ONDC Integration Services

Despite the widespread adoption of high-speed internet and smartphones, many players in the e-commerce industry are unable to fully harness the benefits of this digital revolution.

In India, boasting the world’s third-largest online shopper base with a staggering 140 million e-retail shoppers in 2020, the e-retail penetration rate remains disappointingly low at just 4.3%. This is in stark contrast to countries like China, South Korea, and the UK, where e-commerce has become an integral part of daily life, with penetration rates reaching as high as 25% to 26%.

But there’s hope on the horizon. With over 40,000 sellers operating in more than 200 cities, the ONDC network is empowering businesses to bridge this gap and unlock unprecedented growth opportunities. As beta phases are introduced in additional cities, the number of active sellers is rapidly increasing, positioning ONDC as the catalyst for a breakthrough transformation.

At Daffodil Software, we specialize in helping businesses seamlessly integrate with the ONDC platform, providing you with the tools and expertise needed to thrive in the dynamic e-commerce landscape. Our dedicated team understands the nuances of ONDC integration and will guide you every step of the way, ensuring a smooth and efficient transition.

The network consists of three key participants: Buyer apps, Seller apps, and Gateways.

Buyer apps handle operations from the buyer’s perspective, facilitating acquisition, search, and placing orders on the open network. Examples of ONDC-enabled buyer apps include Paytm, SpiceMoney, and MyStore.

Seller apps play a crucial role in managing seller-side operations. They are categorized into two types: Marketplace Seller Nodes (MSNs) and Inventory Seller Nodes (ISNs).

MSNs serve as aggregators, connecting sellers to the ONDC platform. GoFrugal, SellerApp, and Digiit are some examples of ONDC-enabled MSNs. ISNs, on the other hand, are sellers themselves, typically larger players like Unilever and Marico, with a significant physical presence and technological maturity.

The gateway application ensures discoverability by broadcasting buyer search requests to the seller-side apps listed on the network. Open APIs and Beckn-protocol based adapter interfaces enable seamless information exchange among participants.

In India, where the livelihoods of millions of sellers depend on e-commerce, there remains a vast untapped potential. Surprisingly, only a small fraction, approximately 15,000 sellers or 0.125% of the total, have been able to embrace e-commerce as a viable avenue. This leaves a significant majority of sellers, particularly those in small towns and rural areas, unable to access the vast opportunities of the digital marketplace. ONDC recognizes this disparity and has embarked on a mission to maximize e-commerce penetration, aiming to go beyond the current 4.3% threshold.

The goal is to transition from the existing platform-centric model to an open-network model, inspired by the success of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) project. In the current model, marketplaces have complete control over seller onboarding, customer acquisition, order fulfillment, complaint redressal, and payments. ONDC seeks to “unbundle” this complex system into separate microservices that can be addressed individually.

This approach enables seamless transactions between buyers and sellers, regardless of the platforms they are registered on. For example, a buyer on Amazon could directly purchase products from a seller on Flipkart, eliminating the traditional barriers between platforms and fostering a truly interconnected e-commerce ecosystem.

To realize this vision, the government has mandated companies to list themselves on the ONDC platform, promoting collaboration and integration within the e-commerce industry. While the pilot version of ONDC has been introduced in major cities, it’s worth noting that leading players like Amazon and Flipkart are in the process of fully integrating their primary shopping platforms into the ONDC network.