Motorola's Festive Playbook: "True Value" Over Gimmicks to Win Indian Buyers

With festive sales around the corner, there's no better time for consumers in India to get their hands on their favourite smartphones and other electronic products. Ahead of the festive season, we had the opportunity to speak with Shivam Ranjan, Global Head of Brand at Motorola, who shared insights on the company's aggressive festive season strategy, key pillars of brand differentiation, a human-centric approach to AI, long-term vision, and 2026 trends.

It's worth mentioning that Motorola is offering massive discounts during the Flipkart Big Billion Days Sale on its smartphone range, including Motorola Edge 60 Pro, Edge 60 Fusion, Moto G96 5G and more.

On Overall Brand Strategy and "True Value"

We wanted to understand Motorola's big picture for this sales season. Notably, this is arguably the most competitive time for any smartphone brand. We tried to understand, beyond pricing and discounts, what Motorola's core brand message is to the Indian consumer this year, enabling it to cut through the noise of competitors.

Shivam explains, "One of the key areas in which we are differentiating ourselves from competition is with respect to CMF, right? So... it is colour, materials, finishes."

He continues, "I think what we've been able to focus on and give to the Indian consumer is true value. So bringing the most comprehensive set of advanced premium experiences to the consumers in our devices, which gives them the most value at that particular price point."

He emphasised that Motorola's differentiation is through four pillars - CMF (Colour, Materials, Finishes), AI integration, and software innovation. Shivam further highlighted its exclusive partnership with Pantone and the use of premium materials like vegan leather and marble finishes. Motorola's AI solutions, including Moto AI and third-party integrations, aim to provide a seamless, personalised user experience.

Motorola Unleashes Festive Blitz: Razr Drops Below Rs. 40,000, Edge Series Sees Massive Price Cuts

When asked about the specific models from the current smartphone lineup, such as the Edge or G-series, that are considered 'hero products' for this festive season, what makes them uniquely suited for the aspirations and budgets of Indian buyers at this time? Shivam explained, "People today, in the festive season, they will look at best [phones under] 15k, best [under] 20k, best [under] 25k... What we have done is actually created value for our devices across different segments." Then he gave some examples of hero products that have received massive price cuts for the sale.

Starting with the Moto G96, which is touted as an all-rounder with a premium curved display and IP68 rating, it is now available for Rs. 14,999. Next, the Edge 60 Fusion, which will be available under Rs. 20,000 during the Flipkart sale. Shivam also mentioned the Edge 60 Pro, which he touted as the "flagship killer" being offered at a disruptive price of Rs. 24,999. Lastly, this sale season, Motorola will be offering the Razr 60, the foldable phone, at an unprecedented price point of Rs. 39,999, bringing foldables to a much wider audience.

He mentioned that the strategy involves building value over several months, followed by using the festive sale as the final trigger for purchase.

To recall, the Moto G96 launched in India at Rs. 19,999, while the Edge 60 Fusion launched at a starting price of Rs. 22,999. On the other hand, the Edge 60 Pro was announced at a starting price of Rs. 29,999 and the Razr 60 at Rs. 49,999. These prices provide a comparison of the significant discounts Motorola is offering to consumers in India during this sale season.

Consumer-Centric AI Solutions and Implementation

Next up, we wanted to understand where Motorola is heading in the AI race. Considering that the entire industry is racing towards on-device AI. How bullish is Motorola on AI? Is the strategy focused on creating flashy, headline-grabbing features, or more on a seamless, background intelligence that improves the core user experience without them even noticing? Shivam said that AI is a significant revolution, impacting various industries, especially the smartphone industry, and emphasised the importance of consumer-centric AI solutions. He continued and talked about Motorola's AI philosophy, which includes making AI personal, contextual, ubiquitous, and collaborative, focusing on seamless capture, creation, and assist experiences.

"My firm belief, at least, is that this is actually the biggest revolution, possibly, in our lifetimes, right? I mean, after the Internet revolution, this is possibly as big, or maybe bigger than that.." Shivam on AI adoption in smartphones.

On AI philosophy and anti-gimmick stance, Shivam said, "Consumers are smart. Consumers are not looking for gimmicks. The time for gimmicks is gone. Today, consumers will value only solutions that are able to enhance their experiences."

He added, "Our approach towards AI has been very clearly consumer-centric, and hence, which is why you see our AI philosophy that has four pillars... to make AI personal, contextual, ubiquitous, and collaborative."

Inside Motorola's Ambition to be India's #3 Brand and Festive Season Plans

With consumer habits constantly evolving, we wanted to understand how Motorola is balancing its online-first strategy with strengthening its offline retail presence to maximise reach and trust during this peak buying period. Shivam, on the strategic importance of both channels, said, "Ultimately, the aim for Motorola is to be the number three brand in India... And to be number three, I think it is important for us to be present across both the channels, because if you look at the channel contribution... it is still about 50-50 in India."

He also touched upon the scale of their offline presence and added, "Our width of distribution... is now in approximately 16,000 stores. So we are currently present or available in 16,000 stores for consumers in offline, which is not small by any standard."

Shivam, while talking about the phased approach for the festive season, said, "The approach is that the festive sales come first for online and then [for] offline... offline festive season or sales start around Dhanteras and Diwali, whereas the festive season online starts earlier with the Big Billion Days."

Next, he acknowledged sustaining momentum from online to offline. "We essentially start our marketing promotions and festive offers right from the online festive season... But we do not end when the online sales end. We actually continue after that, and we will continue to invest in offline also as they continue to peak... around Diwali."

Shivam also agreed that the idea is to use digital media for both channels. "We believe that digital media... works both for the consumer who is buying online or offline, because at the end of the day, when you try to create awareness... it is the media that people consume, and not necessarily where people buy," he added.

On 2026 Trends

Looking ahead to early 2026 launches, without revealing specific products, what key consumer trends is Motorola focusing on? Will we see a continued push into foldables, a renewed focus on camera supremacy, or perhaps core AI performance?

Shivam talked about the overarching goal and innovation. "One thing is very clear, that Motorola is committed to... becoming a top three brand in India and globally... And to do that, we will, of course, have to continue to innovate."

"You would have seen a recent example of us moving beyond just colours and materials... to our partnership with Swarovski... which literally looks like jewellery. So... we are constantly evolving. This is something which is working for us," he added.

On the future of AI, Shivam added that from a software perspective, AI will continue to be key for Motorola. "AI will be a core aspect that we are focusing on, and you will see significant progress in terms of solutions that we continue to offer," he added.

He also touched upon doubling down on foldables. Shivam mentioned that Motorola is the top brand in foldables outside of China. "If you look at the recent counterpoint report, you would see that... outside of PRC, we are the number one... This is a category that has been working for us. We have been the pioneers in this category," he said.

"It's definitely not something that we are going to stop. We are continuing to invest in our Razr franchise... and maintain our leadership in the foldable scenario," Shivam further added.

He also mentioned that Motorola will continue to focus on the camera department. "A specific R&D Centre has been put up in India, where we actually tune for specific Indian feedback, right? Colour tones, dust in the surroundings, different things which are not common internationally."

The idea, in a nutshell, will be to focus on consumer experiences as per Shivam for Motorola as a brand.