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1. WHERE TO SHOP: As part of GOSF, most leading e-commerce companies are running deep discounts and purchases could be made at any of those. Additionally, buyers can also access GOSF sale through the gosf.in website, which displays trending deals across websites. One could also use price-comparison websites to find the best deals available. Some of the e-commerce websites participating in GOSF this year are snapdeal.com, amazon.in, ebay.in, limeroad.com, shopclues.com and jabong.com
2. FLIPKART GIVES A MISS: In case you were refreshing flipkart.com’s homepage and waiting for the deals to start, the e-commerce major has chosen not to participate in GOSF this year. The Bengaluru-based e-tailer was an active participant in the previous two editions of GOSF. However, this year the dates of Google’s event clash with Flipkart’s Big App Sale, where the company is offering discounts to buyers who make purchases through its mobile application. Experts believe Flipkart’s decision might have stemmed from the fact that the company has managed to create a strong branding for itself and does not need to piggyback GOSF to attract buyers.
3. 2013 EXPERIENCE: Launched in 2012 by Google to boost online shopping in India, GOSF saw over two million unique visitors (half of which were women) last year, according to data released by the internet giant. Leading e-tailers like Snapdeal, eBay and Myntra had said they witnessed a significant uptick in sales during GOSF 2013. According to Google, the over 200 e-commerce websites that participated in GOSF saw a rise of three to four times in sales. While several other online sales in the past have experienced heavy traffic during morning hours, GOSF 2013 had seen peak traffic between 2 pm and 8 pm.
4. EXCLUSIVES: This year, Google India has created an ‘exclusive launch corner’, where it will release several of its products for the first time for Indian buyers. Under this category, the company is expected to launch Google Nexus 6 smartphone, along with Chromecast, a digital media player developed by Google.
5. GLITCHES: Technical glitches have become synonymous with online sales in India. Even as websites would be better prepared for handling traffic after Flipkart’s ‘Big Billion Day’ fiasco, some buyers say they faced issues while making purchases this morning as well. While some said they were unable to complete transactions on some websites, a few others said when they added certain items to carts their prices automatically changed to undiscounted rates.
6. POLICIES: Like for several other online and offline sales, various e-commerce websites change their return and exchange policies during GOSF. Therefore, before making any purchase, it is best to check the website’s policies in case you are not sure about a product. There is also a need to be careful about services like cash on delivery, which might not be available at some websites. With deep discounts, some websites could give free shipping a miss and charge buyers for deliveries.
7. 299 CORNER: To charm the price-sensitive Indian buyers, GOSF has this year launched another section, the ‘Rs 299 Corner’, where all products listed will be available for Rs 299. Several e-tailers such as Snapdeal, ebay, Jabong, Firstcry, Fab Furnish, Lenskart and Yepme.com are offering the Rs 299 deals on products like wrist watches, electronics, clothes, linen and furnishing.
8. UNIQUE OFFERS: You might chance upon the most unusual deals during GOSF 2014, as participants for the event include several offline retailers, car manufacturers, restaurants, financial institutions and real estate companies. As part of GOSF, Tata Housing is selling residential apartments at several of its projects across Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai and Ahmedabad, according to a newspaper advertisement. There are also categories like mobile apps, automobiles (including brands like Fiat, Mahindra, Renault, Chevrolet, Ford and Nissan) and jobs (including job portals like Naukri, Shine and Monster), besides health care, travel and luxury premium products. You could even buy an insurance policy on discount during GOSF.
9. SOCIAL MEDIA: Social media is already buzzing about GOSF 2014, with #72HoursOfCrazy trending on micro-blogging website Twitter. According to current updates, several buyers have shared grievances over not finding good deals, however, several others are excited about the exclusive launches that the event has promised.
10. OFFLINERS’ FEARS: The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), a body comprising medium and small retailers, has registered a protest with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, saying the sale on Google, with larger data resources than Flipkart or Amazon, could be a disaster for brick-and-mortar retailers. Offline retailers, which had condemned Flipkart’s 'Big Billion Day' sale, could display greater resistance to GOSF. While the Flipkart event was limited to one portal and was for one day, GOSF is spread across the e-commerce world and will go on for three days.
