How to Sell on Flipkart: Step by Step Beginner’s Guide to Become a Flipkart Seller in 2024

Flipkart is one of the largest eCommerce selling platforms in India and its growth has only accelerated in the past few years, with the onset of the pandemic. Flipkart now has a commanding 31% share of the Indian eCommerce market, on par with its largest rival, Amazon. Many online retailers seek to sell on Flipkart so that they can grow their business and expand their customer base. There are many other advantages and other things to consider when opting to sell on Flipkart. Let’s dive in deeper to get a better understanding.

You can check out our blog on how to integrate WareIQ’s WMS with a Flipkart seller accounnt and how to fulfill Flipkart orders.

Why Should You Choose to Become a Flipkart Seller?

Adapting to Ever-Changing Industry Trends

Choosing to sell on Flipkart comes with the advantage of having information on current and future trends in the market so that retailers can stay on top of them and take advantage by having special promotions, forecasting demand accordingly, and highlighting newer or relevant products etc. This enables sellers to hop on the bandwagon and not get left behind for failing to adapt.

Reduced Marketing Budget

One of the few drawbacks of becoming a Flipkart seller is that you have to compete with a vast number of other businesses, that either has similar products or similar pricing. But you need not fret because Flipkart provides you with the ability to tap into its vast pool of marketing professionals and photographers to come up with suitable strategies to promote your products and make them look as appealing as possible. You can also get advice on advertising and promotions which will help to make your products more visible. All this can be done in-house which means that you do not need to pay high fees to an external agent.

Existing Fulfillment Infrastructure

When you sell on Flipkart, you can fulfill orders in one of 2 ways – Flipkart Fulfillment or Self Ship Fulfillment. You can either choose to take advantage of Flipkart’s existing D2C fulfillment infrastructure, which comprises a nationwide network of warehouses and fulfillment centers, road, rail and air transportation facilities, reverse logistics services, 10,000+ delivery partners and much more. Conversely, you can also opt for Self Ship Fulfillment to fulfill orders on your own, while abiding by Flipkmart’s rules and regulations, or you can opt to partner with a 3PL fulfillment company and utilize all their services and technologies to fulfill Flipkart orders. 

Minimal Set-up Expenses 

Compared to conventional businesses that have to invest in renting out a building or commercial space, invest in lighting, air conditioning, interior decorations, customer seating areas and much more, being able to sell on Flipkart means that you do not have to direct your funding towards any of these tangible requirements. Instead, all you need to do is pay a nominal fee to become a Flipkart seller, sign up and sell your products. You can use the large amount of money you save on important core aspects of your business such as research and development, conducting market research and running advertising campaigns.

Nationwide Network of Customers and Fulfillment Centers

One of the biggest advantages of becoming a Flipkart seller is that you instantly get access to Flipkart’s 1 million-plus users as potential customers. This will instantly boost your sales volumes and skyrocket the growth of your business. Additionally, when you sell on Flipkart, you get access to Flipkart’s India-wide network of warehouses and fulfillment centers so that you can store inventory closer to areas of high demand or near major shipping hubs to ensure that your customers receive their orders on time and have a positive ordering, delivery and post-ship experience.

You can also read our blogs on how to sell on Mytra, sell on Amazon and sell on Shopify to get a better understanding of other online platforms.

5 Simple Steps to Start to Sell on Flipkart in 2024

Step 1: Registering on Flipkart

In order to sell on Flipkart, you first need to sign up with a new Flipkart account or log in to an existing Flipkart account which can be done on the Flipkart Seller Homepage. Once this is done, you will be required to add information about yourself, your business and the type of products you’d be opting to sell on Flipkart. A few of the required details are listed below:

• Name
• Email address
• Phone number
• Pickup address/business address
• Categories of products the business is interested in selling through Flipkart
• Business registration documents
• Tax registration documents

Step 2: Registering Your Business

After the initial registration has been completed, you are required to register your business. For the sake of convenience, it is best to register your business as either a Private Limited Company (PLC) or a Limited Liability Company (LLC) as both types of business have access to certain facilities and protections that other types of companies do not such as liability protection, easy transferability, easy scalability, ability to be a separate legal entity and much more. The following documents are needed to register each:

Identity Proof

Private Limited Company

• Certificate of Incorporation of Private Limited Company (Copy)
• Memorandum of Association (Copy)
• PAN Card of the Company

Limited Liability Company

• Partnership registration or LLP Incorporation Certificate
• Partnership deed
• Power of Attorney granted to a Partner or an Employee of the LLP or Partnership firm to transact business on its behalf
• Official document identifying Partners and the person holding the Power of Attorney with their photographs (Any 1)
• PAN Card of the LLP or Partnership Firm

Address Proof

Private Limited Company

• Company’s Fixed Line Telephone bill
• Electricity bill of the Company
• Lease or Rental Agreement of the Company

Limited Liability Company

• Official valid document for address confirmation of the Partners and the persons holding the Power of Attorney (Any 1)
• Telephone bill of Company or Partner’s
• Electricity bill Company or Partner’s
• Lease or Rental Agreement
• Lease or License Agreement

Step 3: Entering your GST and Bank Account Information

You will need to enter your bank account details and billing information so that Flipkart can transfer your consolidated revenue for every order. You will also need to enter the below details:

• GSTIN/TIN Number
• PAN card
• Active Bank account
• Address Proof & canceled cheque for KYC

Step 4: Listing Your Products

After all the required information has been added, you can officially start to sell on Flipkart. You will have to add a detailed description of your business and list out your products with a descriptive paragraph, pictures, and detailed information about its dimensions, pricing, and features, which you can do from the Flipkart Seller Dashboard.

Step 5: Post-Setup Process

When a customer makes a purchase, an order automatically gets generated with all the relevant information. You can then accept the order and choose whether you want to fulfill the order through Flipkart, on your own, or through a 3PL logistics partner. The necessary commission fees are then deducted and the remaining balance will be transferred to your bank account.

Alternatively You May Like: How to sell on snapdeal

8 Top Strategies to Get the Most Out of Selling on Flipkart

Strive to Improve the Performance Score of Your Flipkart Account

‍When you sell on Flipkart, you are graded on the performance of your products and services. Flipkart has an account performance matrix that is separated into 3 levels – Gold, Silver, and Bronze, where retailers are eligible for rewards that vary based on their performance. There are 4 main metrics that Flipkart measures performance on – sales, average product ratings, service quality, and regional utilisation. If your performance is up to the mark, you can achieve Flkipkart Gold Seller status, which will legitimize your business in the eyes of potential customers.

Provide Ultra-Fast Delivery

‍Consumers are now accustomed to next-day, same-day, and even 10-minute delivery in some cases. You need to make sure that you provide fast delivery services otherwise you risk losing customers to competitors that provide these services. You also need to make sure that customers’ orders are delivered according to the estimated date and time otherwise a situation could arise where they are not available to pick up the order and this will lead to a negative interaction with your business.

‍Maintain Suitable Levels of Inventory

‍When you sell on Flipkart, you need to make sure to have a proper inventory management strategy in place to be able to understand the demand levels of each product and avoid high ending inventory levels, which seasons get you the most customers and forecast inventory demand for future and to be able to stock inventory appropriately.

You need to maintain just the right amount of inventory to be able to fulfill orders because if your inventory levels are too high, your products may expire or become irrelevant and if your inventory levels are too low, you could risk having out-of-stock situations and not being able to fulfill orders which result in both a loss of revenue and customers having a negative impression of your business.

Suggested Read: How to handle out-of-stock situations?

Provide Detailed Descriptions in Every Product Listing

Your product listings are the main portion of your page that customers will pay the most attention to. You need to be sure that each listing has a well-written and clear-cut description to help customers make an informed decision. A few important points to implement are listed below:

• Title: The title needs to have important keywords related to the products and the segment so that it gets more visibility and can be recommended to people who are searching for similar products.
• Description: You need to provide a detailed description of the product, features, dimensions, and price.
• Images: You need to multiple add high-quality images to your listing to showcase every possible angle of the product and also alternate between images of the product in a still setting and in its ideal use-case scenario

Abide by Flipkart’s Rules and Regulations

‍When you choose to sell on Flipkart, you need to make sure that you follow all the rules and regulations that are put in place by Flipkart to avoid penalisations. Flipkart’s policies are designed to provide the best possible experience to customers and also maintain its own reputation. If you put in an effort to have similar standards for your business, it will increase customer retention and trust, thus increasing revenue. It’s a win-win.

‍Utilise Premium Packaging Materials

The packaging experience plays a significant role in enhancing the overall customer experience. Customers are bound to appreciate the effort of a well-thought-out, well-packaged product as opposed to one that has been shabbily thrown together. Branded shipping will help customers resonate with your brand and will help you stand out from a sea of other competitors in the same space.

Take Part in Spike Sales

Sales are a surefire way to gain the attention of shoppers, especially in India, where people are always on the lookout for the best possible deals. Flipkart hosts multiple “Spike Sales” that you can choose to participate in, where they have promotions on different categories of products. Be a part of the hype and it’ll definitely pay dividends. ‍

‍Run Ad Campaigns for Listed Products

Running ad campaigns is an assured way of generating more sales and hype around your products. These ads will automatically direct customers toward your listing and will also be recommended to people that are searching for similar products. We have listed the steps to run ad campaigns below:

• Go to the seller dashboard and press the “advertising” button.
• Choose your preferred campaign strategy.
• Choose the product you want to run ads for.
• The chosen items will now appear as “Featured Products” on Flipkart.
• The ad will now be visible to customers who are browsing the site and they can choose to click on it and order if they want to.

Sell on Flipkart: Pros and Cons

Pros for Retailers who Sell on Flipkart

Increase in Potential Customers

When retailers sell on Flipkart, they gain access to 1 million active users which could become a pool of potential customers for your business. Your products would also get increased visibility on search engines like Google due to the fact that Flipkart is one of the largest eCommerce selling platforms in the country.

Mitigation of Errors and Delays

Retailers who sell on Flipkart can make use of the company’s vast network of fulfillment services, ranging from warehousing and retail fulfillment services to shipping aggregation, ultra-fast delivery, and reverse logistics. Many of these services make use of the highest-end technology available and are able to mitigate any manual errors or delays before they even happen. Most small and mid-sized businesses would not have access to such resources on their own.

Increased Trust in the Company 

Becoming a seller on Flipkart enables retailers to take advantage of the overwhelmingly positive image that customers have of the company. Since Flipkart and other eCommerce selling platforms standardize most of their processes, there is very little chance of customers receiving a bad experience and on the off chance that they do, Flipkart’s incredible customer support will diffuse the tension. Customers will come to associate this same level of efficiency and perfection with your brand as well. They offer flipkart-assured badges too which helps companies have customers’ trust.

Enhanced Customer Care Facilities

As mentioned in the point above, retailers who sell on  Flipkart can utilize their highly-capable 24/7 customer support to assist customers with any query or issue that they might face. Customer support is a valuable asset in providing a seamless overall experience and customers often appreciate good communication and transparency in dealing with issues.

Cons for Retailers who Sell on Flipkart

Increased Levels of Competition

Not only do retailers who sell on Flipkart have to deal with competition in their local area but also in different parts of the country. There are a vast number of sellers who would be operating with a similar business model, and sell similar products at a similar price, with all of them scrambling to attain as many customers as possible. It can be difficult for businesses to differentiate themselves from this sea of competition, especially in the eyes of consumers, who just want the best products at the cheapest possible prices.

Delays in Receiving Payments

Retailers need to offer multiple forms of payment in order to compete. In the case of online payments, it could take multiple days for payments to reflect in the seller’s account which could lead to increased levels of confusion. Even after payments come in, it first goes to Flipkart, who deducts their commission and other charges before finally transferring the remaining amount to the seller. This means that sellers only receive their payment after 7 to 14 days which is a long duration of time.

Reduced Profit Margins 

In order to sell on Flipkart, retailers need to pay a certain subscription charge. As mentioned above, payments are only made to retailers after Flipkart deducts their share, which reduces the profit margins per order. These charges can take a significant toll on small to mid-sized businesses that have not properly accounted for them.

Larger Spotlight on the Product Instead of the Brand 

Since there are a vast amount of competitors and rival products available on Flipkart, customers often associate sellers with their products rather than their brand. This can have a negative impact because successful brands such as Flipkart and Google, have a definitive brand image in the eyes of their customers. It can be difficult for up and coming brands to achieve that same status while having to compete with look-alike products and other brands.

Conclusion

Many retailers strive to sell on Flipkart. While there are certainly a large number of benefits associated with this, there are also disadvantages and expenses that sellers will have to account for while making this decision. If you want to achieve stellar levels of growth and expansion, while still having some flexibility to make your own decisions and not get completely immersed in Flipkart’s ecosystem, consider partnering with a 3PL fulfillment company such as WareIQ to take care of all your order fulfillment requirements. This will enable you to offer quality, hassle-free fulfillment to your customers while being able to focus on increasing sales and enhancing your products.

WareIQ is one of India’s leading and fastest-growing full-stack eCommerce fulfillment companies that offer a variety of services from same-day and next-day delivery, shipping badges , and RTO Shield, to state of the art technological solutions such as our custom WMS and our intuitive, well-designed wareiq app store. We can take care of your brand’s entire fulfillment requirements and ensure that you and your customers get the best order fulfillment in the country and have a hassle-free experience and raise satisfaction levels to new heights.

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