eBay's new campaign aims at empowering Indian sellers to thrive globally: Pavan Ponnappa

In a conversation with exchange4media, Pavan Ponnappa, Head of Categories & Marketing, eBay, spoke on their new ‘Sirf Local Nahi, International Seller’ advertising campaign.

“As a company, we have always put our sellers first, and because we are an international marketplace, we don’t really sell products of our own. So eBay has always been a platform for sellers, and this new advertising campaign is meant to bring our Indian sellers to the forefront of international buyers, and show that the country has a vast category of products beyond the expected few products like fashion goods and electronics,” says Ponnappa, referring to the ‘Sirf Local Nahi, International Seller’ advertising campaign that just kicked off by the global e-commerce behemoth.

“We have been into cross-border trade for quite some time, and we want to spread the e-commerce community about the opportunities that are available here, as well as show what the sellers have been able to achieve on the platform. The best way to do that was to hear from the sellers themselves,” adds Ponnappa.

The campaign, in its first digital ad, showcases eight such Indian sellers and their spirit of conviction in their businesses. However, their stories are not stories of just financial success, but also how they determined the courses of their own lives. “We wanted to show the incredible variety and we’ve featured sellers dealing in everything from auto parts to industrial manufacturing equipment to very niche, high-end jewellery, while of course there are the usual suspects of fashion and herbal products. Apart from the cross-border trade opportunities, Indian brands are also widening across categories and we aim to highlight that,” he says

With the pandemic having proven especially detrimental to small and micro businesses and recently minted entrepreneurs, the campaign aims to capture the unique stories of sellers who struggled through, and survived, challenges to their nascent brands. However, over time and with much effort, along with advancements in logistics and supply chains, many of these brands have moved beyond the boundaries of India to conquer the international market with eBay’s cross-border platform.

“We all observed an unparalleled conviction and resilience that businesses, especially the SMEs, showcased to bounce back during the pandemic. Through this campaign, we wanted to bring to light a few inspiring stories,” remarks Ponnappa, adding, “It’s a way through which we want to encourage thousands of Indian businesses to broaden their aspirational horizon and to adopt cross border e-Commerce as a channel to transform them into proud international businesses.”

This campaign is another step towards encouraging and empowering more Indian sellers to thrive globally. Through the series of unique stories in this campaign, budding Indian entrepreneurs will get to know about the opportunity that retail export holds for them and get to hear from the sellers just like them.

“Within the domestic market especially, there is a certain perception that there are only a few big-name Indian sellers in a few categories, like fashion and electronics. With this campaign we plan to elevate these brands not just in cross border-trade, but also make them visible to buyers over here that didn’t know that these local players here are making products that are being sold internationally,” explains Ponnappa.

While the advertising campaign is currently digital-only, as it picks up steam, eBay plans to take it across mainstream platforms as well. “We started with digital, because of course, that is where most of our communication takes place, but in the long run, we’re probably going to take it offline as well,” concludes Ponnappa.