By Neeta Nair
Online furniture brand Urban Ladder’s stance is that its products blend style and functionality that differentiate it from the sea of e-commerce stores today. Ashish Goel, CEO & co-founder, Urban Ladder, tells us how the brand has grown manifold a year after it caught the attention of top investors such as Ratan Tata
Tell us about Urban Ladder’s latest campaign ‘Your Furniture Knows’ and the insight behind it.
The idea behind the campaign is fairly simple. We make furniture that is very thoughtfully designed, keeping form and functionality in mind. We understand why furniture is a very integral part of one’s life and therefore, the problem it should solve in a customer’s life. We also do a lot of consumer research to understand their requirements and come up with products that can help make their day-to-day life easier, and more comfortable. Therefore, we use this understanding to create thoughtful furniture. We wanted to share this thought in the campaign ‘Your Furniture Knows’.
What is the marketing mix for the campaign and which medium would be the focus of your ad spends?
We launched the campaign on YouTube and it will be live on television. It is a fitting mix of both the platforms.
Being an e-commerce brand, how important do you think is advertising on the digital medium and what percentage of your ad spends do you dedicate to it?
The digital medium is an important element of our marketing mix. Social media tools are also becoming increasingly popular for content discovery. Apart from the new campaign ‘Your Furniture Knows’, we had recently released a short film called ‘The Homecoming’ which was played on digital channels only. It had very successful traction on social media platforms and YouTube.
At present, Urban Ladder delivers in around 17 cities. Do you plan to target the smaller towns as well, considering that those places have fewer options compared to cities, when it comes to furniture?
We will look at expanding to more cities in the coming year. We will be present in up to 25 cities next year.
You recently invested in branded content by rolling out a short film called ‘The Homecoming’. How effective is that as a medium of advertising?
Content marketing is a big lever for brand visibility and awareness. Diwali is a time when a lot of people look for home improvement and furnishing options and being on top of their minds during this time has always had a significant impact. That is exactly what we did for ‘The Homecoming’. Content marketing helps connect with customers on the larger brand thought instead of mere focus on sales alone. ‘The Homecoming’ has received more than 9,00,000 views on YouTube and has been well appreciated by viewers for the story and the execution. It has impacted traffic significantly as well.
Besides furniture, do we see Urban Ladder getting into advising people to design their homes anytime soon?
We offer that service today if customers ask us. Right now, it is not a seamless experience. We are working on the back-end. By January-end, we will have an offering to give that seamless experience.
People browse online stores for designs and then send them to local furniture marts to make, because they like to feel their furniture before buying. How are you tackling that challenge?
Furniture is a complicated product to buy. It’s a high touch and feel product, and is non-standard. It’s also a higher ticket purchase than most other purchases. To give our customers a better experience of buying furniture, we understand that the front-end experience of the website and mobile apps should help the consumers easily discover, navigate and browse the selection of products. It should also help consumers get true and rich information around each product, and make them get a sense of both how the product looks and fits in their house. Very importantly, it should give them a sense of trust. To build trust, we have a no-questions-asked return policy where a customer can return our products for any reason, even if that reason is that they don’t like the way the product looks. There will be absolutely no questions asked.
Your competitor, FabFurnish is rolling out a hyperlocal marketplace to address the problem. How feasible do you think that is, and do you have plans to start similar offline stores?
We will not have offline stores. We have to get to a point where the Indian consumer says I have got brand Urban Ladder, a brand I love and with products that are fantastic; pricing is great, service is off the charts and it is delivered in the convenience of my home.
What differentiates you from competition, what is the USP of Urban Ladder?
Urban Ladder has carved a niche as India’s leading online furniture company. We invested in understanding furniture logistics by carrying out logistics and delivery in-house to ensure the customer does not have to deal with damaged products or the hassle of assembling and installing the product. It is also interesting to note that the entire team has adopted an intense consumer-focused approach - right from product thinking to delivery and assembly, which has eventually led to a very high and consistent NPS score, a score of 67.5 that is higher compared to leading global giants like Amazon (64), Zappos (60) and Southwest Airlines (62). The furniture is closely curated with design inputs from our in-house team of experienced designers. We aim to provide shoppers with a wide range of contemporary designs, and high quality, hand-crafted furniture that blends beauty with functionality along with easy accessibility. The website’s seamless user interface and easy navigation enhance the virtual showroom experience.
Which markets have been contributing greatly to the growth of the brand? Looking ahead, which areas do you see as potential growth drivers?
While it is largely the metros that have driven our growth, we have been expanding to Tier II and Tier III markets and we foresee a huge growth potential in these cities. With an increasing disposable income and more exposure and awareness, online shopping is making its presence felt in the smaller cities and they are poised to help us take the next big leap.
What kind of challenges do you face while marketing the brand?
Digital marketing should be highly targeted and focused to ensure we are not unnecessarily reaching out to people not in our TG.
Urban Ladder is amongst the first few start-ups to have got funding from Ratan Tata. What have the brand’s achievements been since then?
We have been able to grow significantly since then – in terms of our reach, product portfolio and sharpening our design aesthetics.
ABOUT THE BRAND
Urban Ladder, an online furniture and home décor company, aims to provide a curated destination for home solutions, to help the urban Indian build well-furnished, beautiful homes. It offers more than 4,000 products in 35 categories such as wardrobes, sofas, beds, dining tables, storage shelves, etc., Urban Ladder is backed by top tier venture capital firms Steadview Capital, SAIF Partners, Kalaari Capital, Sequoia Capital and TR Capital. Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, has also made a personal investment in Urban Ladder. The company has raised $77 million in funding.
Marketing Tip
Focus on a few things, but do them well
CMO FILE
Ashish Goel co-founded Urban Ladder with Rajiv Srivatsa in July 2012 with the aim of making it India’s largest online furniture destination. After his graduation from IIT- Mumbai and MBA from IIM- Bangalore, Ashish joined McKinsey & Company as Engagement Manager and led project teams across banking, healthcare and real estate clients for over four years. He went on to serve as Managing Director of India Book House and Chief Operating Officer at Amar Chitra Katha Media, where he worked on developing a portfolio of products that use innovative technology and India-centric content.
FACTS
Creative agency - Lowe Lintas, Mumbai
Media agency - MediaCom
PR agency - Genesis Burson Marsteller
Feedback: neeta.nair@exchange4media.com
