In a bid to gain more visibility amid India’s increasingly app-savvy populace, Singapore Tourism Board has tied up with mobile-first payments giant Paytm. This is Paytm’s first ever partnership with a national tourism organisation.
What does this collaboration mean for Paytm’s 300 million users? For one, expect to see promotions of Singapore tourism on its platforms. The financial services giant will also host a microsite that will promote the country’s new, unified brand identity, ‘Passion Made Possible’, which was launched in August 2017. Moreover, Paytm will offer its users up to Rs. 2,500 cashback on booking flight tickets to Singapore through the app. STB and Paytm also plan to launch a series of print ads and radio buys to promote the three-month campaign.
“Indian consumers are increasingly taking to digital and online platforms, and show a high acceptance of digital payment modes. Our partnership with Paytm is, therefore, timely to harness this trend and enable Indian travellers to book flights to Singapore with ease,” said G.B. Srithar, regional director-South Asia, Middle East & Africa (SAMEA), STB, on the partnership.
Singapore has held a strong, persistent allure for Indians. The country is reported to have received 1.272 million Indian visitors in 2017, registering a growth of 16% on arrivals year-on-year. This is the highest growth rate registered in the list of visitor source markets for Singapore. For the first time, India has moved from the fourth to the third rank in this list—ahead of Malaysia, but behind China and Indonesia. This partnership with a digital giant is an attempt at building on that momentum and welcoming even more Indian tourists in 2018.
The shift to cashless payments is already changing the way businesses function and people consume content in India. Paytm is reportedly the second-biggest unicorn in India by valuation and aims to become the world’s biggest digital bank with integrated financial services. With its enormous user base, it offers an excellent opportunity for Singapore tourism to reach Indians living in not just metros, but even tier-2 and tier-3 cities.
“Paytm has always been at the forefront of India’s digital revolution, enabling millions of people to adopt cashless payments for a wide range of transactions. This alliance with STB will further augment this revolution by helping more Indians discover about Singapore as an engaging and diverse tourist destination and enable them to book tickets for Singapore through Paytm,” said Abhishek Rajan, vice president, Paytm.