emerging, and how can a platform like Meesho leverage them to unlock competitive advantage?

Meesho recognizes the changing dynamics of social media influence and is capitalizing on the power of regional creators and creator commerce. We are witnessing a decentralization of meaning, connection and influence. This translates into the growing importance of regionalization. Interactions with consumers in tier 2 and 3 cities across India reveal a clear trend. Consumers are increasingly turning to local creators – those near them and who speak their language – for inspiration, education and guidance. These regional characters have a greater degree of authenticity compared to pan-India superstars. While established stars still have their place, the undeniable trend is the rise in popularity of regional artists.

Another significant event shaping the future of social media and the creator ecosystem is the emergence of creator commerce. Previously, cooperation between brands and creators focused primarily on building reach and affinity with the brand. However, the landscape is evolving. Nowadays, creators are increasingly monetizing their content.

Meesho recognizes the enormous potential of maker commerce and has established itself as a pioneer in this space. Meesho creates a vibrant community of creators with a powerful base. Thousands of creators actively participate in the Meesho affiliate program, generating content and driving conversions. Through a revenue share agreement, Meesho provides creators with direct compensation for their contributions, effectively “closing the bottom of the funnel” and creating a mutually beneficial partnership.

What cutting-edge technologies or strategies are driving the evolution of the Meesho brand?

Meesho has leveraged Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI) as a powerful tool in its marketing ecosystem. This technology acts as an enabler for creating initial mood boards, brainstorming sessions for new ideas and concepts, and translating abstract thoughts into concrete visual representations. Artificial intelligence even plays a role in creating some of Meesho’s social media content.

However, Meesho recognizes the importance of authenticity in marketing. Large-scale, “mainstream” content often resonates more with audiences when it features real people. This is perfectly in line with Meesho’s core value of fostering real relationships with consumers. That’s why Meesho strategically focuses its use of AI primarily in the creator ecosystem. This allows AI to improve internal creative processes while ensuring that real people remain at the forefront of Meesho’s marketing efforts.

At Meesho, our mission is clear: to democratize e-commerce for millions of Indians. It’s not just a slogan; it is the driving force that motivates every member of our team. We believe that everyone deserves access to the best deals and hassle-free online shopping.

What truly sets us apart is our commitment to offering a “second price” for everything. We achieve this in two key ways. Firstly, unlike other platforms, we do not charge commission ourselves. This allows us to prioritize affordability for our customers. Secondly, we leverage a solid network of third-party logistics providers. By optimizing delivery efficiency, we can pass these savings on directly to consumers. This translates into a powerful value proposition: the best possible price for you.

Meesho is not just about affordability for buyers; it’s about opportunity for sellers. We have created a seamless and seller-friendly platform that has enabled millions of Indian entrepreneurs to take their businesses online. This influx of sellers translates into an unparalleled depth and breadth of diversity on Meesho. You simply won’t find the same quantity and variety of products anywhere else. As the saying goes, “Meesho pe sab kuch hai or hum ne sab kuch sahi-sahi lagaya hai” (There is everything on Meesho and we have shown it all perfectly).