All Posts by Himanshu Sheth

|In: Technology|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

How many of you find this sight familiar – You have moved to a new city e.g. Bengaluru and you are very ecstatic to move to the Silicon Valley of India on a very good pay-package. You enjoy your early days in the company provided accommodation, but your real test would start when you go out in search for a rental accommodation. You get entangled in the ‘Broker Menace’ on the assurance that he would provide you with the best rental accommodation, keeping all your requirements intact. If you are lucky enough, you would get a good house, by paying him 1~2 months’ rent [as brokerage and other over-head costs] or the vicious cycle continues.

Image Source – Housing

The founders of Bengaluru based NoBroker had gone through a similar situation when they were searching for an accommodation while working in Mumbai and this horrendous experience prompted them to take the entrepreneurial plunge to ‘solve this problem at scale‘.

NoBroker.com is a disruptive brokerage-free property search portal that connects house owners & seekers directly by eliminating the middleman/broker. NoBroker is revolutionizing the real-estate space not just by eliminating the brokerage but also by making it convenient & hassle-free experience with its services.

NoBroker: C2C real-estate portal connecting buyers/sellers seamlessly

Though there are many portals in the online-real sector, most of them operate in the traditional classifieds model. With the evolution of Machine Learning [ML], Artificial Intelligence [AI], Augmented Reality [AR], Virtual Reality [VR] and initiatives like RERA, Housing For All, PMAY, etc. by the central & state governments, many of these portals are moving from the traditional model to more comprehensive transaction enabling models, with technology and analytics driving property discovery and financing [Source]. Though technology has been an enabler, customers still have to pay a hefty amount to the middlemen as brokerage.

Image Source – NoBroker

The primary reason the intermediation existed was that there was a huge information asymmetry in the market. NoBroker removes this information asymmetry and provides a marketplace for the free exchange of information that earlier used to cost as much as 1~2 months of rent as brokerage! The portal works on the backbone of algorithms built on latest cutting-edge technologies that identifies & restricts brokers from the portal and is the only platform in the C2C [Customer-to-Customer] space. NoBroker has been in business since 2016 and is co-founded by IIT & IIM alumni Akhil Gupta, Amit Kumar Agarwal, and Saurabh Garg.

We had a chance to catch-up with Akhil Gupta, Co-Founder & CTO of NoBroker at their office in Bengaluru where they showcased some of the latest tech innovations at NoBroker, how they

are leveraging Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Analytics to make their platform better, how using Google AMP has resulted in more conversion ratio and much more. Apart from technology, one of the other advantages that NoBroker has over other real-estate portals is that they follow a very frugal approach and ‘completely rely’ on technology for solving the problem [without any offline resources for handling sales/deal closure].

Akhil shared an interesting anecdote when they were approaching VC’s for institutional funding and spoke about their first-mover advantage with the following one-liner

Not every solution should be copied from the West and implemented in the East.

Some of the notable insights shared about NoBroker platform are below:

  • Only tech-enabled real-estate C2C platform in the market that focuses on transactions, rather than listings.
  • Extensive use of Machine Learning [ML]/Artificial Intelligence [AI] to solve problems using machines instead of humans.
  • 1.05 Lakh transactions logged in FY 2017~18 and close to Rs. 650 crore of brokerage saved in the last Financial Year.

NoBroker: Improving Property Discovery & Property Recommendations using Collaborative Filtering

NoBroker is a very transparent platform and property owners signed-up on the platform get real-time alerts about the number of views that the property has received, the performance of the property over a period of time and other analytics that can be transcribed to demand.

NoBroker improves as well as eases the overall property discovery process using Machine Learning to sort, select & list properties. The properties listed on the platform are ranked & listed on the following parameters

  • Quality Score, Liveability Score and Commutability Score of the property.
  • Decay Algorithm ensures only fresh and available properties are shown to the user.

One of the major hurdles that any property owner faces is ‘renting out’ the property to the right set of people so that the property is well-maintained [after renting out] and the owner receives the best-possible rent for that property. In most cases, the property owner would publish the requirement on any of the real-estate portals [that follow the classifieds model], but they would be on the mercy of brokers for finding the right tenants.

Unlike those portals, a platform like NoBroker uses various data points in association with a Property Age Calculator, an algorithm which figures out what is the optimal time for a property to let out. The other differentiating factor is that a customer would find one copy of a ‘particular’ property on NoBroker, whereas the other real-estate portals [operating on the typical classifieds model] can have ‘multiple copies’ of the same property thereby resulting in inflation of the overall inventory on the platform.

NoBroker provides Property Recommendations to its customers using Collaborative Filtering, details about which are below:

  • Property Recommendation algorithm, a hybrid collaborative filtering algorithm for recommending relevant properties to the customers.
  • Instant Property Alerts, when a new property is activated on the NoBroker platform.

Helping users to stay at the RIGHT Place: Travel Time Search, Liveability Score and much more

Indians spend a huge amount of time in commute, though this report is not latest, the facts & figures mentioned in it are still applicable even in 2018. About 60% of the city’s working population spends more than 30 minutes in commuting. As a matter of fact, travel woes have eased & worsened at the same time, with the advent of ride-hailing companies and increasing number vehicles entering on our roads. This not only hampers the productivity, but also increases the frustration levels in a person. That is why we all look at accessibility to our points of interest such as work location, kid’s school, grocery store, etc., while selecting a home. However, it is almost impossible to find the best location that meets all these requirements and this is one problem that NoBroker aims to solve using its proprietary solution – Travel Time.

Travel time feature displays properties based on customer’s search criterion of the point of interest and the commuting time you are willing to travel. The feature has made it possible for people to search for the right location according to their travel schedules. In a nutshell, Travel Time helps users stay at the right place filter properties based on the commute time. This also helps reduce the overall carbon footprint which is the primary event associated with climate change & global warming.

Snapshot from the Travel Time feature in NoBroker

Travel time search uses APIs from ride-hailing companies like Uber, Ola, transport organizations [Metro], etc. to arrive at the approximate value [in time]. NoBroker technology team also uses many other parameters, which are specific to the city in order to compute Travel time.

Transit Score & Livability Score help users determine how well is the connectivity of a property to essential facilities, like hospitals, metro stations, bus stations, malls, etc. It is a known fact that the lesser you travel, more you save and you can lead a much happier life since you no longer have to go through the tiresome commute. This is what Life Score is all about. It is another innovative solution powered by Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence which gives a savings report to calculate how much user can save by staying at the right place.

[L] Akhil Gupta, Co-Founder & CTO – No Broker addressing the bloggers present at the meetup

Rent Prediction and Seamless On-Boarding using ML & AI

When a flat-owner is looking to rent out his flat, he expects rent that is in line with the market condition and also expects that the property is rented to the right set of people so that less intervention is required from his side. This is where Rent-O-Meter from NoBroker is instrumental for the flat owners as well as the rentees. It is a machine learning algorithm to predict prevailing rent based on the attributes of the listing and historical data. Features like Transit Score, Livability Score, and Travel Time when used in conjunction with Rent-O-Meter brings out the best results for all the stakeholders involved in the buyer/seller ecosystem on NoBroker.

For seamless customer on-boarding, NoBroker uses AI and ML to ensure that the platform is free from brokers and to achieve the same, their team has developed Vigilante, an ML based algorithm so that only genuine buyers & sellers are present on the platform. During the interaction, Akhil Gupta mentioned that the algorithm is 99.9% accurate and based on user patterns [and many other data points], they are able to figure out whether a user is a buyer/seller or a broker [in which case, he is barred from the platform].

Before an actual visit is made to the flat, the buyer/rentee would have to solely depend on the images of the flat, amenities in the apartment, etc. in order to take the first leap. Hence it becomes very important that owners upload the best images of their flats and this is where NoBroker plays a pivotal role in ensuring that the best images of the flat are uploaded to their platform. In this case as well, it uses Machine Learning to sort the right property and identify rooms from images. It also weeds out objectionable images in the listings.

Closing the loop for Owners & Seekers: Geo-Fencing, Caller Id Cards

In order for the deal to reach the closure stage, it is very important that very less hurdles for the flat seeker to reach the owner. For any online real-estate portal, this stage is important but in case of NoBroker, it is very critical since there is no middlemen involved in the deal!.

NoBroker has come up with a simple yet effective solution to address the ‘communication’ problem. It has come up with Caller ID cards to help the owners & seekers get in touch. Since the buyer’s number is kept discrete on the NoBroker platform [for security concerns], this feature on the app is helpful for prospective buyers to reach the owners. In case, the owner of the house does not pick up the call, he will get a missed call alert from the NoBroker app and he can reach the seeker at his own convenience.

No matter how good the flat and the amenities of an apartment look in a photograph, the deal cannot be sealed without a personal visit to the flat. In order to track the deal closure, NoBroker uses Geo-Fencing that would notify the owner when the customer is in the vicinity of the property. Once the deal is finalized, the owner can notify NoBroker team about the status via a missed call or by submitting the overall feedback about the property.

Founding team of NoBroker with the bloggers present at the event

NoBroker: Premium Plans, Rental Agreement & other services

NoBroker follows freemium as well as paid-subscription pricing model and the customer has multiple plans he can choose from. For a tenant, the plan starts from Rs. 999/year and for Owners, the plan starts from Rs. 2999/year. As per Akhil, the money being spent on the plan is way lesser than what an owner/seeker would spend if he goes via the broker and that is the primary reason why many of NoBroker customers opt for the paid plans.

For NRI’s, they have a subscription plan that starts at Rs. 3000/month where there will one NoBroker sales associate who would play an active part in the entire sales process. NoBroker also helps its customers with creation of customized Rental Agreements and the same is delivered to their doorstep. NoBroker also assists its customers with moving-in to the house and it is first in the market to introduce instant quotation seeking Packers & Movers. They also have tie-ups with well-known furniture rental startups where you get the best quality furniture and appliances for rent.

There is a case-study on Progressive Web App [PWA] implementation for NoBroker’s mobile website resulted in 25% increase in new-user registration and 18% reduction in the Bounce rate. We, i.e. all the bloggers invited for the Tech Bloggers’ Confab – UNBROKE meetup got a chance to deep dive into how disruptive technologies like Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence are changing the online real-estate sector.

If you have used NoBroker, do leave your experience in the comments section or email them to himanshu.sheth@gmail.com

|In: Infographic|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Search Engine Optimization is the process by which web developers optimize a website so that a search engine such as Google or Bing can index it. Taking this a step further, SEO also helps a website rank higher in search engine results and thus gain more exposure and custom.

Image Source – SEO

SEO is a complex and ever changing process, so web developers and SEO experts have to continually update their knowledge to keep track of how search engines such as Google are indexing and ranking websites.

The following are several important factors that can contribute to a website’s SEO

Keywords – Search engines look at common words and phrases known as keywords that a user might type in when searching for a particular thing. For example, if a user is searching for hotels in New York, a keyword phrase could be ‘Top quality hotels in New York‘ or ‘quality hotels in Manhattan‘. When considering SEO, you must research popular keywords and incorporate them into your website content.

Content quality and relevance – Content such as blogs, social media posts, and website text should be relevant, informative, and useful. By creating engaging and interesting content, your organic SEO should improve, which is incredibly important if you want to get more traffic. Seotribunal.com even states that 70 to 80 percent of people focus exclusively on organic search results, ignoring the ads altogether.

Page loading speeds – Loading speeds can play a role in SEO. If a website has really slow page loading speeds, this will put customers off and give them a bad experience. Search engines understand this and in their drive for providing quality results, they will give less weight and ranking to such websites.

Backlinks – A backlink is a link to your website from a third-party source. Search engines look at your catalogue of backlinks to help ascertain the quality and popularity of your website. It is important to build up a quality library of backlinks from reputable and relevant sources to help boost your SEO.

These are just a few factors and there are many more to consider. As stated, SEO requirements and techniques are constantly evolving to match search engine updates.

Infographic Source

|In: Education|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

With a motto ‘The world needs science and science needs women’, L’Oréal India is inviting applications from women students who have completed class XII in India for the 16th edition of its For Young Women in Science Scholarship [FYWIS] Programme. L’Oréal India will award scholarships worth Rs. 2.5 Lakhs each to 50 promising but economically disadvantaged young women to help them complete their graduation in any scientific field from a recognized college/university in India.

Image Source – L’Oréal

Recognizing the importance of women in science, Snehhal Chitneni, Chief- Communications, Sustainability & Public Affairs at L’Oréal India said

L’Oréal strongly believes that science is the source of progress, and the contribution of women is vital. Our For Young Women in Science scholarship aims to provide aid and encouragement to young women who want to pursue an education and a career in science, but lack the means to do so. Entering our 16th year, we hope to reach out to many such deserving candidates in the future.

Since its inception in 2003, L’Oreal India has given over 300 scholarships to girls across India. This programme forms a stepping stone for these young talented women to follow their dreams and aspirations and make a remarkable progress in their overall development.

The L’Oréal India ‘For Young Women in Science’ Scholarship Programme is an extension of the international L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science partnership. Last year, the Programme received more than 3000 entries from across the country. After a detailed evaluation process, 50 scholarships were awarded to the most deserving candidates

Eligibility criteria – Young women who have passed class XII exams from across India in the current academic year [ended March 2018], with a minimum of 85% in PCM/PCB and not over 19 years of age as on 31/05/2018, are eligible to apply for this scholarship.

This scholarship is open for study in any field of science: medicine, engineering, information technology, pharmacy, biotechnology, and other graduate courses pertaining to science [B.Sc.].

How to apply – Students can apply online here  OR download application forms from the website and courier them to L’Oréal India Scholarship Cell, C/O Buddy4Study, Stellar IT Park C-25, No.8,9 & 10 Tower-I, Ground floor, Sector-62, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India 201301.

Deadline for submitting forms along with the relevant documents 16th July 2018.

Interview locations – Mumbai, Gurgaon, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Kolkata

|In: Guest Blogging|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Today we must learn to be fast, fair and slow, all at the same time. Project management professionals across geographies, are not immune from these changes. Traditional construction management methodologies are also being replaced or reinforced with new tools and technology.

Image Source – Housing

In the last decade, there has been a tectonic shift in the way the real estate and construction industry is evolving in India. With the Indian construction market set to be the world’s third-largest construction market by 2021, it is imperative that Indian Construction and Design professionals up their ante in terms of delivering technologically advanced solutions.

The industry has seen sporadic improvements but in essence it largely remains a people-intensive industry as compared to the more developed parts of the world. Companies globally look at anywhere between 1~3% of project costs as the budget for software technologies to create cost and time efficiencies, which is a far cry for India.

While traditional project management models focused exclusively on the delivery of products and services, newer project management models are increasingly focusing on achieving results by interpreting the business strategy, providing effective risk assessment and deriving a solution. By embracing continuous innovation in technology, new age PMC firms are going digital by adopting ‘Cloud-based’ storage services and ‘end-to-end’ project management software solutions. Let’s look at some of the prominent technology tools which new-age PMC firms are using in India today.

Building Information Modelling

BIM is a 3D model-based process for creating and managing project information. The building information model is a digital description of every aspect of the build, and objects in the model can be linked to related information such as quantity, images, specifications or manuals. This technology benefits construction professionals by helping them create better plans, produce faster results, and stay within budget. BIM started slow in India. However with the advent of Smart cities, IoT, VR and AR gaining ground, BIM practice is witnessing a strong revival.

CCTV Monitoring

CCTV installation on-site is one of the best ways to protect a site from undue hazard. They help to track events across the site in more than one place at a time. CCTVs on-site also manage thefts and help to monitor employees at work. Client located offsite are now able to get a real-time view of their sites in the smartphones itself.

Unmanned Airborne Vehicles

Drones or UAVs are extensively used today to monitor the construction work for large and complex sites.  They help the Construction management team to have visibility of the workforce operating at heights and keep the site EHS complaint. Analytic software in Drones can help to do thermal mapping and land surveying. It is still not that prevalent in India but will gain ground once the legalities of their usage is formalized.

Project Portfolio Management software

Web based cost effective Project management software is being used extensively to streamline the construction process and increase efficiency. Usually, most of the online software caters to requirements such as maintaining and creating construction schedules, resource allocations, monitoring usage and generating reports.

Cloud-based Document management software

Cloud-based document management system helps to keep all the project related documents in an easily accessible organized manner. It also makes collaborations between teams easier and there are chances of easier recovery of data if it is lost. Most importantly such software has the ability to track deliverables and make the users accountable with well-defined workflows.

Online Conferencing Applications

Considering the fact that large projects have stakeholders located in different geographies, these online conference tools are a boon to PMC firms to bring the team together at an agreed frequency to resolve open issues. Most of this software allows documents to be presented in various formats for quick reference. Virtual meetings are the new reality.

Procurement software

Procurement software contributes to automating the entire tendering process in a project. Such software nowadays is integrated with the Client ERP system and support e-bidding process flows. The workflows are well defined with the necessary checks and balances in place. It helps to maintain transparency and a clear audit trail behind for all orders released against a project.

Web-based Collaboration tools

In any project, collaboration is essential to ensure that all the teams head in the same direction and create an innovative environment. Collaboration tools with real time chats, posting features and group messaging options enable teams to communicate with each other, access information and increase efficiency rapidly.

The flow of real-time information to every team in a project is vital. Amongst the deluge of data, tools which control and analyze the information will become popular. Technology today can create algorithms which help us to take decisions. Every day we are witnessing newer applications and gadgets coming in the market to aid construction professionals. The key is to be aware about the latest advances in technology and adapt them in an innovative and effective manner.

About the Author

Arnab Ghosh is the Director at Synergy Property Development Services. You can find more about him here.

|In: Mobile|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

COMIO Smartphones, India’s emerging mid-segment brand brings yet another striking smartphone to the market, the COMIO C1 Pro. With this smartphone, COMIO is offering its customers a host of premium features such as Face unlock, 8MP Camera, Dual VoLTE/ViLTE, Intruder Selfie, Venus Browser, Regional language support, Font application and Bike mode. Priced at Rs. 5599, the C1 Pro comes in three color variants – Metallic grey, Sunrise gold and Royal black.

The COMIO C1 Pro has attractive features like 4G Dual VoLTE/ViLTE support powered by Mediatek 6739 Quad Core processor, multiple font support in user interface, 5.0-inch HD display, Quad core 64 Bit processor, 1.5GB RAM and ROM 16 GB memory. It comprises of 8 MP AF rear camera and 5 MP selfie camera with 2,500 mAh battery.

The device has 3 dedicated slot support- 2 SIM Card + 1 SD card which can be extended up to 128 GB and WPS Office support for PPT/Word/Excel/PDF. COMIO C1 Pro comes packed with Android 8.1 [Oreo] operating system which ensures pop touch, Simplified UI and 2x Faster Interface.

Sanjay Kumar Kalirona, CEO & Director, COMIO Smartphone further adds

We are delighted to announce the launch our new smartphone COMIO C1 Pro in such a short span. We believe that consumers in this price segment deserve better features and our budget friendly C1 PRO smartphone provides a potpourri of exciting features like good camera quality, better speed, security features, stylish design and value-added services. 

Key features of the COMIO C1 Pro

  • Dual 4G VoLTE/ ViLTE – The device has 2 4G VoLTE SIM slots
  • Camera features – 8MP Camera with cool modes like Panorama mode and Gestures-setup-in-camera mode which enables the user to capture smile and finger gestures within a photograph
  • Face Unlock – A higher level security feature with face recognition.
  • Venus Browser – A light weight web platform for smartphone users with advanced functionalities like browsing, app store and services. Users can multi-task with this app like shopping, playing games, browsing, listening to music and watching movies etc. Venus is first Indian browser solution providing hyper-regional content covering all the major Indian states supporting 22 regional Indian languages.
  • Bike Mode – This feature basically turns off all the notifications on the device when the user is riding a bike and automatically responds with the message to the caller notifying them that person is riding a bike and will call back later.
  • Display features – Split Screen, Pop Touch and Simplified UI/ 2X Faster UI
  • Security Features – Intruder Selfie
  • Physical Attributes – 3 SIM slots
  • Main functions – Android 8.1 Oreo operating system, Quad core 64 Bit Processor and MediaTek chipset

COMIO support – Specially designed after-sales support comprising of 1 year + 100 days warranty, 30-day replacement, a special buy back and upgrade offer allowing you to upgrade your old smartphone. The COMIO upgrade offer allows you an assured 40% return on your old COMIO phone [not more than 12 months old] which will be given if you want to upgrade you existing COMIO phone. Applicable through COMIO Website only. COMIO has 1000+ service centers across India delivering to customer’s convenience.

Reliance Jio offer – Customers can now enjoy unlimited data and talk time offers using a COMIO smartphone. Jio customers to get INR 2200 cashback (44*50 Rs vouchers) at the time of 1st successful recharge of Rs. 198/299 monthly plans. The offer can be redeemed from the 2nd recharge onwards.

Availability – The COMIO C1 Pro will available at all key retail stores Pan-India and online platforms – Snapdeal, Flipkart, Amazon, ShopClues and Paytm.

|In: Elearning|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

Education has become one of the basic necessities of mankind. It is education which shapes the advancement of a society by making living easier, simpler and smoother. The education sector has been through various reforms in the past to make learning more effective. The traditional education system has had several constraints and so, technology has been slowly entering the education sector to make learning more engaging, effective & student-friendly. With technology-integrated education, students can learn in a better way.

Image Source – EdTech

Among the various benefits that technology has on the learning process, some of the top ones are given below.

Information Accessibility

With the advent of technology, information is now easily accessible from any corner of the world and by anyone with just a few clicks. Technology has made the whole world of knowledge accessible from the comfort of one’s own place and style. With the help of technology, if a student has a doubt about a certain topic like Rutherford Atomic Model, he/she can easily use their electronic device and clear their doubts instantly.

Personalized Learning

One of the major advantages of technology is that it has made personalized learning possible. In the traditional education system, understanding the unique requirements of the students was impossible. With adaptive technology, students can now learn at their own pace and style and get personalized performance report which can help to analyze the preparation level.

Online Learning

With the advent of the internet and digital devices, online learning is now possible. Now, any individual from any corner of the world can access globalized learning courses at very low costs. This way, distance learning is possible, and any individual can easily learn anything from the internet.

Engagement

Technology tools like 3D animations, educational games and simulations are now being used by many ed-tech companies to increase engagement of the students. With video lessons, students can also learn the concepts better and retain the concepts for longer. For example, learning topics like Kinematics, Bohr’s Atomic theory, Homologous Series, calculus, etc. becomes a lot easier if the concepts are visualized.

These were a few advantages that technology has on the learning process. At present, several educational institutes are also using technology tools in the classrooms to make the learning process more efficient. Some of the technology tools that are being used in classrooms and have potential to be widely used are

  • Reality learning tools like augmented reality [AR], virtual reality [VR] and mixed reality [MR] are making learning more practical and engaging.
  • Educational apps are extremely useful to supplement the learning experience of the students.
  • 3D printing is also used by some institutes to make the learning process more engaging and practical. 3D printing also helps to boost the imagination of the students and can help students to understand some concepts in a better way.

There are several other technology tools that can enhance the learning process of the students. At present, educational apps are being widely accepted and used by the students. One of the educational apps which have been attracting huge attention from the students is BYJU’S- The Learning App.

BYJU’S app uses several technology tools like 3D animations, games, adaptive technology, etc. to make learning more effective for the students. To know more about BYJU’S app, subscribe to BYJU’s YouTube channel and download the app from the play store or the app store.

|In: Fintech|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

METRO Cash & Carry, India’s largest organized wholesale and food specialist announced an exclusive partnership with the technology start-up Chqbook to offer a wide range of financial products and solutions to METRO’s above 3 million transacting customer base across its 25 wholesale stores in the country. In line with its commitment to be a ‘Champion for Independent Business’, METRO has partnered with Chqbook to provide inclusive financial solutions to all small and medium-sized enterprises [SMEs] within the METRO eco-system. The initiative will give SMEs access to best rates, lower fees, and more cashback on credit & debit cards with exceptional customer service.

Commenting on the strategic alliance, Arvind Mediratta, MD & CEO, METRO Cash & Carry India said

At METRO, we are committed to deliver tremendous value to our SME and Kirana value chain. The Indian Government has paved the way for a Digital India through its numerous initiatives and schemes for SMEs. Our partnership with Chqbook.com will provide a large financial marketplace to our 3 million customer base.

It has been our constant endeavor to deliver the best technological and financial support to SMEs to augment the efficiency of their business operations. This partnership is aligned with our mission statement of being a ‘Champion for Independent Business’ as we firmly believe that we are an integral part of their growth and success story in India.

Chqbook’s marketplace will provide financial services to METRO customers in the B2B sector exclusively. It brings competitive rates and fees from 40+ Banks, NBFC’s and Credit Card companies, allowing easier comparisons, instant eligibility checks and quick approvals. It also operates a network of 400+ experts across 15+ cities in the country to provide appointments within 4 hours for document pickups and same day or next day approval for loans & credit cards. Chqbook.com will work with banks and payment providers to bring cash-backs, zero EMI products and pay-later schemes, making purchasing at Metro seamless and helping SME’s and others save financing costs.

Chqbook.com will also offer pre–approved products for METRO customers across Home Loans, Business Loans, Personal Loans, Insurance, Credit Cards, and other Financial Services. It’s recommendation algorithm automatically suggests the right products between various categories, giving customers instant approval, paperless documentation and a digital on–boarding experience resulting in quick disbursals and issuance.

Speaking about the initiative, Vipul Sharma, MD & CEO of Chqbook.com, said

We found a synergy in METRO and Chqbook.com’s approach of unlocking customer value through marketplaces. Our technology, understanding of the financial services sector and our deep commitment to customer service are the cornerstone to create a world class financial service platform. With METRO, we have found a partner who champions the cause of independent businesses similar to our own mission.

This alliance will help both existing and new customers as they will benefit from the cashback programs, personal finance, insurance and a range of products & solutions that Chqbook.com is offering. We are very excited about this partnership and are enthused to work with METRO to bring more innovations and solutions to the evolving SME universe.

About Chqbook

Chqbook is India’s largest market place for AI based personalized financial services. It’s the winner of the SuperStartup Asia 2018 award and currently has over 35+ credit cards, 21 Home Loan providers and 17 Personal loan and Business loan providers listed on it’s platform. Chqbook.com uses it’s proprietary TARA AI journey which provides customers instant and personalized recommendations of products best suited to their credit score, profile and demographics.

It also pulls in data from card issuers, banks and credit bureaus to fine-tune recommendations in real time. Chqbook.com has built the next generation marketplace and provides comparisons, eligibility and a seamless application process across 40 banks and credit card companies. It’s rapidly expanding marketplace brings pre-approved loans, credit cards, insurance and mutual funds to the country’s gen next with a sharp focus on a magical customer experience each and every time. For further information, log on to Chqbook.com

|In: Technology|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

SoundLogic, one of the fastest growing brands in the audio and electronics industry, has roped in India’s most successful captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, as a partner-evangelist. As SoundLogic looks to build on its presence in the Indian market to enter new segments and build marketshare, MS Dhoni will be an integral part of the journey.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Indian cricketer & SoundLogic’s partner-evangelist, said

Music drives me to do more on and off the field and there is no better fit than SoundLogic’s range of audio products. Right from the first meeting with Sagar and team, I realized that this is a group of young professionals with a clear and ambitious roadmap. I am excited to be part of their journey and I am sure consumers will also be as enthusiastic about the products as we are.

As an audiophile himself, ‘Captain Cool’ understands the cutting-edge technology involved in the designing of these audio products, which was a factor in his decision to extend his support to SoundLogic’s vision.

Speaking about the partnership, Sagar Gwallani, CEO of SoundLogic said

Mahi is the epitome of leadership and self-belief. He is driven by passion and continues to inspire millions. Like SoundLogic, Dhoni represents the new age of Indians – confident, cool and savvy. We look forward to working with him to develop innovative and engaging collaborations with consumers.

SoundLogic recently appointed PointNine Lintas as its full service agency. The agency is working with the team at SoundLogic and Mahi to create the marketing roadmap for the brand.

According to Vikas Mehta, CEO, PointNine Lintas

Mahi coming on board is of great significance for SoundLogic. We now have a confluence of best-in-class products and a perfectly apt persona. The fact that this isn’t yet another brand ambassador deal but a deeper partnership; makes it a great runway for real innovations as we take SoundLogic’s products to market.

This partnership aims to connect with the brand’s target audience and to strengthen the brand’s appeal and stature.

About SoundLogic, India

SoundLogic was founded in the USA in 2006 and has presence across various markets including India, UK, Europe and Australia. The brand entered the Indian market in 2011 and soon became one of the fastest growing brands in the audio and electronics industry providing consumers with innovative products at affordable prices.

Introducing innovative gadgets, SoundLogic has an array of gadgets and gizmos for daily lifestyle. The SoundLogic team believes in providing premium products with the latest technology. SoundLogic is a leading brand in e-commerce sales and one of the top performing audio equipment brands on Flipkart. It is a key player in the US providing white label products to leading in-store brands in the region. For more information, please visit SoundLogic, India