IBM and Pace Automation Ltd, a leading ‘Solution as a Service Company’ announced a strategic partnership to offer ‘RetailSmart‘, an end-to-end fully integrated solution that will enable local ‘Kirana’ [unorganized] stores to become ecommerce ready. Powered by IBM Cloud, the solution allows Kirana stores to deliver a convenient online shopping experience to consumers and pay safely using a convenient payment mode [irrespective of the size of the purchase].
According to industry reports, the current number of Kirana stores in India is pegged to be at 15 million. These stores have been facing tremendous headwinds from the organized retail & ecommerce companies. Attractive product presentations, discounts and cash back offers have led consumers to shop online while saving both time and money through these ecommerce portals. In addition, with the government’s demonetisation campaign, it is imperative for Kirana stores to go digital.
To bridge the gap, Pace Automation Ltd. has developed a unique solution, ‘RetailSmart’ on IBM cloud to digitally enable Kirana stores across the country. By implementing the solution, a Kirana store automatically becomes a part of the SmartKirana Network, hosted on IBM Cloud from Chennai data-center. The network digitally interconnects all Kirana stores in the country. Customers can easily access the network of Kirana stores in the neighborhood via smartphone app on Android available on Google Play Store or the SmartKirana web portal. Initially, the service will be available in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and National Capital Region and will be gradually expanded to other states and rural areas via network of distributors.
The solution will also give these stores an immediate access to ecosystem partners in banking, communication, insurance, payment processing and National product data repository. It enables the Kirana stores to:
Automate business processes like billing, stock management and accounting with increased efficiency and profitability
Receive online orders from customers through a web portal or smartphone app
Accept all credit / debit cards, mobile wallets, Aadhar enabled payments or UPI, irrespective of the value of the transaction thus making the transactions Cashless.
Put all transactions through the system creating transaction transparency, an integral aspect of GST compliance
Provide micro banking and value added services to customers generating additional revenue streams
SG Chandru, Chairman & Mentor, Pace Automation Ltd said
The objective of this project is to digitally empower Kirana stores and help them scale business by adding new revenue streams. For this we have tied up with series of partners to create a successful business ecosystem for Kirana merchants. Our target is to bring 1,50,000 local grocery stores to the network in the next three years & allow customers to order their groceries online from the nearest Kirana shop.
IBM is our technology partner that enabled us to develop and seamlessly deploy the solution on the Cloud. RetailSmart connects all the Kirana Stores across the country in its network digitally through the communication Ecosystem partner. This project is a win-win for all the stakeholders involved – Kirana stores, Manufacturers and Suppliers of goods and the end use customers.
Mukul Mathur, VP, Global Business partners and CSI, IBM India/South Asia said
We are excited about partnering with PACE in their efforts to digitize the unorganised Kirana stores and transform them into organized retail, leveraging the IBM Cloud and Cognitive solutions. IBM cloud is open by design, offering a set of tools, flexibility and agility that helps organizations of all size and developers to easily translate their innovative ideas into technical solutions and business models. This tie-up is an extension of IBM’s commitment to the ecosystem and a great example of how our joint solutions reach deep into the SME segment making the vision of Digital India real.
Powered by IBM Cloud, the solution is fully integrated end-to-end consisting of a custom -built hardware, an intuitive application software, backend / payment processing engines. A physically separated disaster recovery system ensures business continuity.
PACE has also developed and implemented several solutions on IBM cloud across verticals for retail sector. ServeSmart is the flagship solution of PACE to automate the operations of restaurant retail business and has automated Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) operations in 2004 when they had just 90 outlets which has grown to 1800 plus outlets today.
PACE now provides ‘ServeSmart’ services to more than thirty five hundred restaurant outlets of various leading restaurants in India. PACE hosts all its solutions on an IBM-IaaS Facility at Chennai and at Singapore to provide disaster recovery and business process continuation.
Synechron will be conducting its first-ever hackathon – SyneHack 201.7 to address challenges of the Artificial Intelligence world. SyneHack 201.7 will be hosted in association with HackerEarth and will provide participants a chance to contribute to the financial services industry that is undergoing a phase of digital transformation.
SyneHack 201.7 is a 24-hour hackathon that calls for developers to create an application that can process structured and unstructured data to eventually predict if a customer is satisfied or dissatisfied with their banking experience.
Registrations forSyneHack 201.7 are now open and acceptance of submissions will conclude on Sunday, April 9, 2017. SyneHack 201.7 will conclude with an onsite event scheduled for April 22–23, 2017 in Bengaluru. Participants will be eligible to win prizes of up to INR 2,50,000. The winners of the hackathon will be announced on Sunday, April 23, 2017.
Synechron has always been driving innovation to the next level by unleashing the ‘Power of 3’ – Digital, Business Consulting and Technology. In line with our commitment to innovation, we are thrilled to be associated with HackerEarth and establish our very first Hackathon – SyneHack 201.7. The hackathon is ideally designed to demonstrate the prowess of proven technologies like Artificial Intelligence and similar cutting-edge technologies and how they bring in a plethora of opportunities to the financial services industry. I am sure such initiatives would lay the foundation of the evolution of the banking of the future.
In any bank, customer satisfaction is a key measure of success. Unhappy customers don’t stick around and rarely voice their dissatisfaction before leaving. Synechron aims to address this very challenge through SyneHack 201.7. Synechron’s cutting-edge solutions for Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain utilize its Digital, Business Consulting and Technology expertise and ensure real–time benefits, center on strategic business challenges faced by financial institutions today.
Sachin Gupta, CEO and Co-founder, HackerEarth said
Technologies like Open APIs, Artificial Intelligence, AR and VR, Bots, Big Data, Blockchain, and IoT will form the basis of tomorrow’s economy. The banks of tomorrow must be able to help customers navigate this new economy in a safe and comfortable way, while giving them access to advantages of new technologies. This hackathon aims to seek and promote new services, technologies, and ways of working with customers that are aligned with what customers expect from a modern bank.
About Synechron
Synechron, one of the fastest-growing digital, business consulting & technology services providers, is a USD 400 million firm based in New York. Since inception in 2001, Synechron has been on a steep growth trajectory. For more information, please visit Synechron
Ratul Puri, Chairman, Hindustan Power Projects Pvt. Ltd, kick-started the session titled The Disruptors: Technology and Opportunity on a promising note, when he spoke of twelve technologies which have been identified which are likely to add between USD 0.5-1 trillion to the Indian economy. IT was a fitting introduction to a session of young disruptors, who are paving the way for new developments in the space of technology to create opportunities.
Rohan Murty took over as he analysed the promises and challenges of artificial intelligence. He opened his presentation with an image of 18 women on the screen, who were professional computers. The word computer was a job title well before it was a machine, he said. He spoke of a telescope run by AI, which makes discoveries of the night sky, of haikus and artwork created by machines and revealed that through AI, a task completed by 1,000 people, could within 12 months, be completed by just nine.
However, he also spoke of the shortcomings of AI as it stands now-it cannot identify basic images, it does not have fundamental human traits, there are trust issues and he reminded the audience of a twitter account created by Microsoft, run by AI, which tweeted racist and bigoted tweets and eventually had to be taken down.
Ananya Birla introduced the importance of human-tech synergy, when she said that consumer behaviour was the biggest challenge when moving towards a cashless economy. Her micro-finance company Svatantra Microfinance functions on a completely cashless process and creates a link between the user’s adhar payment scheme and their bank account. The primary challenge to a cashless economy is consumer behaviour. People are so used to cash that they have trust issues and there are literacy problems, she said.
From demonetisation, the conversation moved to autonomous vehicles. While saying that the idea of autonomous cars is ‘cool’, Manasi Kirloskar dismissed any prospect of such cars in India in the foreseeable future. ‘70 per cent of electricity in India is generated from coal fire, which leaves harmful emissions. Electric cars are not eco-friendly‘, she said. She also expressed concern over issues of interrupted broadband systems, virus attacks and hacking, all of which could pose a serious threat to the efficient functioning of autonomous cars. She also brought up ethical concerns-‘In case of an accidents, who does the car protect? The passengers or the pedestrians?‘ she said.
While humans are better off behind the steering wheel for now, truly riving the retail sector is e-commerce, said Shashwat Goenka. ‘Ecommerce is the inevitable future, since we are impatient as consumers. But, we are Indians and our purchase psychology is tuned into touch and feel,’ he said. ‘Brick and mortar will continue to exist,’ he added. Goenka also spoke about the need for re-skilling employees in a tech enabled environment and how it’s the need of the hour. The women ended the session on an astute note. ‘We need technology that will facilitate the efficient access to food, water, shelter, education and healthcare,’ said Kirloskar. ‘The vision is to reach a platform where technology and human beings optimize each other’, Birla concluded.
Big Ideas
Artificial Intelligence
While artificial intelligence can take over a lot of conventionally human activities such as exploring their place in the universe, making art and improving efficiency [a task completed by 1,000 people, could within 12 months, be completed by just nine], it still lacks basic human traits and the lack of trust towards AI poses a great challenge.
Self-driven cars
It is necessary to create a system and set policies for self-driven cars. Presently, they are neither eco-friendly, nor does India have the physical or ethical infrastructure in place to make them a reality.
Going cashless
Consumer behaviour needs to be addressed in order for the country to go completely cashless. Trust, literacy and the need to touch and feel a transaction are impediments. Svatantra Microfinance creates a cashless process where Aadhar payment schemes are linked with the user’s bank accounts. They use the biometric system and eventually work towards reducing KYCs etc.
About India Today Conclave
Started as part of India Today’s 25th anniversary, India Today Conclave was designed as a meeting point for the best minds from India and around the world to map the geopolitical and economic future of the country. In its inaugural year the theme was India Tomorrow 2002: Opportunities and Threats with Vice President of the USA Al Gore as the chief Guest. The speakers who have been part of this conference each year are current and former heads of state, Nobel Laureates, spiritual leaders, industry captains, social workers, economists, authors, academics, scientist, strategists, activists, cine directors, actors and sportspersons. The past conferences can be accessed here
How many of us have landed in a cash-crunch situation where you wanted a certain amount of cash as a short-term loan but felt awkward to borrow from your friends/relatives or they refused to lend due to some unimaginable reasons! With growing disposable income, rising expenses, etc., such scenarios are very common, especially with the urban population. You might require a loan for paying your rental deposit, starting a business, shopping, going on a vacation, buying home appliances or simply because you have run out of cash towards the month end.
Image Source – MoneyControl
Opting for a bank loan or securing an unsecured personal loan [from P2P companies] might not be feasible due to the higher interest rate. What if there existed a solution where borrowers can opt for loans based on their Line Of Credit.
Line of Credit and its advantages
A line of credit, abbreviated as LOC, is an arrangement between a financial institution, usually a bank, and a customer that establishes a maximum loan balance that the lender permits the borrower to access or maintain.
The main advantage of a line of credit is its built-in flexibility. Borrowers can request a certain amount, but they do not have to use it all. Rather, borrowers can tailor what they spend to their needs, and they only have to pay interest on the amount they spend, not on the entire credit line. In addition, consumers can also adjust their repayment amounts as needed, based on their budget or cash flow. For example, borrowers can repay the entire outstanding balance at once, or they can opt to just make the minimum monthly payments [Source].
Loan based on Line of Credit : A market opportunity
As mentioned earlier, young Indian urban population is and will continue to be driven by aspirational living and the basic standard of living will increase drastically. On similar lines, Indian consumers are also extremely credit-starved; they are either denied or pay a heavy premium for accessing the financial services due to sparse data, high transaction costs and poor trust infrastructure.
Many salaried urban Indians can easily co-relate to the situation shown in the video below
Unsecured personal loans offered by banks is still relatively slow-growing credit product that stands at around Rs. 45,000 crores. The informal market that includes moneylenders and family is roughly estimated to be around 50~100 times bigger. Some of the primary reasons for the gap are below:
Lack of reliable credit information available for banks to be able to offer credit
Credit cards, even when available only solve the ‘Shopping’ problem. Day-to-day needs like paying school fees, emergency expenses, rental deposits, etc. are largely cash-based
Applying for an unsecured personal loan is time-consuming for the consumer and expensive for the banks to process. Banks then prefer giving higher ticket loans to fewer people.
There clearly existed a market opportunity if a Bank/NBFC could provide an efficient solution to provide personal loans to Indian consumers based on their line of credit and solve the existing credit problem for Indian middle-income group. This is the opportunity that led way to the founding of MoneyTap, a Bengaluru-based fintech startup that has stellar serial entrepreneurs-Bala Parthasarathy, Anuj Kacker, and Kunal Varma as it’s founders. MoneyTap is India’s first startup that provides loans based on consumer’s credit line. A couple of months back, the MoneyTap app crossed 100K installs in three months since launch.
Today, we review the MoneyTap Android app from the perspective of usability, ease of securing a loan, communications with the customer-support team, etc.
MoneyTap : Money on your tap
MoneyTap is India’s first App-based credit line. Currently, it is open only to salaried professionals and loan is given to the consumers in partnership with banks. Unlike loan process which is very tedious, MoneyTap makes the entire process painless since it all happens on the app including the verification of eligibility, eKYC, etc.
The app is built on patent-pending technology, it is very secure and uses AI, NLP, ChatBot, etc. for providing a better experience to its customers! Some of the salient features of MoneyTap are below:
Credit Limit – Minimum credit limit of Rs. 3000, maximum credit limit of Rs. 5 Lakhs.
No Usage, no interest – Interest is charged only on transfer or EMI conversion. The remaining limit is available to the customer at no additional cost.
Low Interest – Interest rates vary from 1.25%~1.5% per month with no hidden charges.
Decide your own EMI – Customers can choose the tenure from 2 months to 36 months
Rewards & Benefits – MoneyTap credit card is loaded with rewards and other benefits
No collateral, no guarantors, 100% unsecured
Swipe, Tap and Convert – Customers can shop online or swipe at a store, one tap to transfer money instantly to the bank.
Keeping track of the transactions – EMIs and available credit can be tracked right from the app. It combines the best of personal loan, cash, and credit card, all under control through the mobile app!
There is a one-time setup fee of Rs. 499 plus taxes and the customer would get a MasterCard powered credit card by RBL Bank. The lingering question that comes to mind is ‘Why should someone pay for a credit card in times when other banks are offering credit cards for free‘. I checked with the RBL bank executive as well as customer happiness team at MoneyTap and they informed that customer would receive equivalent credit points that can be redeemed across retail outlets or on e-commerce platforms [so ideally the credit card is free].
As mentioned earlier, any salaried employee [with a monthly salary above Rs. 20000] can avail loan via MoneyTap. The immediate question that comes to mind is “Why only salaried professionals?”.
We had posted this same question to Bala Parthasarathy, CEO of MoneyTap and the answer lies in ‘Probability of guaranteed repayment’. He also informed us that since ‘Unsecured loan based on credit line’ is a relatively new concept in India hence, partner banks, as well as MoneyTap want to ensure that they create a market ‘one customer segment at a time’. Bala Parthasarathy did inform us that soon entrepreneurs, freelancers, designers, etc. could avail loans via MoneyTap but for the time being their target market segment is salaried professionals.
Once the user downloads the MoneyTap app from the Play Store, (s)he needs to upload a selfie for the application form, PAN card photo and current residence proof for eKYC. The MoneyTap app has three main sections:
Profile creation
Credit decision
Loan Amount
Profile Creation
The app is built on a patent-pending chat bot interface and would ask for all the relevant information that is required by banks. However, unlike traditional loans from banks where you need to fill a lot of information & submit tons of documents, with MoneyTap the process looks fast & breezy. You need to also enter the purpose for which you require a loan [further studies, business, house deposit, pay existing loan, etc.].
If you have an Aadhar Card, things become much easier since you could simply scan the Aadhar card bar-code and all the relevant information would be fetched from the card. Bala Parthasarathy’s learnings during his tenure with UIDAI would have come in handy during the development of MoneyTap!
Credit Decision
Once the eKYC is done than the app takes the user to the next step where important decisions are taken and the customer would come to know about the eligibility for the loan [as well as sanctioned amount]. You need to enter your PAN details, current organization & residence type. Once these details are submitted, the patent-pending algorithms fetch your Credit [CIBIL] score, social score, etc. in order to perform ‘Eligibility Check’.
For some reason, if you fail to pass the eligibility criteria e.g. here, here you need not proceed to the next step. Similar to traditional bank loans, CIBIL score might be the first data point used by MoneyTap for checking eligibility for a loan.
Once the first step of eligibility check has passed, the user/loan applicant would need to submit last six months bank statements [salary account preferred]. The user has the option to either ‘Login to net-banking account’ inside the context of MoneyTap or upload bank statements via secure upload link provided by MoneyTap. Immediately, a lingering question about security would come to your mind since you are uploading your bank statement but as stated in the T&C of MoneyTap, their team takes security very seriously and all the back-end APIs comply with mandated security standards and robust protocols.
Security & Protection of Privacy
Protection of your privacy and your data security is our primary concern. Our back end APIs comply with mandated security standards and robust protocols. Our security measures have been tested and certified by our partner bank’s IT team. Your credentials are only used to retrieve your bank statements for verification. Alternatively, you can also upload a PDF of your bank statements which is eco-friendly and time-saving [Source]
MoneyTap has tied-up with a 3rd party company through which ‘Net Banking Login’ as well ‘Secure Bank statement upload’ is made possible. In order to test the security of the app, I downloaded my bank statement and uploaded the pdf after removing the password and the MoneyTap app rejected the bank statement since there was an author signature mismatch. When I dropped an email for the rejection, the MoneyTap customer success team member called me and clarified the reason for rejection.
Once I uploaded the proper bank statement, the application got approved after a couple of days. In this entire process, there was no interaction with the bank partner and entire process took place on app & email.
Loan Amount
Once the important steps of eKYC and Credit Decision are complete, the final step is disbursal of approved loan amount. As mentioned earlier, interest is only charged on the amount borrowed with interest rates as low as 1.25~1.5% per month. The customer would also receive a Credit Card from RBL Bank and this is the only step where you have to interact with the bank executive.
During the interaction that I had with the executive, he called me from his mobile phone & asked me to send bank statement over WhatsApp which is against security norms of the bank. Since MoneyTap acts as an ‘Unsecured loan enabler’, it becomes important for their customer success team to ensure that the bank officials adhere to all the necessary standards since as a customer you are dealing with MoneyTap with RBL Bank being a black-box. The official did call me from bank’s landline after which communication was smooth.
Even though the technology behind MoneyTap app is awesome and the entire approval process was completed with a blink of an eye, efficient communication with bank partners holds the key else it could result in negative reviews More details about the RBL MoneyTap credit card can be found here
Currently, MoneyTap is available in Bengaluru, Delhi NCR [Delhi, New Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurgaon], Hyderabad and Mumbai [Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane] and Chennai. However, there are requests from users from other cities and in order to track the incoming requests, MoneyTap could add a Notify Me page where the user enters his/her city information which can act as important data for their team to identify next logical expansion [coupled with data from their partner banks].
As mentioned earlier, detailed communication about the application status [from MoneyTap Team] could be very important for creating a WoW factor. Though my application was processed in a couple of days, sometimes the partner banks might take more time in processing the application which might act as a spoil-sport. Hence, timely communication becomes a very important factor!
MoneyTap:Conclusion
The overall experience of using the MoneyTap was great. The technology behind MoneyTap makes the entire loan application process less cumbersome. Banks and financial institutions are bullish on chatbots and MoneyTap uses chatbot technology very effectively. Though P2P lending, loans on credit line and other mechanisms of obtaining unsecured loans are still in nascent stage, MoneyTap does have a first-mover advantage since it is India’s first app-based credit line and provides loans at lesser interest rates!
If you have used the MoneyTap app, please leave your feedback/reviews in the comments section…
Megasoft Limited, a leading technology company, have announced the award of cloud-enabled solution & services contract by the Bihar State Electronics Development Corporation Ltd. [BELTRON]. The state Government of Bihar, through BELTRON, plans to establish state-of-the-art cloud computing facility for use by its various e-Governance programs and other IT-driven initiatives.
The cloud-enabled State Data Centre [SDC] named ‘Bihar Cloud’ is one of the important elements for supporting initiatives of National e-Governance Plan [NeGP]. The primary purpose of the cloud computing solution is to establish a viable ‘Private’ cloud environment for use by the various e-Governance applications of Bihar.
Megasoft, acclaimed for its sophisticated cloud deployments, will provide state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology solution and services to address various needs of multiple line departments within the state that come under the purview of Bihar Cloud. While the solution is focused primarily on Infrastructure-as-a-Service [IaaS], other services such as Platform-as-a-Service [PaaS], Data-as-a-Service [DaaS] & Software-as-a-Service [SaaS] will complement and be deployed on top of the basic IaaS services.
In the past, applications and websites of state departments were hosted on different servers. In such a scenario, introduction of a new application or website required all other applications and websites to be brought down. With ‘Bihar Cloud’, sufficient space will be allocated to various state Government departments based on their requirements.
The unique feature of this project is that the cloud-based implementation will also further strengthen the security aspect of all the applications. The inauguration of the solution is planned shortly.
G V Kumar, CEO & Managing Director of Megasoft said
Virtualization and the cloud mean much more than mere consolidation. Our Infrastructure-as-a-Service [IaaS] solution will not only ease BELTRON’s infrastructure management efforts but also provide them the ability to automatically scale-up or scale-down services hosted in the cloud, based on user demand.
By addressing the systems and information technology needs from a holistic perspective, our delivery model will ensure that BELTRON implements ‘Bihar Cloud’ in the most effective manner.
Megasoft cloud-enabled solution is agnostic to the underlying hardware, storage, network and operating system. Besides enabling end customers to automatically provision services via a web portal it provides service assurance for maintenance & operations activities performed by the users.
About BELTRON
Bihar State Electronics Development Corporation Ltd. [BELTRON] is the nodal agency of the Bihar state working towards promotion & implementation of IT and e-Governance. It is the single-point of access to any IT business opportunity in Bihar and encourages various players in the field of IT to come forward and invest in the state.
BELTRON is committed to generate IT business for the public / private sector with a mandate from the Government to develop IT in the state. For more information, please visit BELTRON
Singapore based company, Anchanto, an e-commerce logistics and selling platform has launched its flagship SaaS application SelluSeller in India. SelluSeller offers eCommerce sellers a one-stop solution to manage thousands of products, inventory, promotions, kits, invoicing & orders on various local and cross-border online marketplaces. SelluSeller has already integrated major online marketplaces like Amazon, ebay, Flipkart, Snapdeal and ShopClues in India, while already covering most of the marketplaces in South East Asia.
SelluSeller, Anchanto’s innovative SaaS offering, takes into account all pain points of modern online sellers and offers a simple yet effective solution to all of them. On the SelluSeller platform, sellers can manage prices and promotions as well as maintain a single common inventory. Sellers also get access to a multi-channel order management system and analytics that gives them a visibility of the product’s shipment status and the associated payment and accounting services. This SaaS application aggregates all local and cross-border marketplaces where sellers sell their products under one roof and easily navigates the complexity of online business.
We realized an opportunity for us to provide a solution for the sellers to seamlessly list products and manage inventory across all channels with the ease of one single platform. With SelluSeller, sellers can now look forward to saving time, money, effort, manpower, and warehousing space and investment in their e-commerce business and taking it to hitherto unattained heights.
We are aiming to sign-up with more than 1000 merchants in India& Singapore in next three months. We are also planning to launch this application for Malaysian market soon.
At present, company boasts of helping customers integrate seamlessly onto multiple marketplaces such as Qoo10, Lazada, Zalora, Snapdeal, Flipkart, Shopclues, Amazon, and eBay to push inventory, digital contents, promotions and receive customer orders, all in real time. House of Frasers, Levis, Asos.com, L’Oréal and 3M are some of their key Channel Management customers.
Anchanto has grown rapidly in the last year and has expanded operations from Singapore to Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, India, and Vietnam. Anchanto has handled shipments, fulfilment, marketing promotions for leading brands like 3M, ASOS and House of Frasers. Its platform is integrated with leading online marketplaces in Asia such as Amazon, Zalora, Lazada, Qoo10, and last-mile delivery providers such as POSLogistic, NinjaVan and Zyllem.
About Anchanto
Anchanto is an e-commerce ecosystem, enabling and connecting all key players across the globe. Anchanto SaaS Technology and integration with ecosystem players makes online selling and e-commerce logistics simple for everyone. It was founded by Vaibhav Dabhade in June 2011 in Singapore with the vision ‘to give customers an enchanting experience’ through software platform and associated services.
With integrated technology and infrastructure in place, Anchanto delivers exceptional service, world-class fulfilment solutions, and partnerships that drive value and revenue for clients across all markets in Asia. In 2016, the company deployed e-commerce warehouse management system with huge logistic players in 9 countries in Asia. For more information, please visit Anchanto
What is one thing that makes India very different from any other country in the world? The answer is Cultural Diversity and each & every region i.e. North, South, East or West have their own diverse cultures. Another aspect that makes India very unique is ‘Festivals’. There are festivals for every season, for every belief and every festival is celebrated with zeal and pomp.
Talking about important dates in the history of India, the two most important dates etched in the minds of every Indian are Independence Day [15th August] and Republic Day [26th January]. Brands launch important Marketing campaigns as well as Noble initiatives either on Independence Day or Republic Day. One such initiative – #KarSalaam was launched by smartphone manufacturer LG on the eve of Republic Day.
Through the #KarSalaam initiative, LG wanted to tap into the patriotic fervor and establish itself as a brand that cared for Indian sentiments. For this initiative, LG invited all Indians to share their love & affection for the most important pillar of India – The Indian Armed Forces. It is because of the hard-work and dedication of the Armed Forces that each one of us is able to enjoy sound sleep in the comfort of our homes !!
The #KarSalaam initiative was launched on mass-media platforms like TV, Radio, Print, etc. as well as on social media. Along with these avenues, LG invited all Indians to express their love for the brave soldiers through KarSalaam website.LG also invited families of Indian soldiers to leave their messages for fellow Indians on the site. #KarSalaam cause was loved and very well received by the social media addicts [Source]. It also included a donation of Rs. 1 crore towards the CPRF Welfare Fund that is dedicated to the welfare of the Indian soldiers.
The campaign not only received a blockbuster response on all the platforms but it also created a Guinness World Record 🙂 LG managed to break the Guinness Record for the ‘Longest Line of Sticky Notes’ category where it received more than 1,14,741 hand-written messages from Indians wishing the Indian Armed Forces.
Speaking about the record, Swapnil Dangarikar, Adjudicator Guinness World Records said
We are happy to announce the entry of LG Electronics India Ltd. as a record breaker for ‘Longest Line of Sticky Notes’ messages from the Indian citizens. It is an honor for us to be a medium through which we can partner in wishing the Armed Forces for their immense contribution in ensuring the safety of the citizens. This initiative of LG Electronics India is unique and we hope that they take up many similar initiatives in the near future.
Mr. Kim Ki Wan, Managing Director, LG Electronics India said
A million thanks to the people of India for showing their gratitude towards the Indian soldiers. The initiative has been a massive success that can be validated by the overwhelming response that we have received from the people in the form of messages for the soldiers. It is also a very proud moment for us at LG and immensely gratifying to break the Guinness Book of World Records by getting more than 114,741 wishes [Source]
The #KarSalaam initiative is a testimony that amazing results can be achieved if a story is told in a manner that touches the hearts of a billion Indians!!
Truecaller for Developers, for the first time launched its Build for Mobile tour in India with Bengaluru as the first destination. The mobile-community focused India tour is set to inspire developers, influencers and the Indian start-up community to come together in key cities across the country and foster innovation, collaboration on the Truecaller platform.
This first edition of this tour witnessed near 200 participants [developers and product people] in a single day and proved to be a rich knowledge sharing platform for the mobile tech community in The Silicon Valley of India. The event saw an exciting line of speakers from the local mobile start-up ecosystem and Truecaller team, sharing insights and real life experiences from their journey of product building on the mobile platform.
Priyam Bose, Director of Global Developer Relations at Truecaller said
Innovation and collaboration has been core to Truecaller and we are excited to bring this first ever ‘Build for Mobile’ tour to India that focuses on cross pollination, and to inspire knowledge exchange amongst the local developers and startup community that aims to build sustainable products and businesses on mobile platform. ‘Build for Mobile’ is part of our focus initiatives that also enables us to give back to the developer and startup community from where we belong.
During this India tour one will have an opportunity to benefit from Truecaller’s own learning’s on building world class and lovable mobile products with scale. In addition, developers and startups will have an opportunity to learn ways and means to best leverage Truecaller’s platform and tools which would further empower them in building their products and businesses.
The event also witnessed an extremely interactive panel discussion deliberating on opportunities, challenges and real life experiences where each of the panelists shared hands-on insights basis their journey on building product for Mobile.
