Quick comm on the fast lane to making big ad monies?

Quick commerce platforms are no longer just about speed of delivery—they’re now competing for consumer attention and ad dollars. Platforms like Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart are turning into high-margin, data-driven ad hubs, leveraging real-time shopping behavior to push targeted ads.

Brands across BFSI, FMCG, auto, and gaming are aggressively investing in these platforms, recognizing their ability to deliver hyper-relevant advertising at the moment of purchase. With ad revenues projected to reach 5-5.5% of GMV (Gross Merchandise Value), quick commerce is rapidly emerging as a digital advertising powerhouse.

According to the Indus Valley Report 2025, the advertising revenue of quick commerce (QC) platforms currently accounts for 3-3.5% of their GMV, with an estimated EBITDA margin of ~90%, surpassing even delivery fees and product markups


For platforms, the playbook is clear: capture attention, influence buying decisions, and maximize advertising revenue—all in the span of a few seconds before checkout.


This surge in ad revenues isn’t theoretical - it’s already playing out.


Zepto’s Co-founder and CEO, Aadit Palicha posted on LinkedIn a while ago that Zepto has crossed Rs 1,000 crore in annualized advertising revenue which means that they are earning Rs 83 crore per month from advertising revenue only - a number which is only set to grow.


A digital marketing expert pointed out that the quick commerce scenario in India is like no other, where everything is 10 minutes away. And because it is 10 minutes away at any point of time, there will always be an audience who will be opening these apps any time, anywhere. "Advertisers follow eyeballs, and while consumers themselves might not appreciate how good they have it in India, being spoiled for choice and convenience, marketers do, and they are serving up ads where they'll be seen, whether at 3pm or 3am”


Industry experts seem to concur with this thought as they all collectively agreed that quick commerce platforms might just disrupt the advertising industry with their highly targeted ad solutions. The platforms have the benefit of utilizing transactional data and hyper-local user behaviour which means that brands can soon compete to secure top spots in search results, banner placements, and in-app recommendations, ensuring their products get impulse-bought alongside everyday essentials.


According to Nishant Gopalia, Senior Vice President – Media & Mar Tech at Tonic Worldwide, given the rapid adoption of 10-minute deliveries in metro cities, we could see the GMV number hit double digits in the next few years.


“This shift is quite significant. If we look at how digital advertising has evolved in India, platforms that drive high-intent, last-mile conversions have always gained rapid adoption. Quick commerce is now becoming one of those channels, offering brands a direct-to-checkout ad ecosystem that few platforms can match,” said Gopalia.


Gopalia also added that a 5-5.5% GMV contribution from ad sales means these platforms are moving beyond just being delivery services to becoming high-value digital advertising ecosystems. To put it in perspective, e-commerce giants generate 6-10% of their GMV from ad revenues, so quick commerce isn’t far behind.


This was reiterated by Tejas Maha, Group Head - Media, White Rivers Media who said that quick commerce platforms currently capture a modest but rapidly expanding slice of the digital advertising pie. He added, “This represents a significant monetization opportunity that complements their core delivery business model. Industry projections indicate quick commerce advertising revenue could surge to 5-5.5% of GMV in the coming years, as these platforms enhance their ad technologies and brands increasingly value the ability to influence consumers at the critical moment of purchase. The quick commerce advertising ecosystem represents one of the most promising frontiers in digital marketing—where convenience, immediacy, and purchase intent converge to create uniquely effective advertising opportunities.”


A boon for brands?


Picture this: Quick commerce has started contributing significantly to e-commerce sales for major FMCG players, accounting for 30-60% of their total sales. The Indus Valley Report stated that Dabur, for example, has seen over 30% of its beverage sales come from platforms like Blinkit and Zepto, while 10% of all ice creams sold by HUL now move through these rapid delivery apps.


Now with opportunities for highly targeted advertising added to this - quick commerce platforms may truly change the advertising landscape for these players.


According to Ghazala Ali, head of e-commerce, Dabur India Ltd, the standard industry norm is around higher single digit investment on these platforms to drive incremental sales given the high traffic. However, this is significantly impacted during festive and occasions which mark a higher increase in traffic thus making it imperative for brands to invest much higher to grab eyeballs and convert maximum of their spends.


Ali said, “Quick commerce has easily become one of the most important routes in go to market to reach end consumers where the bridge is furthered to reach them directly and evaluate the response in almost real time. Brands have been parking significant budgets now in such platforms which are as advanced as major e-commerce players now.”


She added that these platforms are critical for quick discovery and sales given that the relative importance is growing exponentially given the business shift via consumer shift.


Similarly, Ayush Shukla, Founder of Finnet Media mentioned in a post that a D2C snack brand has shifted 40% of their marketing budget from Meta to Blinkit because of the higher return on investment provided by these platforms.


Shukla further added that brands are now fighting over quick commerce real estate with some of them even paying 30-45% of their revenue just to be visible on these platforms. He believes that this is because unlike traditional marketing channels, there’s no fighting with SEOs or adapting to algorithm updates.


This was reiterated by Prady Kumaar, CEO and Co-founder, NP Digital India who said that for advertisers, quick commerce platforms represent a unique opportunity to engage consumers at the ‘point of purchase,’ particularly for impulse-driven categories like snacks, beverages, and personal care. Unlike traditional digital channels, quick commerce ads benefit from real-time purchase intent, making them more performance-oriented.


However, Ali also mentioned that ROI is a big variable depending upon whether brands are investing for brand building or performance marketing and via different assets.


She added, “one can optimize for business performance to gain short term sales or even use the platform to drive new launches which is being done by many brands hence a constant approach to ROI would be subjective based upon end goal. It's also too early in the days for inferring ROI as compared to other channels.”

Challenges

Kumaar said that while quick commerce platforms provide measurable value they also require strategic balancing. He believes that the integration of ads into checkout flows and hyper-local targeting boosts ROI, especially for private labels and new product launches. “However, challenges like margin pressures (due to platform fees), dependency risks, and concerns around opaque pricing practices underscore the need for caution. Brands should view QC ads as a tactical lever for growth, not a standalone strategy, ensuring they retain bargaining power and diversify across channels,” he said.

Gopalia added to this and said, “If done right, quick commerce ads offer massive value, but if brands treat them like traditional display ads, they might end up as just another high-cost placement.” He further mentioned that, due to limited ad inventory and high demand, brands must optimize placements to justify costs. While quick commerce is expanding rapidly, it still falls short of the scale of social or search ads, making it more effective for targeted, high-intent campaigns rather than broad reach.

However, unlike social ads, where users browse casually, quick commerce ads target customers who are ready to buy within minutes, resulting in higher conversion rates. He concluded by emphasizing that brands can tailor promotions based on real-time demand patterns in specific pin codes, ensuring optimized stock movement and greater efficiency.

Can quick commerce overtake traditional digital ads?

While quick commerce platforms are poised for unprecedented growth in advertising revenue, experts believe they won’t disrupt traditional channels like search and social media ads. Instead, they are more likely to complement and enhance them, offering brands a new, high-intent touchpoint in the consumer journey.

Kumaar believes that their impact is currently concentrated in urban, high-density markets, limiting broad-scale reach compared to search/social media.

“Its key advantage lies in the ability to connect with consumers right when they’re in a purchasing mindset—offering hyper-local, actionable insights that are especially valuable for FMCG and local brands. Over time, as these platforms refine their analytics and expand their reach, quick commerce could become a critical element in a diversified digital marketing strategy, offering unique value that traditional channels may not deliver,” he added.

Gopalia explained how ad formats have evolved and where quick commerce fits into the landscape. While search ads (Google, Amazon) capture consumers actively looking for a product and social ads (Meta, Instagram, YouTube) focus on building awareness and engagement, quick commerce ads tap into the ‘I need this right now’ mindset. This makes them particularly effective for impulse-driven categories like FMCG, snacks, beverages, beauty, and health essentials, where immediate availability can drive instant conversions.

As Flipkart enters the quick commerce space and Amazon gears up to follow, the industry is evolving into a broader model of ‘Quickish Commerce’ - where fast delivery is becoming the norm across categories beyond groceries, including fashion, electronics, and home services.