Samosa Snippets

A look at Flipkart's marketing for Big Billion Days Sale

This article takes a closer look at Flipkart’s BBD 2025 marketing playbook, breaking down its strategic plans, execution tactics, and the role of storytelling in sustaining shopper attention throughout the sale period.

author-image
Payal Navarkar
New Update
Gaurav Banerjee (22)

When the clock struck midnight on September 23, Flipkart’s Big Billion Days (BBD) 2025 went live, following early access for Flipkart Plus and Flipkart Black members on September 22.

From teaser rollouts and celebrity-led content to regional outreach and digital-first storytelling, the sale’s multichannel marketing campaign has been crafted to create anticipation while driving traffic across online and offline touchpoints. By combining entertainment, exclusivity, and a sense of unpredictability, the brand is seeking to transform BBD into not just a sale but a cultural moment.

The campaign around BBD 2025 has been designed to capture the momentum of India’s festive season, a period that has always been the most crucial shopping window of the year. Unlike campaigns that rely heavily on discounts, the brand has positioned this edition around the central theme‘Yahaan Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai’ (‘Anything Can Happen Here’). The idea is to build a distinct brand identity that goes beyond price cuts, placing focus on excitement, surprise, and consumer engagement.

This article takes a closer look at the brand's BBD 2025 marketing playbook, breaking down its strategic levers, execution tactics, and the role of storytelling in sustaining shopper attention throughout the sale period.

'Yahaan Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai'

The campaign's ad film was developed around the theme of surprise and possibility. The ad film focused on a common online shopping experience: the abandoned cart. In the ad, the brand’s employees were on a mission to find the cart's owner and convince him to complete his purchase, aimed to reinforce the idea that during BBD, forgotten wishes can be fulfilled.

Celebrity and influencer playbook

The brand’s another ad film for the same campaign featured an 11-celebrity lineup for a single integrated campaign. This roster was a blend of Bollywood and South Indian actors, entrepreneur and digital-first creators, designed to appeal to different demographics and regions.

The ad film included actors such as Amitabh Bachchan and Alia Bhatt, who were intended to provide recognition and trust for a traditional TV-watching audience. This was complemented by pop culture figures and digital personalities, including Sreeleela, Jannat Zubair, Sakshi Shivdasani, Yashraj Mukhate, Anubhav Singh Bassi and Boat’s Aman Gupta. This mix cast was aimed to ensure that the campaign's message reached a wide range of generations, from Gen X to digital-native millennials and Gen Z.  

Each celebrity was part of a cohesive narrative. The campaign also features shorter social media content.

In addition to the celebrities, the brand is using a content-led commerce strategy that relies on micro-influencers and creators. These creators are driving engagement through various narratives, like a sale countdown.

Brand collaborations

The brand partnered with the astrology platform Astrotalk to introduce ‘Shubh Muhurat Deals’. Based on the cultural practice of waiting for auspicious timings for major purchases, both brands created a calendar of favourable moments for shoppers.

It has also collaborated with BattleGround Mobile India on its social media.

AI integration

The brand is also targeting a specific demographic, bachelors, with its AI-powered ‘Bachelor Upgrade Yojana.’ This initiative uses an AI-powered WhatsApp bot where users can share photos of their rooms. The bot then analyses the space and provides home upgrade recommendations with direct product links.

OOH and omnichannel presence

The brand is executing an omnichannel strategy that includes a physical presence. Its OOH campaign involved transforming farmlands near Bengaluru and Kanpur airports into giant crop-circle-like formations, which visually announced the sale. This campaign was a strategic effort to create buzz and generate content that could be amplified across digital channels. While going digital first, the brand has also installed billboards across various places to announce the sale.

Gamification and value-driven promotions

The brand’s marketing strategy incorporates gamified elements and a multi-layered discount structure to create a sense of urgency and perceived value. The platform offers ‘Festive Rush Hours’ to drive purchases.

It has also introduced contests on its social media platform to win products when you upload screenshots of the task completed.

While the e-commerce platform is pushing its marketing game further with a strategic plan, the brand is also facing backlash from users who have spotted a sale price discrepancy and additional costs that they are being charged.

According to The New Indian Express report, some users have alleged that the advertised markdown for some products is allegedly misleading, designed to create the illusion of a deal. Buyers who purchase now would end up paying more than they would have weeks ago. The media reports suggested that the shoppers need to question themself is whether these deals are truly worthwhile, to avoid overpaying for the products.

To ensure the momentum of the campaign is sustained and shoppers remain confident, Flipkart should ideally address these concerns publicly and clarify any discrepancies in pricing. Transparent communication will help preserve the excitement that the campaign has built across both online and offline channels.

flipkart marketing big billion days marketing strategy Flipkart