Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Writer's Marketplace
Many moons ago I was involved in something that evolved into Caferati . The idea back then was to provide writers with a forum where they could interact and explore and eventually find their own space and confidence to go and write that Booker winner. Caferati has been bumbling along doing nothing much other than sporadic readmeets (must remember to copyright ideas). I had visions of getting sponsors for every read meet, sponsors for books that would be published and so on. Did Not Work!
Time now for version two of the idea:
Create a forum for writers
Communities based on interests and genres
Drive registration : Free with limited access and features and a paid membership
Price it at Rs 249 for six months
Allow paid members to submit their work
Give away premium content that the members can read.
Rate content on basis of number of downloads, the best ones rise to the top based on reviews and number of downloads
Share revenues with the writers
Distribute content to offline media
Distribute content to Mobile
PUBLISH!
I have a feeling this will work. But this one needs some bit of seed capital. Coffee anyone?
Write to me if you want to explore this idea further
Time now for version two of the idea:
Create a forum for writers
Communities based on interests and genres
Drive registration : Free with limited access and features and a paid membership
Price it at Rs 249 for six months
Allow paid members to submit their work
Give away premium content that the members can read.
Rate content on basis of number of downloads, the best ones rise to the top based on reviews and number of downloads
Share revenues with the writers
Distribute content to offline media
Distribute content to Mobile
PUBLISH!
I have a feeling this will work. But this one needs some bit of seed capital. Coffee anyone?
Write to me if you want to explore this idea further
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
food 24/7/365
picture this.
a bustling food court. serving anything and everything.
soups. mocktails. slushes. chuski. ice-cream. desi. southie. pasta. biryani. snacks. street food. pastries. chinese. pizzas. continental. desserts. salads.
packed with families with kids. just married types still shy of each other. cuddling couples. all male hang-out types. BPO types who stick out a mile.
here's the surprise part.
its 2 am on a saturday morning in new delhi.
and the location is "comesum", the eatery outside the hazrat nizamuddin railway station.
run by the irctc, and located in select cities .
comesum is not just a food court at railway stations. there are smaller comesum restaurants and takeaway kiosks at railway stations.
and the best is this one. call up their phone numbers. place your order and have your food delivered at your seat on your train.
whew. non-shatabdi types can finally take heart.
given the proliferation of eating out options today plus the choice of ready to cook/ ready to eat foods, home-delivery options from waiters-on-wheels to dominos to humble dhaaba / dabba fare.... i wonder.
may be there will come a day when we too turn in to a nation that almost always eats out ? much as in the west where domesticity is a pain.
i dont really think so. as long as servants are here to wait on us it seems a remote thing.
even two or three generations after todays mcfood types.
the frequency with which i take my son out to eat is once a week. minimum. the order-ins and takeaways are separate.
the ready to eat foods and chips and assorted junk is separate and not accounted for in this discussion.
but pretty much what i want to say should be clear.
we are eating out like never before.
and anything new and innovative - sushi, veda, juice bars, office lunches flaunt salads, vodka filled gol-gapppas, flambe-ed gulab jamuns, branded vada-pav...
convenience foods, ready to cook, ready to eat tom tom virtues of being natural with no preservatives to anxious homemakers. the working types simply put their guilt and doubts on the back burner and snap them up.
restaurants turn in to brands and market their speciality dishes in cans or pouches in ready to eat avtaars.
cook books routinely sell out. foodblogs have appeared
food rocks. business wise. even other wise.
so when will some one do a concept store that does any thing and everything around and with food ? a foodie version of the planet m / music world. tough. but not impossible. enough footfalls, trials and repeat visitors are guaranteed.
will messers biyani or pillai oblige ?
when will the roads of chandni chowk be turned in to an endless food street the way it is in lahore ?
microwave marketers have long since used the recipe / food route to familiarise buyers with their product and ensure that a new style of cooking is taught to desi women. post the initial flush and enthu how many have bothered to stay connected with their database of users and ensure interest and involvement levels are maintained? after all its easier to retain a customer and upsell rather than acquire a new one. scope for community building here. especially amongst home makers. samsung, LG et. al. wake up.
and then there is this. the ultimate tribute that one can pay to a brand. more so when promoting it is not allowed in any media except at point of sale. brand heritage and other sundry facts aside, this is something that constitutes the holy grail for any marketer. meakins and co must take a bow for inspiring this effort.
also a fit case for brand sustenance in the blogosphere.
stuff that case-studies would be about.
sometime in the distant future.
and now am HUNGRY...
p.s. no thanks to blogspot who swallowed this post twice before. hungry kya ?????
a bustling food court. serving anything and everything.
soups. mocktails. slushes. chuski. ice-cream. desi. southie. pasta. biryani. snacks. street food. pastries. chinese. pizzas. continental. desserts. salads.
packed with families with kids. just married types still shy of each other. cuddling couples. all male hang-out types. BPO types who stick out a mile.
here's the surprise part.
its 2 am on a saturday morning in new delhi.
and the location is "comesum", the eatery outside the hazrat nizamuddin railway station.
run by the irctc, and located in select cities .
comesum is not just a food court at railway stations. there are smaller comesum restaurants and takeaway kiosks at railway stations.
and the best is this one. call up their phone numbers. place your order and have your food delivered at your seat on your train.
whew. non-shatabdi types can finally take heart.
given the proliferation of eating out options today plus the choice of ready to cook/ ready to eat foods, home-delivery options from waiters-on-wheels to dominos to humble dhaaba / dabba fare.... i wonder.
may be there will come a day when we too turn in to a nation that almost always eats out ? much as in the west where domesticity is a pain.
i dont really think so. as long as servants are here to wait on us it seems a remote thing.
even two or three generations after todays mcfood types.
the frequency with which i take my son out to eat is once a week. minimum. the order-ins and takeaways are separate.
the ready to eat foods and chips and assorted junk is separate and not accounted for in this discussion.
but pretty much what i want to say should be clear.
we are eating out like never before.
and anything new and innovative - sushi, veda, juice bars, office lunches flaunt salads, vodka filled gol-gapppas, flambe-ed gulab jamuns, branded vada-pav...
convenience foods, ready to cook, ready to eat tom tom virtues of being natural with no preservatives to anxious homemakers. the working types simply put their guilt and doubts on the back burner and snap them up.
restaurants turn in to brands and market their speciality dishes in cans or pouches in ready to eat avtaars.
cook books routinely sell out. foodblogs have appeared
food rocks. business wise. even other wise.
so when will some one do a concept store that does any thing and everything around and with food ? a foodie version of the planet m / music world. tough. but not impossible. enough footfalls, trials and repeat visitors are guaranteed.
will messers biyani or pillai oblige ?
when will the roads of chandni chowk be turned in to an endless food street the way it is in lahore ?
microwave marketers have long since used the recipe / food route to familiarise buyers with their product and ensure that a new style of cooking is taught to desi women. post the initial flush and enthu how many have bothered to stay connected with their database of users and ensure interest and involvement levels are maintained? after all its easier to retain a customer and upsell rather than acquire a new one. scope for community building here. especially amongst home makers. samsung, LG et. al. wake up.
and then there is this. the ultimate tribute that one can pay to a brand. more so when promoting it is not allowed in any media except at point of sale. brand heritage and other sundry facts aside, this is something that constitutes the holy grail for any marketer. meakins and co must take a bow for inspiring this effort.
also a fit case for brand sustenance in the blogosphere.
stuff that case-studies would be about.
sometime in the distant future.
and now am HUNGRY...
p.s. no thanks to blogspot who swallowed this post twice before. hungry kya ?????
Thursday, April 20, 2006
of knock-offs and pavements....
take a look at the teeming, milling crowds on the streets.
all doing just one thing.
shopping.
and the maximum crowds i see are at the pavement stalls and the "khokaas" selling shoes and clothes at rock bottom rates. almost always to women.
nice, kitschy stuff with assorted glittery thingummies. all at prices that don't burn a hole in the pocket. quality of course is pretty suspect. but as long as it lasts a couple of months, no sweat.
and a bit of bargaining proves irresistible. even though deep down we all know that even after supposedly bullying the shopkeeper down by a few bucks he is STILL making his pound of flesh from us..who cares ? we have got what WE wanted, right ??
makes me wonder in the midst of our so-called retail revolution and hypermarkets et.al., when will anyone come up with a chain of pavement stalls ? a brand of pavement stalls around the country. offering the same kind of products at the same prices and the same experience, everywhere ?
a chain of pavement stalls selling designer knock-offs at knock off prices - would be a smash hit, methinks.
we guys are great at fake stuff. so merhcandise shouldn't be a problem. stalls selling fakes abound, but lack credibility. and quality is always suspect.
so may be a chain of pavement shops selling QUALITY designer knock-offs and tom-tomming that fact would give that credibility stamp perhaps ? i think the crowds would attack in droves.
the west has made a virtue of designer fakes ...perfumes, clothes, sunglasses, shoes.
no reason that it can't happen here ?
well ??
p.s. - delhi has this cute-in-pink "chota" shop chain called "impulse". where you pick up baubles, beads, bags and shoes. and get nail art done. almost always crowded.
then a long while ago, a foodie friend who had his own chain of fast-food reastaurants serving kebaabs, had decided to innovate and take his kebaabs to the masses at office complexes. branded "kongo" (short for kebaab-on-the-go), the idea was to have a uniformed seller with his own tray of kongos ( kebaabs in roomalis with chutney and onion rings, foilwrapped and packed in cartons a la mcdonald's ), much like the food-sellers you see walking about in the west, during soccer and cricket matches.
replenishments could come from a nearby storage source or a central kitchen.
willing to bet this would work like a dream....
all doing just one thing.
shopping.
and the maximum crowds i see are at the pavement stalls and the "khokaas" selling shoes and clothes at rock bottom rates. almost always to women.
nice, kitschy stuff with assorted glittery thingummies. all at prices that don't burn a hole in the pocket. quality of course is pretty suspect. but as long as it lasts a couple of months, no sweat.
and a bit of bargaining proves irresistible. even though deep down we all know that even after supposedly bullying the shopkeeper down by a few bucks he is STILL making his pound of flesh from us..who cares ? we have got what WE wanted, right ??
makes me wonder in the midst of our so-called retail revolution and hypermarkets et.al., when will anyone come up with a chain of pavement stalls ? a brand of pavement stalls around the country. offering the same kind of products at the same prices and the same experience, everywhere ?
a chain of pavement stalls selling designer knock-offs at knock off prices - would be a smash hit, methinks.
we guys are great at fake stuff. so merhcandise shouldn't be a problem. stalls selling fakes abound, but lack credibility. and quality is always suspect.
so may be a chain of pavement shops selling QUALITY designer knock-offs and tom-tomming that fact would give that credibility stamp perhaps ? i think the crowds would attack in droves.
the west has made a virtue of designer fakes ...perfumes, clothes, sunglasses, shoes.
no reason that it can't happen here ?
well ??
p.s. - delhi has this cute-in-pink "chota" shop chain called "impulse". where you pick up baubles, beads, bags and shoes. and get nail art done. almost always crowded.
then a long while ago, a foodie friend who had his own chain of fast-food reastaurants serving kebaabs, had decided to innovate and take his kebaabs to the masses at office complexes. branded "kongo" (short for kebaab-on-the-go), the idea was to have a uniformed seller with his own tray of kongos ( kebaabs in roomalis with chutney and onion rings, foilwrapped and packed in cartons a la mcdonald's ), much like the food-sellers you see walking about in the west, during soccer and cricket matches.
replenishments could come from a nearby storage source or a central kitchen.
willing to bet this would work like a dream....
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
warning to plagiarists !!!
all the ideas and content on this blog are original and the property of the blog-owners and may not be copied / reproduced in any form whatsoever in any manner and in any media whatsoever.
for those who want to try and do this, be warned that this blog is protected by
" COPYSCAPE " , a plagiarism prevention software. not only will it prevent you from doing so but it will also track your id and IP address !!
so there !!!
for those who want to try and do this, be warned that this blog is protected by
" COPYSCAPE " , a plagiarism prevention software. not only will it prevent you from doing so but it will also track your id and IP address !!
so there !!!
the game of games...
they are laughing all the way to the bank.
or they soon will be.
game creators and content providers are finally beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. courtesy the fans of PSP and Xbox.
online and mobile options add to the fun and games. pretty literally.
service providers, and the porn industry lick their chops in anticiaption of all that moolah they can lat their hands on.
then sundry brands see this as THE way to get through to their difficult-to-reach hard-to-please consumers one on one. seasons, characters, events also have a role in game creation.
and the kids are left way behind the grown-ups (!) who want a piece of the action .. 33 % versus 11 % as reported in one of the mainline dailies.
so the new timepass is this perhaps.
assuming we get games on our i-pods ?
school lessons woven in to games so that kids can at least get to learn their lessons that way ?? ( pretty please, someone go in to this new paradigm of learning and make trillions )
and we can create our ideal partner in a game ?
play pranks on others through games ?
next we will have game olympics ( shudder !! )and spawn a new monster !!!
or they soon will be.
game creators and content providers are finally beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. courtesy the fans of PSP and Xbox.
online and mobile options add to the fun and games. pretty literally.
service providers, and the porn industry lick their chops in anticiaption of all that moolah they can lat their hands on.
then sundry brands see this as THE way to get through to their difficult-to-reach hard-to-please consumers one on one. seasons, characters, events also have a role in game creation.
and the kids are left way behind the grown-ups (!) who want a piece of the action .. 33 % versus 11 % as reported in one of the mainline dailies.
so the new timepass is this perhaps.
assuming we get games on our i-pods ?
school lessons woven in to games so that kids can at least get to learn their lessons that way ?? ( pretty please, someone go in to this new paradigm of learning and make trillions )
and we can create our ideal partner in a game ?
play pranks on others through games ?
next we will have game olympics ( shudder !! )and spawn a new monster !!!
Monday, April 17, 2006
Defining moments ...www style !!!
The World Wide Web’s defining moments as researched by CNN make interesting reading.
Would be interesting to see if our lists of defining moments coincide with the majority speak or not.
Imho, e-mail and the mobile phone are the two things that have simply revolutionised the way we do business now.
May be voice and video too. However they have been more along the lines of value-adds to an existing base of technology based work enablers.
My next defining moment with regard to how technology will redefine our work and living styles –
Office / Wallet / Entertainment all in one.
On a mobile phone or mobile communicator. Right now it takes the shape of a handheld external device.
What if it is an implant under the skin? Or adhered to an external garment ?
Who is the mad genius who will get us there ? Which is the corporation which will invest ?
Futurists have predicted the possibility of creating an invisible force-field around humans that will enable all communication possibly by thought and telepathy….
Welcome to our Brave New World.. circa 2084 perhaps ??
Would be interesting to see if our lists of defining moments coincide with the majority speak or not.
Imho, e-mail and the mobile phone are the two things that have simply revolutionised the way we do business now.
May be voice and video too. However they have been more along the lines of value-adds to an existing base of technology based work enablers.
My next defining moment with regard to how technology will redefine our work and living styles –
Office / Wallet / Entertainment all in one.
On a mobile phone or mobile communicator. Right now it takes the shape of a handheld external device.
What if it is an implant under the skin? Or adhered to an external garment ?
Who is the mad genius who will get us there ? Which is the corporation which will invest ?
Futurists have predicted the possibility of creating an invisible force-field around humans that will enable all communication possibly by thought and telepathy….
Welcome to our Brave New World.. circa 2084 perhaps ??
What do the kids of today want ?
As mother to a pre-teen, metropolitan, elitist, semi-spoilt brat it’s pretty clear.
The latest game CD’s ( both for PC and PSP aka Play-station Portable ), Nike soccer jerseys, Mall shopping sprees, Gatorade, safari holidays in Africa ( Disneyworld ? What’s that ? ) , a personal mobile phone, notebook PC's, birthday bashes at farmhouses with girls coming in for an “evening dance party”……
A lot of these are a function of the super-informative age and the one-upmanship scenario that we live in. Where the world has shrunk in to reside on our idiot boxes or PC’s. And kids selectively pick out this kind of information and take it in like super-absorbent sponges. Retain it all, too.
Given the nature and level of information flows, research in the West has shown , that the average sleeping times of babies have gone down considerably due to the level and quality of stimuli that they are exposed to.
That doesn’t make it any easier. In fact, we all know how tough it is to get and hold the attention of these guys for more than a brief length of time.
So. How does one harness the power of information to kids about a brand and make moolah out of it ? Time and time again ?
This example comes to mind.
One where a brand has a unique offering, at least in the Indian context. Obviously the quality and presentation has more than exceeded consumer expectations.
A presence in strategic locations in a few malls is enough. Word has spread like wild-fire.
( Oh yes, pundits call it “buzz”, “WOM”, “viral marketing” and suchlike ) amongst son’s peer group.
On two successive weekends my son dragged me to different malls in an effort to find the store. There was no advertising whatsoever to go by. No one had the exact location, only vague directions to go to so-and-so mall and such-and-such floor and it was next to a particular store.
Once we located it, it was bliss. For the child at least. He was lost in his Paradise. A whole range of assorted candies were neatly arranged in rows of crystal clear containers. Stuff which we had read about in Enid Blyton books or seen in Archie comics as kids.
Dolly mixture, liquorice sticks, chocolate coated footballs, fudge, marshmallows, bulls eyes, humbugs and god knows what all else. In flavours from cola and mint to peach and grape. In shapes ranging from dentures to cola bottles to creepy crawlies.
We could mix and match an assortment of candies as we pleased with the large spatula there. Designed to pick up large helpings every time.
All priced at a flat rate of Rs. 60 per 100 grams. Works out equivalent or more than the most expensive “pista burfi” or dry fruits that one could pick up elsewhere.
You could pick up as much or as little as you wanted.
They were weighed, billed and packed in a food grade zip lock bag with colourful candy coloured streaks on it.
Mind you, the candies were still visible through it. Anyone carrying this sort of a bag would be instantly tagged as being a customer of “Candy Treats”. And in “that” stratospheric league of people who would go to such places.
And we keep going back there. Again and again. And I half-heartedly, semi-willingly shell out the moolah for over-priced candies that I know will cause tooth decay in the long run with dentists bills as a side benefit.
But this guy at Candy Treats has got his act down pat. He has created a tribe of regular, loyal ambassadors at no extra cost.
Google did it with g mail. Once upon a time a g mail invite was the most wannabe thing on Earth. They’ve been smart enough to keep it still by invitation only.
Smart. Very smart. Or did Mr. Candy Treat just get lucky, being the first in his business ? Was he in the right place at the right time ?
Makes me think. Where does he go from here ? Even the biggest cult brands (think i-pod, for instance ) need to innovate and move on in order to maintain and grow loyal consumers.
May be the answers could lie in low-cal or sugar free candy to attract health conscious adults ? Or even “naughty” candy ? These could be placed at pubs and restaurants. Customised candy in desired shapes ? Play-and-eat dough candy for babies ?
Or better still. Ask the kids what they want.
A confectionery company called Candico had a few years ago run a contest, where they had asked kids to write in with their suggestions as to what kind of candies they should manufacture. The best suggestions would be rewarded with the opportunity to become Brand Advisors and Tasters for the company. Imagine the hoard of information they would have managed to gather.
Strangely, though, I don’t seem to recall anything happening with that company and its products.
But for now, my drooling continues…...
p.s. - thank you sunil :))
The latest game CD’s ( both for PC and PSP aka Play-station Portable ), Nike soccer jerseys, Mall shopping sprees, Gatorade, safari holidays in Africa ( Disneyworld ? What’s that ? ) , a personal mobile phone, notebook PC's, birthday bashes at farmhouses with girls coming in for an “evening dance party”……
A lot of these are a function of the super-informative age and the one-upmanship scenario that we live in. Where the world has shrunk in to reside on our idiot boxes or PC’s. And kids selectively pick out this kind of information and take it in like super-absorbent sponges. Retain it all, too.
Given the nature and level of information flows, research in the West has shown , that the average sleeping times of babies have gone down considerably due to the level and quality of stimuli that they are exposed to.
That doesn’t make it any easier. In fact, we all know how tough it is to get and hold the attention of these guys for more than a brief length of time.
So. How does one harness the power of information to kids about a brand and make moolah out of it ? Time and time again ?
This example comes to mind.
One where a brand has a unique offering, at least in the Indian context. Obviously the quality and presentation has more than exceeded consumer expectations.
A presence in strategic locations in a few malls is enough. Word has spread like wild-fire.
( Oh yes, pundits call it “buzz”, “WOM”, “viral marketing” and suchlike ) amongst son’s peer group.
On two successive weekends my son dragged me to different malls in an effort to find the store. There was no advertising whatsoever to go by. No one had the exact location, only vague directions to go to so-and-so mall and such-and-such floor and it was next to a particular store.
Once we located it, it was bliss. For the child at least. He was lost in his Paradise. A whole range of assorted candies were neatly arranged in rows of crystal clear containers. Stuff which we had read about in Enid Blyton books or seen in Archie comics as kids.
Dolly mixture, liquorice sticks, chocolate coated footballs, fudge, marshmallows, bulls eyes, humbugs and god knows what all else. In flavours from cola and mint to peach and grape. In shapes ranging from dentures to cola bottles to creepy crawlies.
We could mix and match an assortment of candies as we pleased with the large spatula there. Designed to pick up large helpings every time.
All priced at a flat rate of Rs. 60 per 100 grams. Works out equivalent or more than the most expensive “pista burfi” or dry fruits that one could pick up elsewhere.
You could pick up as much or as little as you wanted.
They were weighed, billed and packed in a food grade zip lock bag with colourful candy coloured streaks on it.
Mind you, the candies were still visible through it. Anyone carrying this sort of a bag would be instantly tagged as being a customer of “Candy Treats”. And in “that” stratospheric league of people who would go to such places.
And we keep going back there. Again and again. And I half-heartedly, semi-willingly shell out the moolah for over-priced candies that I know will cause tooth decay in the long run with dentists bills as a side benefit.
But this guy at Candy Treats has got his act down pat. He has created a tribe of regular, loyal ambassadors at no extra cost.
Google did it with g mail. Once upon a time a g mail invite was the most wannabe thing on Earth. They’ve been smart enough to keep it still by invitation only.
Smart. Very smart. Or did Mr. Candy Treat just get lucky, being the first in his business ? Was he in the right place at the right time ?
Makes me think. Where does he go from here ? Even the biggest cult brands (think i-pod, for instance ) need to innovate and move on in order to maintain and grow loyal consumers.
May be the answers could lie in low-cal or sugar free candy to attract health conscious adults ? Or even “naughty” candy ? These could be placed at pubs and restaurants. Customised candy in desired shapes ? Play-and-eat dough candy for babies ?
Or better still. Ask the kids what they want.
A confectionery company called Candico had a few years ago run a contest, where they had asked kids to write in with their suggestions as to what kind of candies they should manufacture. The best suggestions would be rewarded with the opportunity to become Brand Advisors and Tasters for the company. Imagine the hoard of information they would have managed to gather.
Strangely, though, I don’t seem to recall anything happening with that company and its products.
But for now, my drooling continues…...
p.s. - thank you sunil :))
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Random thoughts on a pale Saturday
1. When advetisers want people to know about the existence of their brand they use print, Tv and outdoor. But when they want people to respond they will use other means. Those means include interactive and mobile. When Voltas has a cherubic kid saying "India ka AC, Korea ka nahi" (India's AC, not from some Korean company) they want to establish their coolness in an overheated market. If a potential buy goes to the consumer durable market to select an AC he or she would most certainly be seduced by the glib talk of the sales guy and will 90% of the time come back with the AC that was not even in their consideration. The last mile battle is won by those companies who promise better margins and deals to their outlets / dealers etc. In this scenario if Voltas wants interested consumers to contact them direct so that they can send their representative to ensure a sale they need to have some sort of contact mechanism in place in their Ads on TV. The best is to put in a call centre number, but then how many people will remember to call - after all expecting people to call in the middle of some Saas Bahu conspiracy or Dhoni's sixes is asking for too much. The next is to get people to SMS so that a call centre voice can call back. Both are call to actions that are mucked up by uncertainities. Now if Voltas just wanted to get people to know that they are around then their objectives are served by having non response advertising.
Suppose we were to have a solution in place where the user gets to call when he is online and browsing for information about how to make payasam on an obscure portal? Can we offer multiple options to contact Voltas? Can we send him an SMS after he has opted in to remind him about buying the AC when he is in the confines of a multiplex?
2. Response advertising will move to the Internet and mobile in the next one year. It will assume and then consume major budgets. The next big players in this space are going to be nimble operators who can take convergence to the next level.
3. Is anyone reading this blog at all?
Suppose we were to have a solution in place where the user gets to call when he is online and browsing for information about how to make payasam on an obscure portal? Can we offer multiple options to contact Voltas? Can we send him an SMS after he has opted in to remind him about buying the AC when he is in the confines of a multiplex?
2. Response advertising will move to the Internet and mobile in the next one year. It will assume and then consume major budgets. The next big players in this space are going to be nimble operators who can take convergence to the next level.
3. Is anyone reading this blog at all?
Take your Google personalized page with you
I am sure this has been discussed about 100 Googol times before. But hey I just rediscovered this fact and I am thrilled to bits about it's possibility.
Click here
And you will know what I am talking about. After taking over the net, Google makes things thrilling by promising to take over the mobile screens. They have a few things you can do from your mobile phone right now. But that will change soon. What happens when a uniform shortcode for Google comes into effect. Imagine what you can do with ringtones and screensavers and images which can be accessed from Google on your mobile. Will it mean that the mobile content providers will be out of business? Or will this mean that there would be an easier way of distributing content. It would be fun to see Ashish Kashyap - Google India Head trying to compete with Mobile2Win for business. And Indiagames selling games using Google.
Imagine enterprise solutions on your mobile phone. Delivery schedules coming to your Supply Chain Management system visible on your handset. Order confirmation when you are on the move.
Imagine being able to get all that you now take for granted on the net getting ported into your mobile.
Imagine text ads on Google Mobile, Imagine being able to call direct the number you see on the ad and ask for a quote. Oooh, this is exciting times.
Wonder how many of us marketing jerks are already onto the bandwagon? I can imagine a few smirks.
Click here
And you will know what I am talking about. After taking over the net, Google makes things thrilling by promising to take over the mobile screens. They have a few things you can do from your mobile phone right now. But that will change soon. What happens when a uniform shortcode for Google comes into effect. Imagine what you can do with ringtones and screensavers and images which can be accessed from Google on your mobile. Will it mean that the mobile content providers will be out of business? Or will this mean that there would be an easier way of distributing content. It would be fun to see Ashish Kashyap - Google India Head trying to compete with Mobile2Win for business. And Indiagames selling games using Google.
Imagine enterprise solutions on your mobile phone. Delivery schedules coming to your Supply Chain Management system visible on your handset. Order confirmation when you are on the move.
Imagine being able to get all that you now take for granted on the net getting ported into your mobile.
Imagine text ads on Google Mobile, Imagine being able to call direct the number you see on the ad and ask for a quote. Oooh, this is exciting times.
Wonder how many of us marketing jerks are already onto the bandwagon? I can imagine a few smirks.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Democracy on the net?
Blogging comes of age:
A syndication service that delivers commentary from 600 bloggers for use by newspaper publishers is set to launch on Tuesday, further blurring the lines that divide blogs and mainstream media. Read more
I must have jumped the gun when I spoke about democratisation of mobile content. Looks like it is happening on the internet space too. Imakimagine a newspaper full of articles and stories written by citizens of the world. Their opinions and their views which could be unbiased, and not delivered by people who have been embedded into war zones.
Interesting thought eh?
A syndication service that delivers commentary from 600 bloggers for use by newspaper publishers is set to launch on Tuesday, further blurring the lines that divide blogs and mainstream media. Read more
I must have jumped the gun when I spoke about democratisation of mobile content. Looks like it is happening on the internet space too. Imakimagine a newspaper full of articles and stories written by citizens of the world. Their opinions and their views which could be unbiased, and not delivered by people who have been embedded into war zones.
Interesting thought eh?
Friday, April 07, 2006
The truth is out there on Google
Last month
6800000 people searched for export related information on Google
300000 people searched for air tickets
1500000 people wanted share market related information
From India alone.
Over 100000 searches for plastic fastners from US, 70000 searches for asbestos insulating devices from Eastern Europe, 30000 odd searches for silk fabric from US.
How do I know this? There is not secret sauce involved or any patents or any copyright on the information, it is available on http://www.adwords.com
to anyone who can use a computer and use a calculater.
I or anyone using this information can now source anything under the sun from people who manufacture it and then sell it to people who want it. All one needs to know is the item in demand, so if someone wants plastic fastners use google to find someone who has a surplus and then advertise that you have it in the country where the requirement orginates and voila you have a profitable business.
Did someone say ebay? Oh yes, Ebay it is. Only this is far simpler to use and it does not need rocket fuel to run.
___________________________________________________________________
If you need more information on how you can use the internet to do more business please do write in, I would be only too happy.
6800000 people searched for export related information on Google
300000 people searched for air tickets
1500000 people wanted share market related information
From India alone.
Over 100000 searches for plastic fastners from US, 70000 searches for asbestos insulating devices from Eastern Europe, 30000 odd searches for silk fabric from US.
How do I know this? There is not secret sauce involved or any patents or any copyright on the information, it is available on http://www.adwords.com
to anyone who can use a computer and use a calculater.
I or anyone using this information can now source anything under the sun from people who manufacture it and then sell it to people who want it. All one needs to know is the item in demand, so if someone wants plastic fastners use google to find someone who has a surplus and then advertise that you have it in the country where the requirement orginates and voila you have a profitable business.
Did someone say ebay? Oh yes, Ebay it is. Only this is far simpler to use and it does not need rocket fuel to run.
___________________________________________________________________
If you need more information on how you can use the internet to do more business please do write in, I would be only too happy.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
democratisation of mobile content
One man's thrash can be someone else's treasure - that is the way eBay went about making money. By giving the common internet user the ability of put things he did not want and then be able to sell it to someone who wanted that very thing for a price in Timbaktu democratised the internet. Now look at the mobile space. In India everything you want for your mobile phone is available for ten bucks - wall papers of Aishwarya, screen savers of Udita panting away and games where you can kill ten guys with one bullet. The success of the mobile content industry is that it has found a way of monetising what the user wants. The ticket size is small enough to not hurt anyone and the phone bill is the payment gateway (safe and easy).
Suppose there was a way for me to take my content - a small clip of a paper bag flying up into the air (Yes yes American Beauty style) or a pic I took of a mongrel or anything that interests me - and put it up for sale on a portal. You SMS the content code and get it downloaded to your phone. I get a portion of the sale, the operator gets some and the portal makes some money. The best content goes up the scale and so on and so forth. Will that change the dynamics of the game? Will it mean that I can keep sending small things to the portal and get micro payments accumulated over a period of time and get ten dollars every week in my mail box.
Can brands get onto this portal? Can Nokia be interested? Immensely huge potential!! Ok stop drooling - gimme the money to do this!
Another Idea - What if every content piece has a small ticker which says interested in this product? send SMS to 1234 and we will call you. Like I said before I am just getting started.
I guess a few people do read this blog, can you help more people come to this blog and contribute ideas, if you want to contribute send me an email at theaxe(dot)sunil(attherate)gmail(dot)com and I will send you and invite to participate.
innovate or die!
Suppose there was a way for me to take my content - a small clip of a paper bag flying up into the air (Yes yes American Beauty style) or a pic I took of a mongrel or anything that interests me - and put it up for sale on a portal. You SMS the content code and get it downloaded to your phone. I get a portion of the sale, the operator gets some and the portal makes some money. The best content goes up the scale and so on and so forth. Will that change the dynamics of the game? Will it mean that I can keep sending small things to the portal and get micro payments accumulated over a period of time and get ten dollars every week in my mail box.
Can brands get onto this portal? Can Nokia be interested? Immensely huge potential!! Ok stop drooling - gimme the money to do this!
Another Idea - What if every content piece has a small ticker which says interested in this product? send SMS to 1234 and we will call you. Like I said before I am just getting started.
I guess a few people do read this blog, can you help more people come to this blog and contribute ideas, if you want to contribute send me an email at theaxe(dot)sunil(attherate)gmail(dot)com and I will send you and invite to participate.
innovate or die!
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
I am lost! which city am I in?
Four cities in five weeks! Delhi, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai. All metros, all sufficiently progressive. Delhi leading the Internet revenues, Pune - the IT services hub, Bangalore - already a legend in the western world and Chennai - the emerging financial services BPO hub. To add to that I live in Mumbai - the financial capital of India.
This is not about the cities that I want to talk about, but about the loss of identity of each of the cities. Whether I go to the Forum Mall in Bangalore or MG Road in Pune or any malls in Chennai or in Gurgaon the sameness of the places bore me to death. It is the same Barista, Cafe Coffee Day, MacDs, Shopper's Stop and so on that flourish. The same brands in uniformity across every horizon. Once upon a time it was comforting to see familiarity, now it is scary.
If I want authentic Maharashtrain food in Mumbai I have to hunt hard. To find Coorg coffee or chicken I need to go to some small eatery in Bangalore. Maybe I am wrong and it does make sense to have uniformity where people go and spend money to buy things that look the same, taste the same and so on. Maybe in five years we will have Mall rats and Mall wives and mall guys. I guess we are heading the US way.
But think about it. What if you got local cuisine, local arts, local ideas, local culture all in one sealed unit inside a large mall. Say if someone repeated it over and over in every city. Will it work? Suppose merchandisers went and sourced paithanis from aurangabad, Kaanchiverams from Chennai and Coir mats from Kerala and all this was available in a 4 lakhs square feel mall in Mumbai. Call it a festival of India.
Come to think of it, these kind of malls have been around. You can see them at the MMRDA ground in Bandra Mumbai. Maybe all it needs is some good packaging.
Who wants to invest?.
This is not about the cities that I want to talk about, but about the loss of identity of each of the cities. Whether I go to the Forum Mall in Bangalore or MG Road in Pune or any malls in Chennai or in Gurgaon the sameness of the places bore me to death. It is the same Barista, Cafe Coffee Day, MacDs, Shopper's Stop and so on that flourish. The same brands in uniformity across every horizon. Once upon a time it was comforting to see familiarity, now it is scary.
If I want authentic Maharashtrain food in Mumbai I have to hunt hard. To find Coorg coffee or chicken I need to go to some small eatery in Bangalore. Maybe I am wrong and it does make sense to have uniformity where people go and spend money to buy things that look the same, taste the same and so on. Maybe in five years we will have Mall rats and Mall wives and mall guys. I guess we are heading the US way.
But think about it. What if you got local cuisine, local arts, local ideas, local culture all in one sealed unit inside a large mall. Say if someone repeated it over and over in every city. Will it work? Suppose merchandisers went and sourced paithanis from aurangabad, Kaanchiverams from Chennai and Coir mats from Kerala and all this was available in a 4 lakhs square feel mall in Mumbai. Call it a festival of India.
Come to think of it, these kind of malls have been around. You can see them at the MMRDA ground in Bandra Mumbai. Maybe all it needs is some good packaging.
Who wants to invest?.
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