A Marketing Playbook: Inside the Mind of Deepinder Goyal and Zomato "Three things in life are certain: life, death, and news about Zomato," wrote Amit Gupta, MD, Badri Group summing up Zomato's marketing game on LinkedIn.

It was in his initial days that Deepinder Goyal quickly realised that in order to be a customer-centric start-up, you had to be close to them. And he chose a relatable and open way to do so. Sometimes its a hit, while other times its a miss.

In the crepuscule hours of Nov.20 2024, thousands of users on LinkedIn and X were greeted with a simple hiring post from the foodtech founder.

The criteria included being a fresher, humble attitude, grade-A communication skills, a learning mindset, wanting to do "anything and everything to build the future" of the company and its subsidiaries and guaranteeing a 10x learning over a two-year management degree. However, this 'Chief of Staff' query quickly sent the internet into a frenzy. Why? Because of two other criteria- no salary for the first year and a pay-up of INR 20 lakh to get this opportunity.

"Had check for a moment if it's April 1," commented one user.

In all fairness, Deepinder Goyal of Zomato did term it as "not a conventional role with usual perks" and stated how apart from the candidate fee–which would go 100 per cent towards Feeding India–Zomato itself will contribute INR 50 lakh or CoS salary equivalent to a charity of choice.

One user called it 'an artificial selection for rich kids with daddy's money" with another saying "Even Narayana Murthy seems like a saint after reading this."

The post garnered 14.3M views, 4.8k comments, 4.9k reposts, 15k likes, and 4.5k saves on X, with 13.6k likes, 2k comments, and 563 reposts on LinkedIn. Several other founders and leaders shared their take on it, with fellow Shark Anupam Mittal of Shaadi.com posting, "All those who can't afford to pay my friend Deepi 20 lacs, pls send me your application." "I am looking for a Chief of Staff too although I don't know exactly what one does, I figure it can be your first assignment," Mittal added.

While the position received over 18k applications, Goyal said on X, "As some people pointed out, the 'you have to pay us 20 lacs' was merely a filter to find people who had the power to appreciate the opportunity of a fast-track career, without getting bogged down by constraints in front of them."

He highlighted how such an act could only be pulled off once and added that paying the company to get a job shouldn't become a norm.

Several users pointed it out as either a marketing technique or a failed PR stunt. "Deepinder Goyal is redefining personal branding through, what I may term it as "Spotlight Marketing" – a blend of unconventional visibility and direct audience engagement," said Vikram Kharvi, CEO, Bloomingdale PR.

All in all, he did get people talking about Zomato in an eccentric way to get people's notice in a five-second attention span market. But this isn't the only way he's leveraged social media for marketing.

The brilliance of Zomato and BlinkIt

The creative team at Zomato and its subsidiaries know how to leverage the limelight, even if it's on its competitors. Case in point- With its direct-biggest competitor Swiggy getting listed earlier this month, Zomato showed that amid all the competition there was camaraderie.

The post received 363k likes, 5.6k comments, and 115k shares on Instagram. While Swiggy and Zomato have often entered a light hearted banter, the public presence of Deepinder is a stark contrast to Swiggy's Sriharsha Majety.

Turning delivery boy for a day

With the number of start-ups on the rise, founders must focus on understanding the customer's pulse. "Delivery boy" is how Goyal introduces himself on various social media and on October 5, he turned into a real one with his wife Grecia Goyal.

"The genius lies in humanizing Zomato while keeping it in the spotlight," added Kharvi. The post received 86.6k likes, 700 comments, and 4k shares on his Instagram account. "During my second order, I realised that we need to work with malls more closely to improve working conditions for all delivery partners. And malls also need to be more humane to delivery partners," Goyal shared on X.

"It took you so long to address this issue but I'm glad at least you did it," replied one user. This came amid the Bhavish Agarwal of Ola and Kunal Kamra's public spat over the piling up of complaints about the company's electric scooters. "We have a certain @bhash who couldn't find enough courage to accept customer feedback even after having 80000 complaints a month," replied another. Things turned ugly for Agarwal as Ola stock plunged nine per cent in the next few weeks.

"Impactful marketing is a blend of data-driven strategies and compelling storytelling," shares Rahul Vashistha, founder, Orbit8 Media. "It's a reminder of how bold ideas, backed by data and creativity, can elevate engagement and leave a lasting impression."

"Three things in life are certain: life, death, and news about Zomato," wrote Amit Gupta, MD, Badri Group summing up Zomato's marketing game on LinkedIn.