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Festive shoppers lift budgets, but trust and research outweigh discounts: InMobi study
Our read
Festive winners will be the retailers that turn research into reassurance: transparent product truth, dependable fulfillment and AI-ready discovery will matter more than the deepest discount.
For operators
Prioritize transparent product information, credible reviews, search and social discovery content, and AI-assisted cross-channel journeys to convert higher festive budgets without relying solely on discounts.
Watch
Conversion-rate gap between content-rich product pages and promotion-led landing pages.
The report,
Indian festive shoppers are raising budgets but prioritising brand trust, quality and research over discounts. Online reviews, search and social discovery shape purchases, while interest in AI shopping assistants is high and buying activity is increasingly concentrated in the final month before festivals.
- Consult online product reviews75%
- Use search for product research53%
- Use social media or influencer content47%
Channel facts
From the report. Source details below
- 77% of festive shoppers increased budgets from last year
- 27% cite brand trust as the top purchase consideration
- 75% consult online product reviews
- 80% want an AI shopping assistant
Other figures
- 73% purchase online
Signals to track
- Search, social and creator-assisted traffic share versus direct and paid-performance traffic.
- Review volume, rating velocity, return-reason trends and customer-service contacts related to product mismatch.
- AI-assistant usage, recommendation-to-cart rate and abandonment after AI-led product comparisons.
- Same-day pickup adoption, order-cancellation rates, promised-versus-actual delivery performance and store inventory accuracy.
The counter-case
The case against this reading — not reported by the source.
The findings may overstate both festive spending resilience and the shift away from discounts. A stated budget increase does not equal higher real spending after inflation, credit use and category trade-downs. In a price-sensitive festive market, trusted reviews and social discovery can influence consideration while discounts, delivery promises and marketplace pricing still determine checkout. The reported appetite for AI assistants may reflect novelty rather than durable usage or willingness to share data.
The source
Published
First seen