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Instagram’s Success: The Journey of a Million Likes

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Even as you juggle multiple deadlines through the day, chances are you are checking your phone every other minute to treat your tired senses to a visual euphoria. Over time, Instagram has replaced the office water cooler; it’s where you find fodder for fashion gossip, discover updates about the outside world, and get updates about your colleagues’ personal lives. However, this wasn’t always the case. From a social platform that once best served aesthetic snobs, Instagram has come a long way. But have you ever wondered about what went into its making and how it became an overnight sensation? Read on to know.

The road to entrepreneurship

Instagram founder and CEO, Kevin Systrom, was a child prodigy who got into coding early in his childhood. He graduated from Stanford University in 2006 and went to work for Google as an Associate Product Marketing Manager. However, Kevin always had the itch to do something with the social space and so, in 2009, he joined Nextstop.com, an online travel recommender, as their Product Manager. Nextstop.com is where he realized that entrepreneurship is his calling, and this is where it all began!

Burbn, Instagram’s predecessor

While at Nextstop.com, Systrom took out time to work on an idea that he had in his mind for quite some time. It was a location-based photo sharing app that he chose to call Burbn because of his love for the namesake drink. He got the prototype ready and presented it to Baseline Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz at a party in January 2010. He quit Nextstop.com soon after, leaving the rest to luck, which didn’t disappoint. Within 2 weeks of quitting, he got a seed funding of $500,000 from both, Baseline Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz.

But before he could go full-throttle, he knew that he had to find a co-founder. Mike Krieger, a fellow Stanford graduate, was excited about the idea and the duo built Burbn together. Burbn allowed users to check-in to locations, make plans, earn points for hanging out with friends, post pictures, etc.

The birth of Instagram

Burbn was a failure; people were using the app to just share photos and didn’t want anything to do with the host of other features that it offered. When it came to sharing pics, users naturally preferred already existing apps like Facebook and Hipstamatic.

This failure led to the birth of Instagram as we know it. The duo decided to strip Burbn off every other feature and focus only on photo sharing. They began by studying the competition in the market. Although Hipstamatic had really cool filters, it was a task to share photos on the app, and Facebook’s iPhone app didn’t have a great photo-sharing feature. The duo saw an opportunity here; they decided to develop an easy-to-use app that made social photo-sharing simple, interactive and fun.

After eight weeks of experimenting and prototyping over countless bottles of Red Bull, Instagram was finally born on October 12, 2010.

The overnight success

Within just two hours of Instagram’s launch, its servers started crashing because of an incredible rush of traffic. Kevin and Mike had to burn the night oil to get the servers back up and keep them running. If rumours are to be believed, more than 250,000 people had signed up on Instagram within 24 hours of its launch!

Users loved the entire presentation of Instagram. They got hooked to the way the app allowed them to make their photographs unique without having to give out too much personal information or going through the hassles of building a network of friends. Users just had to follow others and share pictures, which made Instagram an instant hit! Instagram reached a record-breaking 7 million users just within 9 months, including some highly influential celebrities like Justin Bieber and Ryan Seacrest.

The acquisition by Facebook

While most people signed up on Instagram to share cool pictures, they eventually ended up trading likes and comments, making for a whole new social graph. This made Mark Zuckerberg notice the rising popularity of the app. In fact, Facebook saw an alarming decline in the number of people using the app to post photos; they were sharing pics via their Instagram handles instead. This bothered Mark and that’s when he thought of acquiring Instagram. He went to Kevin with the proposal.

Incidentally, during the same time, Kevin received an offer from Jack Dorsey (now CEO of Twitter) to buy Instagram for $500 million. Moreover, Kevin was also being offered a great amount of funds from Sequoia Capital, which he was more inclined towards. But Mark wasn’t someone to take no for an answer and he finally floated an offer to buy Instagram for $1 billion in cash and stock, in April 2012. Even after the acquisition, Instagram would remain an independently managed company.

Conclusion

Had the co-founders not tasted failures initially, Instagram would never have existed, and who knows what the future of Burbn would have been? In the words of Systrom himself, “It’s about going through false starts. Burbn was a false start. The best companies in the world have all had predecessors. YouTube was a dating site. You always have to evolve into something else.”

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5 Global Trends that are Disrupting Businesses in 2019

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We are living in a dynamic world, all thanks to disruptive trends that are frequently redefining the way we interact with it. It goes without saying that this has a significant impact on businesses; competition is growing manifold every minute in the face of volatile market conditions and fickle consumer demands. Curious to know all that is dictating the way businesses function in 2019? Here are 5 major trends that are here to stay.

Corporate and start-up collaborations

Large corporations are increasingly realising the enormous potential of start-ups in terms of predicting and adapting to disruption. Plus, coworking spaces are also enabling more collaborations between corporates and start-ups by bringing them under one roof. This growing trend is especially true for start-ups with a highly specialized focus as they are more likely to face domain-specific challenges early on in their journey as compared to large organizations.

A case in point is the collaboration between Coca Cola and Wonolo, an on-demand stocking platform, to streamline its supply chain. This reduced Coca Cola’s stocking costs by 75% per outlet and increased its coverage 25-fold, while Wonolo raised $5.7 million in funding.

Mobile-first technologies

Everything digital is going mobile-first, be it products, services, or even communications. In fact, mobile phones have long surpassed desktops as the primary way to access the internet. A recent CIODive report revealed that up to 70% of web traffic happens on mobile devices. And companies have started recognizing the potential of mobile phones in digital transformation. Flipkart’s progressive web app is the company’s second-largest channel in terms of transactions and attracts over 70% of new customers!

Phygital experience

Whether the Internet of Things (IoT) will redefine consumer experience remains to be seen, but it certainly has introduced the world to phygital experience. The opportunities this presents are immense; several industries will no longer be the same as we know them today. The US jewelry retailer, Tiffany & Co., has already integrated the phygital experience in its stores with an Engagement Ring Finder app that allows shoppers to use the camera in their mobile device to preview how different rings will appear on their beau’s finger.

Digital empathy mapping

Empathy mapping is a key tool to analyze and anticipate behavioral shifts among customers. Traditionally, empathy mapping involved a group of marketers brainstorming to map out customer journeys with post-it notes. However, the growing adoption of digital platforms is rapidly optimizing the process, making it cleaner and more efficient. Data is a crucial aspect of empathy mapping, and given the vast amounts of data, businesses deal with nowadays, digitizing the process only makes more sense. A clear example of this can be seen in UI/UX design, where designers are leveraging empathy maps to understand user preferences and enhance their experience.

Social awareness

Consumers today have become more socially aware and prefer to subscribe to products and services that resonate with their world view. In fact, millennials are worth $1 trillion in consumer spending and 73% of them prefer sustainable goods. As such, there has been a growing trend of companies adopting renewable materials and greener practices in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. The automobile giant, Ford Motors, serves as a great example. The Repreve seat fabric used in the company’s vehicles is made from fibers derived from recycled plastic bottles, helping displace over 5 million plastic bottles from landfills.

Conclusion

Technology is continuously blurring the lines between physical and digital and is ushering an era underpinned by innovation. These are the times when flexibility can make all the difference when small companies can very well break monopolies. Only time will tell how these trends impact the global business landscape. But one thing’s for sure, these trends will continue to drive innovation for the foreseeable future!

How Dropbox Grew from a 2-person Startup to a Billion Dollar Enterprise

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Who hasn’t heard of Dropbox, right? The cloud storage giant provides services to over 500 million people across the globe and generates billions of dollars as annual revenue. Well, did you know that it began as a two-person startup? Read on to know the incredible success story of Dropbox.

The birth of a million-dollar idea

Dropbox founder Drew Houston was a tech prodigy who started coding when he was just 5 years old. The idea for Dropbox was born in 2007 when Houston was on a bus ride and suddenly realized that he had forgotten his pen drive, which had important files on it. The incident left him so frustrated that he pledged to solve the problem once and for all. And the idea for Dropbox was born!

The evolution into a business

With the help of Y Combinator, a startup accelerator, Dropbox received its initial funding of $1.2 million from Sequoia Capital in 2007. However, there was still a lot of work to be put in to get the product right. Dropbox was launched in 2008, a year after it received its initial funding.

Initial challenges

When Houston had taken his idea to Y Combinator, even though his pitch was well-received, the accelerator promised admission only on one condition – Houston needed to find a partner within two weeks. He turned to his alma mater, MIT, where he found Arash Ferdowski who was more than willing to drop out from college after seeing a demo video that Houston had put together.

Soon after the launch, Apple expressed interest in Dropbox with Steve Jobs even scheduling a meeting with Houston to buy the product. When Houston rejected the offer, Jobs said something on the lines of “Well, we’re just gonna have to crush you guys”! 10 years or so later, Dropbox is still going steady with a net worth of $8 billion despite cutthroat competition from Google Drive and Apple’s iCloud, all thanks to Houston’s unfaltering determination to build and nurture his own company.

Disrupting the market

Dropbox disrupted the market as soon as it launched. While there were several applications that enabled cloud storage, none of them were as stable, seamless, and robust. However, the challenge still lay in attracting as many users as possible to keep the venture profitable in the long run. Initially, Dropbox went for an outbound marketing strategy, investing in pay-per-click and PR campaigns. Unfortunately, this failed miserably, since the keywords they were bidding on were way too expensive.

This is when Dropbox focussed on adopting a consumer-first approach, going where the users were to build its own community and generate word of mouth.

Building a community

Initially, Dropbox had launched a private beta program while it was still in the development stage to generate interest in the product and gain valuable feedback to better the product. This helped Dropbox generate significant word of mouth and they capitalized on it by starting a referral that incentivized both, the recommenders and referrals with extra free space. They also rewarded their social media followers with 125 MB of extra free space. This simple initiative increased the number of new users by a whopping 60%!

Another key game changer was the use of a signup-driven homepage with clear layout and demarcations. It also had a 2-minute tutorial video to guide users through the product. This not only made the intent of the home page pretty clear but also helped anchor interest by showcasing how simple, effective, and beneficial the product is.

Conclusion

The key contributor to Dropbox’s success was that it solved a very basic problem. It thoroughly understood its users and the needs they had. A lot of users around the globe had already grown wary of carrying portable storage devices and wanted something that could solve their storage issues. Dropbox addressed the issue head-on by making cloud storage a simple, secure, and hassle-free experience. In the words of Drew Houston himself, “People do not choose Dropbox because it has this much space or gigabytes. They choose it for the experience.”

7 Inspiring Indian Entrepreneurs Through the Decades

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The world’s largest democracy, India has seen the rise of quite a few entrepreneurs over the decades. Their passion, vision, and commitment to their dream, despite all setbacks, has inspired and continues to inspire generations. At times when market volatility was at the mercy of a completely different set of socio-economic variables, these entrepreneurs went all in to create history and write the score for the stable Indian economy we know of today. We celebrate 7 such Indian entrepreneurs who redefined the notions of doing business in the country. Read on.

Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (1904-1993)

Who doesn’t know the pioneer businessman and Bharat Ratna awardee, JRD Tata?His unparalleled business acumen along with his humanitarian works have earned him respect worldwide. He will always be remembered as a benevolent and ethical businessman who put the interests of his company and its people before his self. Not to mention his legendary ability to take risks and think out of the box! Who else would have thought of venturing into civil aviation in 1932 when the world around was reeling under war and the technology market was hot? You guessed it right; no one else did, and that’s how Tata Airlines (now Air India) was born!

Dhirubhai Ambani (1932-2002)

Dhirubhai Ambani, the man behind Reliance Industries, needs no introduction. His commitment to the shareholders’ interests and his marketing vision will keep inspiring generations to come. His keen eye for identifying opportunities, howsoever small, and converting them into hugely profitable ventures at times when the environment wasn’t very business-friendly, hasn’t been matched so far. He literally shaped India’s stock market by bringing in hordes of retail investors in an otherwise monopolised marketplace. His success story is proof of the fact that with the right attitude and a keen eye, every challenge is an opportunity for growth.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (1953-present)

One of the first women entrepreneurs of post-independent India, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is a name to be reckoned with. She came in as a rookie in a largely male-dominated business world and pioneered the field of biotechnology in India with her company, Biocon Limited, which she launched in 1978. Despite facing credibility challenges, owing to her young age and an unheard-of business model, her indomitable spirit is what kept her going. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is worth $2.4 billion today and is a living testimony of how unwavering commitment to creating a nichein an otherwise hostile environment can go a long way in crafting success.

Sunil Mittal (1957-present)

The founder and chairman of Bharati Enterprises, Sunil Mittal has scripted one of the most inspiring and enduring success stories. Bharati Enterprises faced several failures in his initial years, but Mittal patiently waited for his moment for almost 20 years to eventually incorporate Airtel in 1995, and the rest is history. His incredible growth, despite the roller-coaster journey, to become one of the richest Indians is an example of the fact that perseverance can move mountains.

NR Narayana Murthy (1946-present)

TIME magazine has described him as the father of the Indian IT sector; need we say more? NR Narayana Murthy’s success story is underlined by humility, patience, and a customer-centric approach. In the words of the man himself, “If we wanted to create a great company, we should be optimistic.”He launched Infosys in 1981, at a time when India wasn’t even an open economy and still made it possible to outsource IT services; that’s the kind of vision and courage he possessed!Not to mention how crucial he was to the design and implementation of the Global Delivery Model of IT services that actually keptthe Indian economy from falling apart.

Vijay Shekhar Sharma (1978-present)

Vijay Shekhar Sharma is the founder of India’s most successful mobile payments company, Paytm. From going bankrupt in 2005 to being named as India’s youngest billionaire by Forbes magazine in 2017, Vijay’s journey is nothing short of awe-inspiring. His belief in himself and his passion for crafting unique solutions is what held him back from calling it quits. In his own words, “There is no fun in doing what others ask you to do, the real fun is in doing what people say you can’t do.”

Bhavish Aggarwal (1985-present)

A tech prodigy, Bhavish Aggarwal launched Ola Cabs in 2011 in an attempt to capitalize on the then nascent M-commerce market. He had the clarity in vision to identify the gaps in the market and release a product that would allay the pain points of the customers in a simple and effective manner. Today, Ola is the most popular digital cab aggregator service in India with a net market worth of $6.2 billion. This only goes on to prove how implementing scalable models is crucial to business success in the present market scenario. According to Bhavish, one of the best and safest models one should adopt is running a business with zero inventory.

Conclusion

The road to success is quite often set with a lot of setbacks and hurdles, and it takes unwavering determination and belief in oneself to make it to the end. As JRD Tata has rightly put, “Nothing worthwhile is ever achieved without deep thought and hard work.”

5 Startup Branding Trends to Adopt in 2019

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It goes without saying that a strong branding game can make all the difference to your business, from helping establish a brand identity and differentiation to ensuring customer loyalty. However, in an unpredictable market and amidst cutthroat competition, branding trends keep evolving every minute and you’ve got to keep abreast of them to stay ahead. Read on to know the top five branding trends that can seal the deal for you in 2019.

Illustrate to engage

A key aspect of branding is engagement, and what better way to entice your audience than with immersive illustrations? Art is capable of humanizing and differentiating brands, while strengthening the connect you have with the customers.

As such, brands worldwide, including giants like Google and Facebook, are realizing the power of incorporating art in their communications to become more personable and easier to connect with. Be it using animation in marketing videos or partnering with artists for new product lines, art is emerging as a popular way to engage and delight audiences.

Adopt minimalism

Minimalism is yet another branding trend connected to art that is becoming popular by the day. it’s a combination of subtle design and clear intentions that come together to provide a precise yet accessible format. The USP of minimalism lies in the fact that it is perfect for mobile-first communications and enhances the experience across devices.

Apart from being a popular trend, minimalism just makes sense. There’s literally no point in crowding your design with unnecessary bevels and hues, which do nothing but confuse your audience. Brands like Nike and Starbucks have long realized the power of minimalism, and it is evident in their highly creative communications that drive the point home.

Reflect social responsibility

As buying decisions continue to be influenced by consumers’ moral standards and ideologies, especially in the case of millennials, it only makes sense for businesses to reflect social responsibility in their branding efforts. In fact, a Nielsen survey revealed that over 73% millennials are willing to pay more for sustainable goods.

As such, we are witnessing a continuous shift in branding trends that resonate a responsible world view. A case in point is the recent Gillette ad, which received mixed responses for critiquing toxic masculinity – some balked the ad for being accusatory while others appreciated the brand for its bold, progressive stance. Nevertheless, the ad brought the brand to the forefront, which it direly needed. This only goes on to show the impact you can have by resonating with the millennials.

Give your brand the personal touch

The digital age has ushered robust connectivity, thereby putting personalized communications at the forefront of branding. While personalization used to signify exclusivity in the days of the yore, technology has put more power in the hands of the consumers. In fact, according to a survey by Infosys, 86% consumers say that personalization has quite an impact on their purchasing decisions.

As a result, marketers are continually striving to incorporate that personal touch in branding to leave a lasting impact in the audience’s minds. While it may entail rethinking business operations, personalization can give your brand the opportunity to create a differentiated proposition and improve conversion. The e-commerce giant Amazon comes second to none when it comes to behavioural targeting and personalization. Other companies that have nailed personalized branding are Nike, Cadbury, and Google.

Use creative online domain names

Finding a URL that matches your company’s name can prove to be tough. Did you know that Dropbox went by the URL “GetDropbox.com” in its initial days due to scarcity of exact-match domains?

However, this only opens opportunities to get creative with your domain names. The more creative and appealing your domain name is, the greater the chances of it attracting more audiences to your website. Plus, establishing a strong domain name is an important investment. Tools like Domainr, Nameboy, and Domize can come in handy for finding a creative domain name for your business.

Conclusion

Branding is all about connecting with your audience in a meaningful way for maximum brand recall. Adopt these five trends into your branding strategy to entice your customers and beat the competition. As Jeff Bezos rightly said, “Your brand is what people say about you after you leave the room”.

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Facebook’s ‘Cryptocurrency’: All You Need to Know about Libra

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Cryptocurrencies are believed to usher in the next digital wave, and why not? Their potential is undeniable when it comes to easing payment processes and making them much more secure. Add to it the fact that they are decentralized and come with near-zero processing fees, the scope of cryptocurrency is beyond general imagination.

Not someone to fall behind in emulating disruptive trends, Facebook announced its own cryptocurrency, Libra, on June 18, 2019, and is planning to publicly launch it in 2020. Read on to know more about Libra.

How stable is Libra?

Libra is a cryptocurrency that is intended to be sent instantly, and with almost no fees, anywhere in the world. It is built on the same principles as Bitcoin, but unlike Bitcoin, whose stability is followed by a huge question mark, Libra aims to have a stable value backed by trusted international currencies, such as the Dollar, Euro, and Yen. Libra will be pegged to a group of low-volatility assets, including fiat currencies, bank deposits, and government securities, which makes it extremely stable.

Is Libra a pure cryptocurrency?

This is a pretty contentious question that started making the rounds soon after Libra was announced. Let us make it clear for you. Compared to the Rupee or Dollar, Libra is definitely a cryptocurrency, since there’s no central bank that controls its minting.

However, compared to bitcoin, Libra isn’t as pure. While bitcoin is a permissionless system, meaning anyone can participate, Libra is a permissioned system, which means only a trusted few entities can keep track of its ledger (that is, mine the coin). But then, Libra will allow you to buy and transfer money under a pseudonym, which again makes it a cryptocurrency.

According to Nicholas Weaver, a researcher at the International Computer Science Institute, Libra is indeed a cryptocurrency and the permissioned model only means it needs less computing power.

How exactly does Libra work?

Basically, you cash in a local currency to get Libra, spend it like you would spend rupees without huge transaction fees or your real name attached, and cash it out whenever you want. Every time you buy Libra, your money is deposited in a bank account where it sits untouched. This is to ensure that every Dollar’s worth of Libra is backed by a Dollar in the bank, so it can generate interest that can be used to pay back the cryptocurrency’s initial investors.

What is the Libra Association?

In an attempt to spur Libra’s adoption and make it more stable, Facebook recruited the founding members of the Libra Association, a not-for-profit that will oversee the development of the cryptocurrency. The association will also monitor the reserve of real-world assets that gives Libra its value so as to avoid any untoward incidents that might nudge the cryptocurrency to crash.

For now, there are 28 founding members of the Libra Association, including giants like Visa, Uber, and MasterCard, which have invested at least $10 million each into the project’s operations. Facebook hopes to reach 100 founding members before the official Libra launch.

How will Libra be governed?

The Libra Association will be responsible for recruiting more founding members. Facebook claims that every member of the association will only get up to one vote or 1% of the total vote (whichever is larger) in the Libra Association Council. This is to provide a level of decentralization that will protect against Facebook or any other player attempting to hijack Libra for their own gains.

Plus, the association will also be responsible for protecting your privacy by never mingling your Libra payments with your Facebook data. Your real identity will not be revealed at any point, so Libra can’t be used for ad targeting.

Conclusion

Despite all the controversy that’s been going around the announcement of Libra, Facebook got one thing right for sure. Traditional money isn’t really accessible to everyone; you’d need a bank account at least. Facebook hopes to create a global currency that can be accessed by anyone with a simple internet connection, sans the concerns of theft, misuse, and heavy transaction fees. If Libra successfully gains universal traction, the world will become a much smaller place than all the News Feed Likes combined.

Jeff Bezos in black jacket

This is what Jeff Bezos has to say to dreamers

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Earlier this year, Amazon hosted re:MARS, an AI event for Machine learning, Automation, Robotics, and Space. The event saw eminent personalities from the industry come together to share how these fields will shape the future. While the event featured profound and insightful discussions around AI, the world’s richest man and Amazon founder & CEO, Jeff Bezos,had quite a few nuggets of wisdom to share. “Come to me if you are willing to play the gamble with me on disruptive ideas,” he said. Read on to get a glimpse of what Jeff Bezos considers as crucial to success.

  1. Dream Big

In a freewheeling firechat at the event, Bezos emphasized that he is very stubborn on big ideas. “I’m flexible on the details but I don’t like to give up on things that we’re working on”, he said.

The journey to a successful business is laid with many setbacks and hurdles. We live in times dominated by ever-evolving customer needs, where technology is creating ripples through the market every minute. Amid such unpredictability, it is a firm belief in your idea that holds your business together and motivates you to stay ahead of the market trends. In fact, according to a recent research by SmallBiz, 90% of the new startups fail while 44% hardly survive 4 years.

Your idea may seem unrealistic to you at times. Self-doubt is inevitable, but it shouldn’t give way to quitting on your idea; if anything, it should only motivate you to take your idea to the next level. Take it from the successful people; Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos, they all started with a firm belief in their ideas, and the rest is history.

  1. Customer Centricity

“If you want to be an entrepreneur, the most important thing is to be customer obsessed, so don’t just satisfy your customers, figure out how to absolutely delight them”, Bezos told the gathering.

Truer words haven’t been spoken. The market is continuously evolving, and customers have more options to choose from now than ever before. In fact, according to a recent report, 67%customers are willing to switch brands because of poor customer service. So just satisfying their demands isn’t going to make the cut anymore; you must go a step ahead and craft solutions and services that absolutely delight them.

Delighted customers are the cornerstones of a successful business, as is evident from the success of companies like Apple and Microsoft.

  1. Passion

“The number one thing is passion — whosoever your customers are. You have got to have some passion for the arena that you’re going to develop and work in. Otherwise, you’re going to be competing against people who do have the passion for that. And they’re going to build better products and services”, Bezos maintained at the event.

Passion is what drives you to do what you love; it bestows you with a unique vision of the world that most others miss out on. Steve Jobs, for instance, had the vision to create a phone with just one button on the front. Jeff Bezos was passionate about creating an online store that sold everything. Passion is the fuel that drives you to success, a core belief that keeps you going strong even when others don’t see it your way.

  1. Willingness to take risks

“The good news is”, Bezos added, “at Amazon, we still take risk all the time. We encourage it. We talk about failure. We should be failing.” He further said it is important that risk takingand customer centricity are encouraged at startups.

Nothing is achieved overnight. It takes determination, perseverance, andwillingness to tread the unknown, risky paths. Had Elon Musk not invested his last $35 million when Tesla was facing financial strain during the recession in 2008, the company would never have become worth the $2.5 billion it is today. Same goes for Twitter, which promptly rejected a buy-out offer of $500 million by Facebook in 2008; today it is valued at $26.4 billion!

Conclusion

Every successful business is built on the foundations of passion and commitment, and an unflinching vision, come what may. Take it from the world’s richest man himself: “What we need to do is always lean into the future; when the world changes around you and when it changes against you – what used to be a tail wind is now a head wind – you have to lean into that and figure out what to do because complaining isn’t a strategy.”

Budget

Budget 2019: 13 Key Takeaways for Startups and MSMEs

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Nirmala Sitharaman, the first female Finance Minister of India, presented her debut budget in the parliament on July 5, 2019. She unveiled a slew of reforms and initiatives for MSMES and startups – from reducing corporate taxes to interest subvention. Let’s take a look at 13 key takeaways for small businesses that this budget has to offer.

  1. Exclusive TV Channel for Startups

Mrs. Sitharaman proposed an exclusive TV channel for startups to be operated under the Doordarshan umbrella and managed by startups themselves, which will discuss everything and anything related to startups. The channel will also help in matching startups with venture funds and investors.

  1. Tax Reduction

The Finance Minister extended the lower rate of 25% corporate tax to smaller companies with an annual turnover of up to Rs 400 crore, from an earlier cap of 200 crore. This is expected to encourage more business and profits in the MSME sector.

  1. Budget Allocation Under the Interest Subvention Scheme

The Interest Subvention Scheme was introduced in 2018 by PM Narendra Modi in an attempt to improve the ease of doing business and provide MSMEs better access to market, credit and technology upgradation. The Finance Minister allocated INR 350 crore under the interest subvention scheme for the financial year 2019-20, for 2% interest subvention for all GST-registered MSMEs on fresh or incremental loans.

  1. Uniform Payment Platform for MSMEs

Mrs. Sitharaman announced that the government will create a payment platform for MSMEs to enable easy and secure filing of bills and payment. This is expected to eliminate delays in payment and boost the investments in MSMEs.

  1. Pension Benefit for Small Retailers

For retailers with an annual turnover of less than Rs. 1.5 crore, the FM has announced a pension scheme under the Pradhaan Mantri Man Dhan Yojana, which is expected to benefit more than 3 crore shop owners.

  1. Online Portal for Quick Clearance

The FM also announced that the government is planning to create an online portal for loan clearance for MSMEs. According to her speech, the portal will be able to clear loan of up to Rs. 1 crore in less than 59 minutes.

  1. Legacy Dispute Resolution Scheme

More than Rs. 3.75 lakh crores has been blocked in litigations in the pre-GST regime of service tax and excise so far. The budget has proposed a dispute resolution-cum-amnesty scheme called Sabka Vishwas Legacy Dispute Resolution Scheme, which will allow prompt closure of such disputes, with reliefs varying between 40% and 70% of the tax dues.

  1. Minimal Scrutiny of Funds Raised

For startups and investors who file all the required and relevant declarations, the budget proposes to introduce an e-verification mechanism that will not require any tax scrutiny with respect to the valuation of share premium.

  1. ASPIRE scheme for agro-rural industries

The budget proposes setting up of 80 Livelihood Business Incubators (LBI) and 20 Technology Business Incubators (TBI) in 2019-20 to develop up to 75,000 skilled entrepreneurs in agro-rural industry sectors under the Scheme for Promotion of Innovation, Rural Industry and Entrepreneurship (ASPIRE).  

  1. Encouragement of Digital Payments

The budget proposed a 2% tax levy on cash withdrawals of over Rs. 1 crore in a year to encourage digital payments across the MSME sector.

  1. Elimination of MDR charges

According to the budget, businesses with an annual turnover of over Rs. 50 crore must offer low cost digital modes of payment. The customers and merchants of such businesses should not be imposed with any merchant discount rate (MDR) fees.

  1. Faceless IT Assessment

In an attempt to reduce harassments faced by taxpayers, the budget has proposed to launch an electronic mode of income tax assessment with zero human intervention.  

  1. SFURTI Scheme

The budget proposes setting up of 100 new clusters during 2019-20 under the Scheme of Fund for Upgradation and Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI), enabling 50,000 artisans to join the economic value chain.

Conclusion

Startups and MSMEs are crucial contributors to job creation and, consequently, a strong and stable national economy. The measures announced in the 2019 budget, if properly implemented, are sure to help incentivize young firms in boosting job creation and thereby bolstering the startup and MSME ecosystem in the country.

M.S.Dhoni and Virat Kohi

Cricket Fever: 5 Management Lessons to Learn from Iconic World Cup Moments

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ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 is in full throttle and Indian fans are full of hopes, what with our Cricket team having had a brilliant run with only one loss in its kitty so far.Despite the game’s immense popularity in the subcontinent, very few actually ponder over aspects of the game that can turn out to be invaluable management lessons. So, we decided to put together fivelessons we learnt from some of the mosticonic World Cup moments. Take a look.

  1. Lead from the front

The quality that differentiates a great leader from a good leader is the ability to lead from the front and take calculated risks. A glowing example is the 2011 World Cup final, when an out-of-form MS Dhoni, the then Indian team skipper, came down to bat at number 3 ahead of the in-form Yuvraj Singh. While spectators and experts were left puzzled, no one could have predicted the kind of game-changing innings MSD played in that match, which eventually led India to its first World Cup win after 28 years!

This is what great leaders are made of – they are willing to take calculated risks and lead from the front even in difficult circumstances.

  1. Build on your strengths

While it is crucial to identify and work on areas of improvement, it is equally important to not lose sight of your core strengths, despitewhat conventional wisdom suggests. A case in point is the 1996 World Cup finale when the then Sri Lankan captain, Arjuna Ranatunga, went against the conventional wisdom of batting first.

If the trends of the past five World Cup finals were to be believed, teams that batted first had invariably emerged as the champions. However, Ranatunga knew that his team’s strength lay in chasing rather than defending scores. His decision to play to the team’s strength coupled with his courage to challenge the conventional approach led the team to its maiden World Cup victory.

  1. Learn to work without your best resources

While it is natural for any manager to depend on their best resources, there can be circumstances when your best resource may be unavailable. Great leaders know how to cope up with unavoidable harsh conditions and still emerge victorious.

A good example would be the 2003 World Cup, when Australia had to play without its star player and, arguably, the best leg-spinner in the world, Shane Warne. The media was quick to write off the entire team even before the first ball of the tournament had been bowled. However, the Australian skipper, Ricky Ponting, was unruffled and went about his way to lead the team to a spellbinding World Cup win.

  1. Keep personal adversity separate from professional work

It is quite natural for most of us to succumb to adversities in personal life and let them affect the quality of our professional work. However, great leaders have an uncanny ability to isolate both the aspects and bring out the best in them and their team.

A famous example is the 1999 World Cup at England when Sachin Tendulkar got the news of his father’s demise. He made time to attend the funeral but was back before his next match where he scored an unbeaten 140. Such was his resolve to perform in the face of adversity. That moment when he looked to the heavens, dedicating his century to his late father left the entire gallery in tears.

  1. Encourage multi-skilling

It is always good to have people in the team who can do more than what has been assigned to them or is expected of them. Such people are called “all-rounders” in cricketing parlance.

Had it not been for Yuvraj Singh’s exceptional skills with both,batting and bowling during the 2011 World Cup, India’s grand World Cup victory could have been a farfetched dream. Similarly, Mohinder Amarnath’s wizardry with the bat and the ball contributed to the team’s victory in the 1983 World Cup in a big way.

Conclusion

Cricket, like every other sport, has a lot of valuable lessons to offer, which can help us lead the way in our own professional lives. Whether it is a game of cricket or a typical day at work, the ability to think on your toes while abiding by your core values can make all the difference.

Top Innovation Podcasts to Play on Your Way to Work

Business Innovations, , ,

For working professionals, business leaders, and entrepreneurs, continuous learning is critical; learning new skills and strategies is an integral part of growth. However, it is not always possible to stay abreast of the latest trends and resources, more so, when maintaining work-life balance is equally crucial to success.

Of course, there’s an alternative – and an entertaining one at that: podcasts. Packed with insightful discussions, expert interviews, and creative content that can be consumed on-the-go, podcasts have been growing in popularity among business leaders and entrepreneurs. And why not, when you get to learn from the best in the business, as they share valuable tips, experiences, and advice that can be readily applied to your own journey as an entrepreneur.

In this post, we’ll discuss four innovation podcasts that are a must-listen. From candid interactions with the greatest thought leaders of this age to amazing tips and tricks that can boost your business, these podcasts are all you need to inspire growth in your entrepreneurial endeavors.

Innovation Hub

A comprehensive podcast that doesn’t restrict itself to a certain ‘genre’ of topics to be covered, Innovation Hub is one of the most immersive and, we dare say, profound podcasts on the internet today. It explores new avenues in education, science, medicine, transportation, and more.

Why Innovation Hub?–Fromthought-provoking debates on politics and climate change to deep, insightful discussions about the latest breakthroughs in technology and business, Innovation Hub comprises an exhaustive collection of podcasts, featuring some of the most creative thinkers of this age.

The Brains Behind – Innovation Hub is an initiative by NPR, a non-profit organization with a mission to spread awareness among people about crucial issues. NPR reaches over 28.5 million listeners in a week and over 105 million monthly audience across platforms, including radio, social media, and apps.

The Action Catalyst

The Action Catalyst is a platform for inspiration and valuable insights for young entrepreneurs and experienced leaders alike, covering a broad range of relevant topics about the business environment in today’s age.

Why The Action Catalyst – Withover 250 episodes across a variety of subjects, including key insights on leadership, integrity, creativity, and more, The Action Catalyst helps you identify and overcome common traps that can push you down the lane of mediocrity. What’s more, it features interviews of some of the best thought leaders every week, sharing meaningful advice on achieving life and business goals.

The Brains Behind The Action Catalyst –Thepodcast is founded and hosted by Dan Moore, President, Southwestern Advantage, America’s oldest direct sales company. With an extensive experience of over 45 years in sales, management, and leadership, Dan has a treasure trove of knowledge to share on time management, goal setting, leadership, and more.

Creative Warriors

A podcast fueled by passion and enthusiasm to help new-age entrepreneurs make it big in their careers, Creative Warriors is the place to go to if you’re a creative person wanting to make the most out of your job.

Why Creative Warriors – Creative Warriors celebrates out-of-box thought and innovation. Its large ensemble of podcasts discusses several topics, including management, leadership, business ecosystem, and more. Plus, it features interviews of top business experts, authors, and entrepreneurs about how to build meaningful relationships with clients and customers, which forms the foundation of a successful business.

The Brains Behind Creative Warriors – Creative Warriors is founded and hostedby Jefferey Shaw, a business coach, author, and photographer.Having gone through the ups and downs of entrepreneurship himself, Jefferey made it his mission to help other talented entrepreneurs passionate about taking their business to the next level.

Sweetlife Podcast

A highly engaging and insightful podcast, Sweetlife Podcast was established with a singular aim to help entrepreneurs build businesses that make an impact, without regrets.

Why Sweetlife Podcast – From social media marketing and impactful media coverage to crucial topics like branding and profitability, Sweetlife Podcast features some of the most relevant topics for entrepreneurs looking to expand their business’s reach.

The Brains Behind Swetlife Podcast – The podcast is founded and hosted by lifestyle and business coach,  April Beach. Having coached over 4,000 entrepreneurs, developed world-class corporate programs, and createdthe Lifestyle Entrepreneur System­TM,April has a wealth of knowledge to share about entrepreneurship, business modeling, business strategy, and much more.

Conclusion

These podcasts are all you need to stay motivated and committed towards achieving your life and business goals. Every episode is replete with insights and wisdom that will help bring the best in you. Just plug in your earphones and discover newer ways to enhance your productivity and innovative thought.