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  • Evolution of Microsoft and its Business Model

    It all started with two computer geeks who were fascinated by the world of computers. Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology company with headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

    Microsoft develops, manufactures, licenses, supports, and sells computer software, personal computers, and related services. The best-known software products of Microsoft are the Windows line of Operating Systems, the Microsoft Office suite, and the Internet Explorer.

    Its flagship hardware products are the Xbox video game consoles and the Microsoft Surface lineup of touchscreen personal computers. In 2016, it was the world’s largest software maker by revenue. Microsoft ranked #21 in the Fortune 500 rankings 2020 of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.

    In 2018, Microsoft surpassed Apple Inc. as the most valuable publicly traded company in the world after it was dethroned by Apple in 2010. In April 2019, Microsoft reached the trillion-dollar market cap, becoming the third U.S. public company to be valued at over $1 trillion after Apple and Amazon respectively.

    The mammoth American multinational technology corporation has steered past Apple on October 29, 2021, to become the world’s most valuable company, which is publicly traded. The market cap of Microsoft was recorded at $2.45 trillion, while that of Apple was at $2.41 trillion as of November 1, 2021.

    Microsoft is among the largest tech giants, which in 2018 made over $110 billion in revenues. While Microsoft Office remains the most successful product. Other parts of the business are related to advertising,  accessible home and business software solutions, secure online storage, and search services. Microsoft business computers also occupy a central part of the current popularity that Microsoft enjoys today. As a dominant tech company, Microsoft tries to keep innovating and acquiring companies that allow it to enter new markets, quickly. If you are looking for Microsoft company information, then you can take a dive into the Evolution of Microsoft and its Business model that StartupTalky brings here in teh article ahead.

    Microsoft – Latest News
    History of Microsoft
    Evolution of Microsoft
    Microsoft’s Major Acquisitions
    Revenue of Microsoft
    FAQ

    Microsoft – Latest News

    January 20, 2022 – Microsoft seals deal with the Telangana government to set up a data center in Hyderabad. The Microsoft data center is estimated to be built with around Rs 15,000 crore worth of funds in an area spanning over 50 acres of land. The Microsoft building is estimated to be creating 300+ jobs.

    January 18, 2022 – Microsoft announced that it is acquiring gaming giant Activision, the world’s 3rd largest gaming company. The deal to acquire Activision Blizzard, as announced by Microsoft CEO and Chairman Satya Nadella, would be an all-cash transaction of $68.7 billion. Cleaning up the culture after the biggest tech acquisition in history now seems to be a mammoth task ahead!

    October 29, 2021 – With a market cap of $2.45 trillion, Microsoft becomes the world’s most valued publicly-traded company, passing Apple’s market cap of $2.41 trillion.  

    June 28, 2021 – Microsoft’s code-sharing service GitHub launches GitHub Copilot, which is meant to be an AI-driven pair programming tool that will help coders with invaluable suggestions to complete their codes easily.

    June 24, 2021 – Microsoft reveals the much-awaited release of Windows 11 will happen late this year, 2021. The update to this latest version of Windows will be free for the existing Windows 10 users via Windows Update.

    History of Microsoft

    Before Microsoft was founded, Paul Allen and Bill Gates were just two friends in an age where computers were not a frequent sight. They were avid geeks, which once led them to hack into their school’s computer. Instead of being expelled, the school asked them to help in strengthening the school’s computer performance. Maybe this kindled the spirit in them to one day serve the world with the most preferred Operating System.

    After this, both moved separate ways with Gates going to Harvard to pursue law in 1973 and Allen to Boston as a computer programmer. This is where faith stepped in. In January 1975, Allen read an article in Popular Electronics magazine about the Altair 8800 microcomputer and showed it to Gates. Gates called Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems MITS, makers of the Altair, and offered his and Allen’s services to write a version of the new BASIC programming language for the Altair.

    After eight weeks, Allen and Gates demonstrated their program to MITS, which agreed to distribute and market the product under the name Altair BASIC. The deal inspired Gates and Allen to form their own software company. Thus, Microsoft was started on April 4,1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico with Gates as the first CEO.

    On July 29, 1975, Gates used the name “Micro-Soft” – which had been suggested by Allen—in a letter to Allen referring to their partnership. The name, a portmanteau of “microcomputer” and “software,” was registered with the New Mexico secretary of state on Nov 26, 1976.

    In August 1977, the company opened its first international office, located in Japan, which was called ASCII Microsoft. In 1979, the company moved to Bellevue, Washington, and two years later it was incorporated under the name Microsoft Inc. Gates was President of the company and the Chairman of the Board, and Allen was the Executive Vice President.


    Microsoft Vs. Apple Business Model
    Microsoft and Apple are the two largest companies in the world. The business model of Apple is based on customer-centric devices and innovation. Microsoft’s business spanned across Windows, Office products, Gaming (Xbox), Hardware, Web search engine (Bing), Cloud, LinkedIn, etc.


    Evolution of Microsoft

    Microsoft Operating Systems

    As a newly formed company, Microsoft’s first operating system product to be publicly released was a version of Unix called Xenix, released in 1980. Xenix was later used as the basis for Microsoft’s first word processor—Multi-Tool Word—a predecessor to Microsoft Word.

    Microsoft's first operating system - XENIX
    Microsoft’s first operating system – XENIX

    Microsoft’s first wildly successful operating system was MS-DOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System), which was written for IBM in 1981. In the deal of the century, Gates licensed MS-DOS to IBM but retained rights to the software. As a result, Gates made a fortune for Microsoft, which had become a major software vendor.

    Microsoft Windows

    Also in 1983, Microsoft’s crowning achievement was released. The Microsoft Windows operating system had a novel graphical user interface and a multitasking environment for IBM computers. Windows is constantly evolving with Windows 11 recently launched on June 24, 2021, which is deemed to be the successor of 2015 released Windows 10.

    In 1986, the company went public, with the resulting rise in stock making an estimated four billionaires and 12,000 millionaires from Microsoft employees. The success meant that Gates became a billionaire at 31.


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    Microsoft Office

    1989 marked the release of Microsoft Office, a software package that is a collection of programs for use in an office. Still used today, it includes a word processor, spreadsheet, mail program, business presentation software, and more.

    Internet Explorer

    Following Bill Gates’ internal “Internet Tidal Wave memo” on May 26, 1995, Microsoft stepped into the world of the web. Other than Netscape, Microsoft was the only major and established company that acted fast enough to be a part of the World Wide Web practically from the start.

    The other companies acted slow, giving Microsoft a market dominance. The company released Windows 95 on August 24, 1995, featuring pre-emptive multitasking. Windows 95 Plus was bundled with the online service MSN, and Internet Explorer, a Web browser.

    Xbox

    In 2001, Microsoft introduced its first gaming unit, the Xbox system. Xbox faced stiff competition from Sony’s PlayStation, and eventually, Microsoft discontinued the original Xbox in favor of later versions. In 2005, Microsoft released the Xbox 360 gaming console, which was a success.

    Microsoft Evolution

    After this, from 2007-2010, Microsoft launched a variety of services and products like Windows Vista, which focused on features and security. Azure Services Platform, the company’s entry into the cloud computing market for Windows, launched on October 27, 2008.

    On February 12, 2009, Microsoft announced opening a chain of Microsoft-branded retail stores, and on October 22, 2009, the first retail Microsoft Store opened in Scottsdale, Arizona; the same day Windows 7 was officially released to the public.

    Windows 7’s focus was on refining Vista with ease-of-use features and performance enhancements, rather than an extensive reworking of Windows.
    As the smartphone industry boomed in 2007, Microsoft struggled to keep up with its rivals Apple and Google in providing a modern smartphone operating system.

    As a result, in 2010 it came up with Windows Phone OS. The strategy was to work more closely with smartphone manufacturers, such as Nokia. The new user Interface introduced the idea of minimalism.

    Microsoft launched Windows 8 on October 26, 2012, an operating system designed to power both personal computers and tablet computers. The Surface was also launched, becoming the first computer in the company’s history to have its hardware made by Microsoft.

    In 2015, Microsoft began an advertising campaign centering on Windows 10, “Upgrade Your World” with the tagline “A more human way to do”, emphasizing new features and technologies supported by Windows 10 that sought to provide a more “personal” experience to users.

    Other than this products like HoloLens, mixed reality headsets, acquisitions of platforms like LinkedIn, GitHub have made Microsoft a pioneer in the Tech industry.

    On Tuesday, June 29, 2021, Microsoft announces the launch of an AI-driven tool that will suggest codes for the world of software developers while they are busy coding. This new system, called GitHub Copilot, is named after GitHub because it draws upon the source code shared on Microsoft’s code-sharing service GitHub. Microsoft and GitHub developed this pair programmer with the help of OpenAi, an AI research startup that was backed up by Microsoft in 2019.  

    Microsoft’s Major Acquisitions

    Microsoft Acqusitions
    Microsoft’s Acquisitions

    With more than 250 companies under its belt of acquisition, Microsoft is nothing more than a giant, when it comes to acquisition. The latest acquisition of Microsoft came in on January 18, 2022, when it acquired Activision Blizzard, the 3rd largest gaming company, in the world’s largest tech acquisition deal that amounted to $68.7 billion. The all-cash deal that the CEO and Chairman of the American software giant, Satya Nadella announced, is expected to close the deal in FY23. However, Microsoft will face a major challenge in cleaning up the culture of Activision, a company that is facing numerous accusations of sexual harassment and misconduct.

    Microsoft’s acquisition till now has largely meant that the acquired company will work autonomously. It has been so with the companies like Linkedin, GitHub, Skype, Mojang, and more, but to handle the situation of Activision, which is currently marred by a lawsuit from California regulators that allege that the company “fostered a sexist culture” along with many other investigative stories that detail the allegations of sexual harassment internally, will require a heavier hand. Here’s a list of the last 10 acquisitions by Microsoft:

    Acquiree Name Acquired Date Price
    Activision Bizzard January 18, 2022 $68.7 bn
    Xandr December 21, 2021
    Two Hat Security October 29, 2021
    Clear Software October 22, 2021
    Ally.io October 7, 2021 $76 mn
    TakeLessons September 10, 2021
    Clipchamp September 7, 2021
    Peer5 August 10, 2021
    Suplari July 28, 2021
    CloudKnox Security July 21, 2021

    Revenue of Microsoft

    Microsoft has branched its revenue and is routinely ranked among the world’s top 100 companies organized by revenue. The Company’s revenue is divided into three principal segments:

    Productivity and Business Processes

    This includes revenue gathered by the sale and licensing of its various software products and cloud services across a range of devices and platforms. This comprises commercial and consumer licensing of Microsoft’s suite of productivity products and cloud services, including those pertaining to the Office 365 suite, content management tool OneDrive, and call services provider Skype.


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    Intelligent Cloud segment

    Comprises all revenue generated by its server products and cloud storage services, including the sale and licensing of Windows Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Visual Studio, System Center and Microsoft Azure services to commercial clients and general consumers. Revenue from the support and consulting services to develop innovative IT solutions for businesses – are also grouped into this segment.

    More personal computing

    This relates principally to its products and services that provide cross-platform utilities. This includes licensing of Windows operating systems, Microsoft patents, and Windows phones; the sale of Microsoft devices, including mobile phones and PC accessories, products relating to the Microsoft Xbox gaming platform, including Xbox Live subscriptions, transactions, third-party video game royalties, and advertising.

    Microsoft revealed that it has earned $168 bn in revenue in FY21, marking an 18% year-on-year increase. Furthermore, the American software company’s CEO and Chairman, Satya Nadella also mentioned that its operating income grew by 32% to $70 billion. Besides, Nadella also mentioned in the Annual Report 2021 that LinkedIn and the security business of Microsoft both crossed the $10 billion mark in annual revenue for the first time.  


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    FAQ

    What was Microsoft’s first product?

    Microsoft Operating Systems was Microsoft’s first product.

    When was Microsoft started?

    Microsoft started was started on 4 April 1975, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States.

    Did Bill Gates start Microsoft in his garage?

    In 1975, Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft, with just a few resources and an available garage space.

    What is the Microsoft company?

    Microsoft is a software giant, a multinational technology company founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, headquartered in Redmond, Washington, United States.

    Who were the original founders of Microsoft?

    Paul Allen and Bill Gates are the original founders of Microsoft.

    Conclusion

    The key takeaway from the above analysis of Microsoft as a company and its revenue models is that it has constantly evolved with the market and user requirements.

    It strives to innovate and adapt to market scenarios from time to time. For an instance, when the industry switched to mobiles from PCs, Microsoft didn’t take a step back, instead, it brainstormed to set its foot by merging with Nokia.

    Another time when we saw its determination to stay in the stocks was when the company knew that Android is dominating the phone industry, it came up with platforms for cloud computing, explored the less traveled road of mixed reality by supplying HoolLens headsets.

    Microsoft also stepped into active advertising, which used catchy themes to attract more people to its core home PC values. It held strong to its belief in the requirements of a normal computer user with simple yet varied expectations. This is what made it stand out from its competitors like Apple and Google.

    At the rate at which both of its competitors are succeeding, it must be a task for Microsoft to stay in the race, but surely it hasn’t let the market or the customers get used to its absence.

  • Get Personalised Fitness Solutions at Miten Says Fitness

    A healthy and fit body is essential for a human to perform the best. For the right reasons, of late, there has been increasing consciousness among individuals about fitness and health. Consequently, the fitness industry has been growing immensely. Keeping up with our new formed habit of searching for every solution online, many platforms providing guidance on fitness and health online, are also emerging. One such startup that is guiding you to attain your fitness goals is Miten Says Fitness.

    Miten Says Fitness (MSF) is a digital-based platform that provides online fitness training services and has some of the best fitness trainers in India. MSF provides personalized fitness solutions (in the form of weekly Diet and Workout Plans) that are completely customized to the requirements of each of its clients – taking into consideration their current lifestyle, body condition, preferences, limitations, and fitness goals.

    Company Highlights of Miten Says Fitness

    Startup Name Miten Says Fitness
    Headquarter Mumbai
    Sector Health & Fitness
    Founder Miten Kakaiya
    Founded 2017
    Parent Organization Miten Says Fitness LLP

    Miten Says Fitness – About
    Miten Says Fitness – Founders and Team
    Miten Says Fitness – How was it Started?
    Miten Says Fitness – Name, Tagline, and Logo
    Miten Says Fitness – Business Model and Revenue Model
    Miten Says Fitness – User Acquisition and Growth
    Miten Says Fitness – Startup Challenges
    Miten Says Fitness – Funding and Investors
    Miten Says Fitness – Advisors and Mentors
    Miten Says Fitness – Awards
    Miten Says Fitness – Future Plans
    FAQ

    Miten Says Fitness – About

    Miten Says Fitness (MSF) is a Mumbai based startup that provides personalized fitness solutions to its clients through weekly diet and workout plans. These plans are updated every week – taking in any feedback and assessing the progress made by the client.

    How MSF Works
    How MSF Works

    This approach ensures that the plans become more and more sustainable for the clients. Also, the weekly updates hold the clients accountable to follow through with their fitness journey while Miten Says Fitness provides clients with the service remotely.

    The functioning of Miten Says Fitness is quite simple. First, the customer selects any of the numerous permutation combinations of options available on the website and signs up through its portal.

    MSF Workout Plans
    MSF Workout Plans

    Once they sign up, the clients receive a document called- MSF Fitness Questionnaire. This questionnaire allows the team to collect complete details about the clients’ body, lifestyle, preferences, limitations, and fitness goals, along with their body photos.

    Based on the response to this questionnaire, the MSF team create a plan for Week one. The plan includes details of exactly what food they need to eat, in what quantity, and a brief recipe which makes their meal plan tasty (and not just limit themselves to boring, bland salads).

    Besides, clients also get a personalized workout plan (which can be done at home or at the gym – based on client preference) that details the exact exercise that they need to do along with the correct number of sets, reps, the rest period and a brief description of the correct form to execute these exercises.

    A couple of buffer days are provided to the customers so that they can arrange for groceries and other necessary material to start with their Week one. As the customer starts, the company has to be informed.

    Around day 5, Miten personally collects feedback from them and prepare their week 2 plan accordingly, and so on!

    Miten Says Fitness provides a wide range of fitness services. The prominent ones are,

    1. Helping its clients with a laid down path to enable them to achieve their fitness goals.
    2. Enabling access to world-class fitness knowledge and expertise right at their fingertips.
    3. Making personalized fitness programs affordable to its consumers.
    4. Educate its clients with the correct information

    The USP of MSF is;

    1. They provide the services of a personal trainer and a nutritionist under one roof.
    2. They provide the right level of support, motivation, and guidance to ensure that their clients feel empowered to religiously follow their fitness journey – despite being remotely available to them.

    The core belief of Miten Says Fitness is to always provide value to its audience (on Social Media) and its clients and deliver results above expectations.

    Miten Says Fitness – Founders and Team

    Miten Kakaiya is the founder of Miten Says Fitness (MSF). He studied MEng (Hons) in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Manchester. He also worked with Airbus in the UK for an year before setting up MSF.

    Miten Kakiya - Founder of Miten Says Fitness
    Miten Kakiya – Founder of Miten Says Fitness

    Today, MSF is a team of 9 highly motivated individuals driven to leave a meaningful and positive impact on the lives of MSF stakeholders.

    Miten Says Fitness – How was it Started?

    The idea for MSF occurred unusually to Miten Kakaiya, founder of MSF. During his sisters’ wedding few of his cousins approached him for fitness tips given his interest in fitness. In the process of guiding them and getting tangible results; Miten found a business idea in it.

    Miten Kakaiya, during his stay abroad for studies, has come across multiple Online Personal Trainers.

    A few of the personal trainers I came across, really made a huge impact on my decisions in shaping the company. I observed them grow over a span of 2-5 years and carefully analyzed the strategies employed by them to climb the ladder of success – quotes Miten.

    Fascinated about the concept of online personal trainers, Miten envisioned starting something along similar lines in India. He studied the fitness industry in India very closely to understand the micro details of the market. From his research, he realized that there are few gaps in the Indian fitness industry and that there are only a few online personal training service providers.

    Miten started working on his concept by helping a few dedicated individuals from his neighborhood gym at a very minimal cost. It was this careful assessment of finding motivated and dedicated individuals that helped validate the potential of his idea.

    MSF started off with basic services like detailing what food the clients need to eat and what workouts/exercises they need to do. As the team received feedback from their consumers, the team started including more details on their services.

    MSF came up with client transformation plans, which included things like recipes for every single meal – making their diet food super tasty and easy to cook and sustain. MSF also started including information about the exercises and details like how to correct the form and basics to keep in mind while exercising.

    Our next step is to introduce a video trainer alongside – which makes the implementation of the program hassle-free for our consumers. Our focus has always been on providing value to our audience and to our clients. This simple fundamental has helped us keep our customer acquisition costs low while also ensuring that we deliver quality services. Hence, we are always on the lookout for improving the overall experience of customers.


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    Miten taking inspiration from his overseas Online Fitness Trainers, wanted to follow the formula of – First Name + Last Name + Fitness, to name his brand. But the formula somehow didn’t work. Narrating the story behind the name Miten says-

    I didn’t really like the sound of Miten Kakaiya Fitness or MKF. And so suddenly, one night MSF struck me, and I named it as Miten Says Fitness.

    Miten Says Fitness Logo
    Miten Says Fitness Logo

    Miten Says Fitness – Business Model and Revenue Model

    Miten Says Fitness follows a simple B2C model of operation. MSF products are priced between INR 1,200 to INR 30,000/-. During the sale season, they have their products going as low as INR 250, as well. Since this is an online service package, they do not have any raw material costs associated, allowing price flexibility.

    Besides, their team is also very lean for now. These factors allow high-profit margins for MSF, and these high margins are being used to re-invest into the business, mainly for Product Development and Marketing.

    Miten Says Fitness – User Acquisition and Growth

    Prior to launching MSF officially, Miten worked with a couple of clients to understand the potential of the idea in a better manner. These clients have been able to follow the diet and workout schedule dutifully. Gradually, positive results showed, which gave Miten an encouraging push to boost his strategy. He thereon started marketing his services online.

    In the initial phase, Miten’s customers were mainly his friends and acquaintances. Through mouth referrals and digital marketing, Miten was able to popularize his services. Social media was extensively used by MSF to propagate their services by creating valuable content, spreading true information, and showcasing the incredible benefits that MSF clients have achieved.

    MSF’s major source of client acquisition is social media. It allowed them to disseminate information at free of cost. Besides, it has proven to be a trusted platform to gain access to customers. The MSF team then works to convert their social media followers to customers.

    Miten Says Fitness Instagram Marketing
    Miten Says Fitness Instagram Marketing

    As MSF got a hold of a good number of clients, MSF has flagged of offers and value-added benefits to its clients regularly to gain more clients besides, retaining the clients.

    We are investing heavily right now into growing the reach of our social media and providing our followers with more and more free, authentic, and valuable information. Apart from that, we have plans to get a small scale, but impactful influencers on board to help us increase the reach and authenticity of our brand and our services – says Miten explaining the customer acquisition strategy.


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    Miten Says Fitness – Startup Challenges

    Initially, it was quite a task for Miten to convince his parents and his close social circle about the online fitness training service providers, given it is fairly a new concept for the Indian Market. Nevertheless, with a clear and structured planning process, Miten was able to convince them successfully.

    A major challenge for MSF was to make its clients follow the plan regularly and be committed. Unlike other products, here the clients have to buy a package and also put in efforts so as to reap benefits – that is, improved health and fitness levels.

    To increase the awareness among the public concerning fitness and to improve the brand image of MSF they have introduced, the MSF Transformation Challenge. It is a fitness challenge wherein a bunch of people sign up together and are bound by limited dates.

    MSF Transformation Challenge
    MSF Transformation Challenge

    The best three transformations during this period win Cash Prize from MSF. So far, they have had five editions, and all of them have been a huge success.

    Now we are planning to bring it back again next year – bigger and better than ever before!

    Miten Says Fitness – Funding and Investors

    MSF has completely relied on money generated from the MSF business itself. Right from day one the company started generating revenue.

    All the money generated is re-invested for content creation and on marketing to acquire more customers with the help of Social Media.

    Miten Says Fitness – Advisors and Mentors

    Miten, by virtue of studies, has developed a social circle dominated by Entrepreneurs, who are  guiding him in his venture and has played a good role in shaping up the organization

    Miten Says Fitness – Awards

    Miten Says Fiteness has been recognized for the efforts it has put to make people live healthy and fit. Awards received by the platform are-

    • Radio City Mumbai City Icon Award for Excellence in Nutrition and Lifestyle in 2019.
    • GHP News 2019 Fitness and Nutrition Awards- Best Online Fitness Training Specialist- India
    • Featured on Mensxp platform for 31 days fitness challenge introduced.

    Miten Says Fitness – Future Plans

    MSF is currently operating from Mumbai. Miten Says Fitness has so far helped more than 1000 clients in 26 countries across the globe. The Platform is experiencing a steady growth rate of 100% YoY since inception, and aims to help 100,000 individuals from across the globe as a part of the five year plan.

    Our goal is to remain as lean as possible. Implement newer technologies and invest more in product development. In the long term, we want MSF to be analogous with fitness in India and Indians across the world – Miten quoted explaining the company’s future plans

    FAQ

    Who is the founder of Miten Says Fitness?

    Miten Kakaiya is the founder of Miten Says Fitness.

    What is Miten Says Fitness?

    Miten Says Fitness (MSF) is a Mumbai based startup that provides personalized fitness solutions to its clients through weekly diet and workout plans.

  • Ditto Sucess Story – Simplifying Insurance for Indian Consumers

    In the financial services sector, insurance is always an area that seems like quicksand for the people who lack proper knowledge. Besides, the insurance sector is one that has always been devoid of proper, credible advisors who would steer their clients to fortify their future. This is where the digital insurance advisory platforms are proven to be a huge boon. Ditto is one of the latest online insurance advisory platforms that was founded by the co-founders of Finshots in February 2021.

    Ditto Insurance has been headquartered in Bengaluru and has already raised Rs 4 crore from Zerodha in an initial funding round, the latter also picked up a majority stake in it. With Ditto, the founders hope to reiterate the success they gained with Finshots, which was launched in 2019 and already boasts of a subscription of over 5 lakh readers.

    So, let’s check out Ditto, its Founders and Team, Funding and Investors, Challenges, Future Plans, Products and Services, Name, Tagline and Logo, Startup Story, and more.

    Ditto – Company Highlights

    Startup Name Ditto
    Headquarters Bangalore
    Industry Fintech
    Founders Pawan Kumar Rai, Shrehith Karkera, Bhanu Harish Gurram and Lokesh Gurram
    Founded 2021
    Current CEO Pawan Kumar Rai

    About Ditto
    Ditto – Industry
    Ditto – Starting Up
    Ditto – Product and Services
    Ditto – Founders and Team
    Ditto – Name, Tagline, and Logo
    Ditto – Business Model and Revenue model
    Ditto – Challenges Faced
    Ditto – Funding
    Ditto – Recognition and Achievements
    Ditto – FAQ

    About Ditto

    Finshots (The parent company of Ditto Insurance) is a 3-minute daily newsletter giving readers insights about all things economics and finance. Their vision is to create financial literacy among Indians by simplifying finance and financial products.

    The core belief of Finshots is that financial literacy is like basic arithmetic every person should know. Everyone should understand what’s happening with the economy, or what’s going on behind a financial scam – but the news is often full of technical jargon, making it obscure to the layperson. Hence, their main aim is to simplify finance for everyone and give trustworthy information that people can rely on.

    Ditto – Industry

    Finshots caters to the Fintech industry. They don’t have a target market for Finshots. They want to build an inclusive community of people willing to learn and understand financial concepts. On the other hand, for Ditto, their target market is the working population looking for insurance for themselves and their loved ones.

    Finshots currently has a user base of over 700K readers, while Ditto has helped more than 10,000+ people with their insurance queries.

    The fintech industry has massive scope, since investments, as well as insurance penetration, is severely lacking in the country. Only close to 2-3% of Indians have invested in equities, and insurance penetration is a meagre 3%. So the scope for growth in the industry is immense.

    Ditto – Starting Up

    After completing their MBA course, Bhanu Gurram, Shrehith Karkera and Pawan Kumar Rai founded Finception in 2018. Lokesh Gurram, an IIT Delhi graduate, worked for Samsung in South Korea for two years before joining the venture.

    They saw that financial news from major media houses was loaded with industry-specific terminology, as though it wasn’t intended for the masses. And so, Finception delivered explanatory long-form stories for a year. The objective was clear: To simplify financial news for the masses.

    In 2019, a separate brand called Finshots came about when the team realized that audiences suffered from information overload.

    Finshots delivers only one news a day. Readers spend just three minutes each day but in a month, they would have read about 28 topics.

    Finshots doesn’t spend a dime on advertising. Finshots’s subscriber base has grown to 500,000 just by the word of mouth. While Finshots educates people about the financial markets, readers are still left asking which financial product is best-suited to their needs.

    Then they launched Ditto, the latest product under the Finshots brand aimed at simplifying insurance policies for people. This is one of the many ways Finshots intends to simplify financial products and financial planning for the masses.


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    Ditto – Product and Services

    Finshots is a financial newsletter that one can read in no longer than 3 minutes. They also have a podcast that covers the same content as their newsletter. Their product tries to resolve the problem of lack of financial literacy among people by offering information in plain, simple, lucid English, which is their USP.

    They started Finshots back in 2019 when they realised people wanted finance content simplified and this was a market gap they wanted to fill. They later launched Ditto Insurance, their latest venture which provides insurance advice. Ditto aims to help millennials make better financial decisions and they’ve started with insurance. They want to make a dent in the insurance industry by educating the masses so that people can compare policies, narrow down their choices per their requirements, avoid pitfalls and buy the policy best suited for them.

    Ditto – Founders and Team

    Ditto Founders
    Ditto Founders

    At IIMA, Bhanu, Shrehith Karkera and Pawan Kumar Rai were batchmates. At the time, Rai was working on a way to simplify stock markets for millennials. They say that millennials must be helped traversing these jargon minefields.

    The founders were also a part of IIM Ahmedabad’s IIMAvericks program which gave them a monthly stipend. Nevertheless, Karkera taught part-time classes at coaching institutes like T.I.M.E. and Career Launcher, so Finshots could hire more interns and grow.

    Shrehith handles most of Finshots content, while Bhanu & Pawan handle marketing and sales. Lokesh manages product and tech.

    Finshots have over 80 employees at present, working from home. But they try to create a work environment that makes everyone feel like they’re having fun in what they’re doing, rather than being crippled with piles of work. They also organise monthly activities to keep up team spirit.

    When it comes to hiring, they look more at the enthusiasm and work ethics an incoming employee brings to the team, rather than their background and resume.

    Ditto Logo
    Ditto Logo

    The idea of Finshots is ‘financial shots’ – think of it like coffee shots you take in the morning. That’s exactly how they want people to consume financial information, one shot at a time.

    “Our philosophy behind naming our insurance advisory as ‘Ditto’ is that we want to tell people what kind of policy we would buy if we were in their shoes. We want to tell them exactly what we would do, and they can then make a decision based on that. “

    Ditto – Business Model and Revenue model

    Finshots is completely free and they don’t intend to make any revenue off of it.

    “That’s part of the mission behind Finshots – we want to democratise financial information, offering our content for free is part of it. “

    Ditto, on the other hand, earns money through policy sales. They function as a distributor and help people with purchasing policies.

    Ditto – Challenges Faced

    The biggest challenge faced by Ditto was the fact that insurance is a push product. The industry practices include mis-selling policies and spam calling. The founders believe that a product like insurance has the power to make or break the financial strength of households and that’s why their approach towards insurance is to research, give the right advice, and simultaneously ensure peace of mind to families.

    On the other hand, the biggest challenge for Finshots was expanding the reach of the newsletter. It’s definitely not easy to make lakhs of people subscribe to and read your content on a regular basis. And there aren’t any viral marketing shortcuts here. So they mostly relied on good-old word of mouth marketing, social media and college partnerships. They sent college newsletters to students and got their first 1000 readers.


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    Ditto – Funding

    Date Stage Amount Investors Name
    Sep 2019 Seed Rs 4 Crore Rainmatter, Zerodha

    Ditto – FAQ

    What is Ditto by Finshots?

    Ditto functions as a distributor and helps people with purchasing insurance policies.

    Who are the founders of Ditto?

    Pawan Kumar Rai, Shrehith Karkera, Bhanu Harish Gurram and Lokesh Gurram are the founders of Ditto.

    How much funding has Ditto raised?

    Ditto Insurance has raised a total of Rs4 Crore funding from Zerodha in Dec 2021.

  • 5 Best Conference Call Services in India – 2022

    When it comes to running a business, the most important thing is to stay connected with your staff and employees. If the communication is not top-notch and clear, then it can reduce the productivity and efficiency of the team and can result in an overall loss, which is something no business wants.

    In particular, at the time of the pandemic, when it is impossible to arrange large real-life meetings, virtual online conference calls are the best option available. To communicate with their remote employees, several companies use conference call services. Many firms are converting to conference calls instead of in-person meetings since it is easier and requires less effort.

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    We’ll talk about the importance of conference calls for businesses, the different types of conference calls, and the best conference call services in India in this article.

    What is a Conference Call Service?
    Types of Conference Call Services
    Importance of Conference Calls
    Best Conference Call Services in India

    1. DSNL
    2. Chorus Call
    3. Arkadin
    4. FreeConferenceCall
    5. TATA Tele Business Services

    Conclusion
    FAQs

    What is a Conference Call Service?

    A conference call involves numerous people who participate in the discussion. It enables them to all converse at the same time. It’s also known as a teleconference, and it functions as a virtual meeting and conversation space for participants.

    Participants can join the conference from anywhere in the world by calling a number, or the host can call each participant personally and add them to the virtual meeting room. A conference call can now be initiated using a phone number or a bridge URL. It’s a link that connects users to an online conferencing service, allowing for screen sharing, chat, and a variety of other features.

    Conference calls are an essential tool for firms that want to expand their reach and collaborate with enterprises and individuals all around the world. It also provides a secure virtual meeting area free of the possibility of pathogen transmission, which is very useful during pandemics.

    Best Conference call Services

    Types of Conference Call Services

    Primarily, there are two types of conference call services, one is reservationless and the other is operator-assisted. The basic function is the same, but the number of people they can handle and how they are used vary.

    1. Reservationless Service

    This service allows you to arrange a conference call at any moment without having to organize ahead of time. The line will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is one of the most often used services among organizations, with a capacity of 50 to 1000 users and a plethora of features such as recording and host controls. These kinds of tools are critical for a company’s success. Many reservationless calls can also be done online because of VOIP conferencing

    2. Operator-assisted Service

    In order to complete this form of the conference call, the user will require the help of an operator. The operator will manage the conference call. This includes introducing the main presenters, welcoming all the attendees, and taking care of all the queries and replies. And when the meeting is over, the operator can also provide the list of the attendees and the recording of the call.

    Importance of Conference Calls

    Companies and firms have relied heavily on conference calls, particularly during the lockdown. Conference calls allowed all to stay connected with the employees and didn’t let the distance reduce the productivity and efficiency of the workforce. Conference calls save time and money, which is one of its most appealing features. One doesn’t have to make all the arrangements for the in-person meetings. It also saves time because a meeting may be scheduled at any moment. Conference calls make it easier for people who are unable to attend the meeting in person to participate in the discussion. It is the finest solution, and it can accommodate both large and small businesses.

    Best Conference Call Services in India

    Now that we understand the value of conference calls for organizations and how important they are for seamless employee communication and team efficiency, let’s look at some examples of some of the best conference call services in India.

    DSNL

    DSNL is a well-known conferencing service provider in India. Many well-known firms, like Ceat, Ashok Leyland, Hindustan Unilever Limited, Primal, and others, use its conferencing services. Multicalling, IR call solutions, video and web collaboration tools are just a few of the services provided by DSNL. They make certain that the company has all of the resources a business requires to develop and prosper.

    Chorus Call

    Chorus is a multinational conference call service company that has been doing business in India for a number of years. It offers high-quality conference call services as well as knowledgeable support. It also creates dependable systems and services for businesses based on their requirements and desired conferencing systems.


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    Arkadin

    In India and around the world, it is a rapidly increasing conference call service. Arkadin provides conference call services to organizations based on their specific needs. It provides services to its customers using the SaaS model.

    FreeConferenceCall

    FreeConferencingCall.com provides a free conference call service to its clients in India. The company claims to have secure and robust service and expert support for the customers using its services. It can support up to 1000 individuals and has tools like screen-sharing, video calling, high-quality audio and many more.

    TATA Tele Business Services

    Tata Tele Business Services promises to have the best support system and offers its customers audio, web, and video features. The Tata brand has a long history of trust and expertise, and it provides organizations with a hassle-free and premium conferencing experience.


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    Conclusion

    Conference calling is rising in popularity as a result of the advancement of technology and the desire to make the world and workplaces safer for those who work there. Businesses are searching for high-quality conferencing call systems so that employees can stay connected while working from home.

    FAQs

    How many people can connect on one call?

    It depends on the service you select, the plan you receive, and how much you pay for it if you pay for it.

    What is a Video Conference Call?

    Individuals can communicate and look at each other in real-time during a conference call with real-time video.

    Who owns FreeConferenceCall?

    FreeConferenceCall.com was founded and is owned by David Erickson.

    Which is the best conference calling service in India?

    Some of the companies providing best conference call services in India are:

    • DSNL
    • Chorus Call
    • Arkadin
    • FreeConferenceCall.com
    • TATA Tele Business Services
  • Failures of Reliance Industries to Learn Lessons From | Reliance Failed Projects

    Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is a private Indian multinational conglomerate business based in Mumbai. Regarding market capitalization and sales, Reliance Industries is India’s most profitable corporation and the country’s largest publicly traded firm. It is India’s tenth largest employer, employing over 236,000 people. RIL has a market capitalization of US$243 billion as of October 2021. The company is ranked 155th on Fortune’s Global 500 list of the world’s largest firms in 2021.

    Reliance is responsible for over 5% of the entire customs and excise tax income collected by the Indian government. It is also the private sector’s top income tax payer in India.

    RIL has improved its dominant position in various more minor fashion and lifestyle industry markets. The corporation has recorded a twofold increase in income from small-town retailers. JioMart is currently connected with over 400 retailers, with daily orders increasing by over 2x quarter-on-quarter. Lets get a glance at some of the Reliance projects that failed in market.

    Reliance Failed Projects

    Petrochemicals
    Reliance Fresh
    Reliance Jewels
    Reliance Trends
    Reliance Time Out
    Reliance Health Insurance
    Conclusion
    FAQs

    Petrochemicals

    Reliance Refining is in a significant crisis.

    The petrochemicals division, which only a few quarters ago became RIL’s largest EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes)-generating vertical, has grown by 42.9 per cent to Rs 8,221 crore in EBIT. In comparison, refining’s EBIT declined 18% to Rs 5,055 crore. Revenues from the refining and petrochem verticals also climbed under the 10.4% increase in the average Brent oil price in the third quarter. In a news release, Chairman Mukesh Ambani mentioned “heightened volatility” in the oil price as one of the issues.

    The benchmark Singapore complex margin averaged $4.3 per barrel in the third quarter, down from $6.1 in the second quarter and $7.2 in the third quarter of 2017-18. ” Singapore margins were driven down by a fall in light distillate cracks, despite advances in fuel oil and intermediate distillate cracks “, In a statement, RIL said. OPEC’s increased crude oil output also negatively impacts crude oil benchmarks.

    Another concern for the corporation is oil and gas exploration and production (E&P). The segment’s revenue decreased by 27.5% to Rs 1,182 crore. However, the company’s EBIT loss remained at Rs 185 crore. The loss during the second quarter was Rs 480 crore. RIL has invested Rs 40,000 crore in its Krishna Godavari blocks with its partner BP Plc to revive E&P activity, but it has failed to persuade investors.

    About Reliance Petrochemicals

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    Reliance Fresh

    Reliance Fresh - Reliance Failed Project
    Reliance Fresh – Reliance Failed Project

    Biyani, known as the “Father of Indian Organized Retail,” employed aggressive pricing to lure middle-class customers to his outlets, including Big Bazaar, Central, and Brand Factory, and built a retail behemoth. However, his enterprises were saddled with net debt of Rs 12,989 crores, with the promoters’ total equity committed to lenders.

    “We required a holistic solution rather than a solution in a certain format because our businesses were so interwoven.” As a result, this was probably a reaction to our presence.” On a turnover of Rs 3,860.4 crore, Reliance Fresh Ltd lost Rs 273.8 crore.”

    Reliance Jewels

    Reliance Jewels - Reliance Failed Project
    Reliance Jewels – Reliance Failed Project

    Reliance Retail, India’s big fish, maybe exit the jewellery business. The corporation run by business mogul Mukesh Ambani is up against stiff competition from regional rivals, which might force it to shut down its jewellery retail operation. It now conducts its retail jewels business under the ‘Reliance Jewels’ brand from over 50 locations around the country.

    Reliance Retail, the retail arm of Reliance Industries, has closed roughly ten Reliance Jewels stores, including several of the brand’s flagship locations on Hughes’s Road near Ambani’s 27-story mansion Antilia in South Mumbai and Park Street, Kolkata’s historic high street.

    According to people close to the stores, Reliance Jewels have not impacted the domestic jewellery industry, which requires a brand to remain dedicated for years. Meanwhile, regional players began to expand rapidly. Reliance Retail continues to close more jewellery stores, which may be the end of their narrative in this category. A message was submitted to the Reliance Retail representative by a well-known newspaper. However, it received no answer. The Indian jewellery market is one of the country’s fastest-growing sectors since it is the world’s top importer and consumer of gold.

    Reliance Trends - Reliance Failed Project
    Reliance Trends – Reliance Failed Project
    • However, in Reliance Trends’s market wishes to enter, competition is fierce. Retailers such as Landmark Group’s Max and hypermarkets such as Big Bazaar and More sell value items in the mid-market. Cantabil Retail, a recently listed company, is likewise pursuing a similar strategy of accessing tier-II towns and attracting middle-class customers. In the current fiscal year, it expects to open 180 outlets.
    • On a sales of Rs 489 crore, Reliance Trends, which operates apparel boutiques, lost Rs 11.35 crore on a turnover of Rs 1,234 crore.

    Reliance Time Out

    Reliance TimeOut - Reliance failed Project
    Reliance TimeOut – Reliance failed Project

    Shops that offer books, music CDs, and stationery find it challenging to come up with new ideas as online shopping becomes more popular. Due to fierce competition from online shopping portals and a drop in client base, Reliance TimeOut, a one-stop store for books, music, toys, and stationery has halted operations and is forced to close down.

    Reliance Health Insurance

    Reliance Health Insurance- Reliance failed Project
    Reliance Health Insurance- Reliance failed Project

    Reliance Health Insurance, Reliance Capital’s separate health insurance unit, has been ordered by India’s Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irdai) to transfer its entire portfolio to Reliance General Insurance and has been barred from selling new plans.

    Reliance Health Insurance was reported to have a solvency margin of 106 per cent in the June quarter (Q1FY20), significantly below the statutory threshold.

    One hundred fifty per cent, according to Irdai. Since then, the solvency margin has fallen even more, to 77% in August and 63% in Q2FY20.

    With effect from November 15, the regulator has also instructed Reliance Health Insurance, which began operations in October 2018, to transfer all policyholder investments and its financial assets to Reliance General.


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    Conclusion

    Threats develop when situations in the external environment jeopardize the organization’s business’s dependability and profitability. These external influences might have a significant impact on the company’s performance. Still, Reliance has impacted the economy and may lose clients as a possibility due to the current scenarios and the current trajectory of Reliance. But, Reliance is known to bring customers mainly due to the inexpensive costs it offers. One such example is the market response to removing free services—but Reliance Jio won the market and is now linked to a slew of freebies. There may be a decline in sales for the firm if these are eliminated.

    FAQs

    What are the failed products of Reliance?

    Some of the failed products of Reliance are:

    • Petrochemicals
    • Reliance Fresh
    • Reliance Jewels
    • Reliance Trends
    • Reliance Time Out
    • Reliance Health Insurance

    What is the main business of Reliance Industries?

    The core business of Reliance industries is petrochemical, refining, oil and gas-related operations.

    What are the products of Reliance Industries?

    Some of the core products of Relince Industries are:

    • Transportation Fuels
    • Aviation Turbine Fuel
    • Auto LPG
    • Fleet Management Services
    • Highway Hospitality Services
    • Convenience store
    • Foods
    • Lubricants
  • How to Provide an Unforgettable Food Delivery Experience to Your Customers (8 Ways)

    The food delivery startups have seen a boom in popularity like Zomato, Swiggy by serving customer-preferred foods from their chosen restaurants. But not all the apps excel in the food customer journey with the same delightful customer experience. Any UI design service should give special attention to the relevance of delivery as per the user preferences to make the food delivery experience best for them. So, here are some food delivery customer experience aspects that any food delivery startup should adopt.

    Here are the few tips and techniques you can use to give your first customer a memorable experience to make the food delivery experience best for them:

    1. Personal Delivery by Founders/Team
    2. Deliver Good Quality Food
    3. Timely Delivery
    4. Treat Every Customer as a Unique Customer
    5. Personalized Food
    6. A Personal Thanking Note
    7. Surprise Discount on Food – Who Doesn’t Like It
    8. Take a Pic – Save It Forever
    FAQ

    1. Personal Delivery by Founders/Team

    This might sound a little unconventional but delivery by promoters or founders can make the delivery experience memorable for customers. Sometimes, this might not be possible for founders but if possible, delivering personally in the initial days and letting customers know that they are among the first customers of the business after delivery can make the customer feel special. One popular example of this is, In the U.S. the UberEats CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi delivered the food personally to the customers.

    UberEats CEO Tweet
    UberEats CEO Tweet


    2. Deliver Good Quality Food

    Maintaining a good quality of food is obviously the most important aspect of food delivery customer experience. In order to do so, the delivery guy must be instructed to maintain the food parcel with utmost care. Take feedback from customers & work on them to improve. You can also add sample packets of other food products so that customers can order next time if they want.

    3. Timely Delivery

    Tasty food on time is what the customer wants. Delivering food on time is another most important aspect of delivering food. For this, customers must be given an estimated delivery time beforehand. At the same time, the location tracking feature can be provided so that customer gets the real-time estimation of delivery.

    4. Treat Every Customer as a Unique Customer

    An AI model must be used to personalize the experience of customers which gives the feeling of being someone special. The startup must use intelligence into categorizing food on the basis of which it offers recommendations around dishes and restaurants that serve similar food.

    For enhancing the search experience, Swiggy has built a custom AI model Sumo Logic that ranks all the restaurants uniquely for every single customer. The list of restaurants is unique for each customer, matching his preference.

    Sumo Logic is a secure, cloud-native, machine data analytics service, delivering real-time, continuous intelligence from structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data across the entire application lifecycle and stack.

    5. Personalized Food

    Allowing menu-based browsing and restaurant listing based on user preferences, the listing should come with a clean listing of the food prices. In the initial days, after the customer placed the order, call them to confirm their taste preference. For example, whether they want it to be spicy or sugar-free. It will be the icing on the cake if you can personalize the food and if the chef could write a personal note as well.

    6. A Personal Thanking Note

    A nicely written personalized note from the founder thanking customers can delight their hearts. You can also give them free food for the next two orders or you can also give free Mouthfreshner/Chocolates/Sweets. It would signify that you want to share the happiness of starting your new business along with them. Also, it can be extended to all customers ordering from you on the first day, rather than just the first customer.

    7. Surprise Discount on Food – Who Doesn’t Like It

    One of the best tricks is to surprise customers with a discount on the delivery amount. Giving a discount as a surprise would make the customer remember the online food portal forever.

    8. Take a Pic – Save It Forever

    You could take a picture of the customer accepting the food delivery and frame it using a beautiful frame with your company logo and gift it to them with coupons/ discounts for further usage or if you want to do more you can make an entire video journey of how much love and care has gone into the process and have a full meal delivered with a full staff team and everything to pamper the client. Document it all, just to show that this is what your company does. It delivers customers great food at the comfort of dining at their home

    If you know of any other hack to delight the first customer please let us know in the comments.

    Conclusion

    The first delivery is always a memorable experience for a food delivery startup. However, for customers, a startup is not the first. Probably they have already tried different websites before coming to yours. The only thing which will make them come back to your website again is the experience that you provide. If you plan to launch a food delivery startup you always wanted your first customer to be very delighted by your service. Delivery experience is like the first impression for food delivery startups. If you excel in providing a great experience to your customers then you have already earned a potential customer.

    FAQ

    What makes a good food delivery experience?

    A great key is to create a great online food startup’s delivery experience for your customers is checking on their food quality. It’s your way of saying thank you to your customers. Also, make sure that the food is sealed well and all the needed condiments are also included in the packaging. Don’t compromise quality over speed.

    What aspects of the customer experience make a food delivery service stand out?

    Personal Delivery by Founders/Team, Deliver Good Quality Food, Treat Every Customer as a Unique Customer, and A Personal Thanking Note will make your customer experience make a food delivery service stand out.

    How can I promote my food delivery?

    Invest in paid advertising, send emails, partner up with local influencers, and do local SEO.

  • Success Story of Semrush – Online Visibility Management SaaS Platform

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Semrush.

    In the era where everything has become online, locating their product or site on top of the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) would always be a priority for any webmaster. However, in order to improve online visibility, one has to enhance their site for SEO, backlinks, and many other improvements.

    The demand for SEO, keywords and competitor analysis was almost nil before Google’s arrival. Only after the mid-1990s, these concepts were born along with Google, the demand of which skyrocketed in a very short time. Today, the SEO industry has a whopping $80 Billion market valuation. Furthermore, it is expected to show a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.6% by 2025. Similarly, keyword research, competitor analysis, SMM, and various other marketing tools have also gained huge market demand in the past two decades.

    This increase in demand has increased the number of SaaS tools to provide the relevant services that today’s market demands. Of all those available options, Semrush stands to be the crown of Search Engine Marketing (SEM). Established in 2008, Semrush helps its users to improve their website’s ranking by offering support in SEO, PPC, Keyword & Competitive research, SMM, and content marketing services.

    Semrush – Company Highlights

    Company Name Semrush
    Headquarters Boston, Massachusetts, USA
    Industry Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
    Founders Oleg Shchegolev, Dmitri Melnikov
    Founded 2008
    Funding Raised $40 Million
    Revenue $124.88 Million (FY20)
    Website Semrush.com

    About Semrush

    Semrush – About
    Semrush – Latest News
    Semrush – Industry
    Semrush – Founders and Team
    Semrush – Startup Story
    Semrush – Mission and Vision
    Semrush – Name and Logo
    Semrush – Business Model
    Semrush – Revenue Model
    Semrush – Challenges Faced
    Semrush – Funding and Investors
    Semrush – Acquisitions
    Semrush – Online and Social Media Presence
    Semrush – Awards and Achievements
    Semrush – Competitors
    Semrush – Growth
    Semrush – FAQs

    Semrush – About

    Semrush is a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform that provides solutions to SEO, Keyword Research, Competitor Analysis, PPC, Content, and Social Media Management. It is an all-in-one tool that helps the user to improve their website’s online visibility. Semrush also provides marketing insights on paid advertising and competitor analysis, as well as, extends its support to content management and marketing.

    Oleg Shchegolev and Dmitry Melnikov established Semrush in 2008. This SaaS platform commenced its operations with 2 tools and a few friends as their initial customers. Today, Semrush has more than 50 tools that had served over 7 Million users in around 143 countries so far. The company went public on March 24, 2021, through Initial Public Offering (IPO). Semrush IPOs were listed and traded on New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

    Semrush – Latest News

    January 20, 2021 – Semrush acquires popular marketing and SEO training platform Backlinko. This acquisition would not just add 500K in monthly traffic but a wide array of trusted resources for training the world of digital marketers today in SEO and content marketing. The co-founder of Semrush is thrilled with this deal. Here’s what he shares through his Linkedin handle:

    Brian Dean on LinkedIn: Semrush Acquires Backlinko.com, Adds 500K in Monthly Traffic | 315 comments
    BIG NEWS: I sold Backlinko Needless to say, I’m thrilled! Semrush is the perfect company to take Backlinko to the next level. Backstory: About 3 months… 315 comments on LinkedIn

    November 17, 2021 – Semrush filed a registration with the US Securities Exchange Commission, for Proposed Public Offering. It is said that the proceeds from the shares will be invested in the development of marketing and sales activities.

    November 9, 2021 – Semrush announced its 3rd Quarter results as of September 30, 2021. It has reported a revenue of $49.3 Million and it has gone up 53% year on year.

    Semrush – Industry

    Semrush belongs to the industry of Search Engine Marketing (SEM), a subset of the broader industry of Digital Marketing. Search Engine Marketing is a kind of marketing that promotes the website’s online visibility on a Search Engine Results Page. It can be done through paid advertisements or by incorporating SEO. Search Engine Optimization is done by rewriting or fine-tuning the website’s content to promote them in SERP.

    The SEM industry has been growing day by day since Google’s entry into the market in the mid-1990s. As of September 2021, the SEM market is mostly occupied by Google with a share of 86.64%. Other search engines like Bing and Yahoo have a market share of 7% and 2.75% respectively, as stated by Statista.


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    Semrush – Founders and Team

    Oleg Shchegolev - Semrush Founder
    Oleg Shchegolev – Semrush Founder

    Oleg Shchegolev

    Oleg Shchegolev and Dmitry Melnikov are the founders of Semrush, who share a friendship of over 30 years. They started building SEO tools together in 2006. Later, Semrush revolutionized the market and are now on their way to conquering the industry.

    Oleg Shchegolev

    An alumnus of Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, from where he completed his Bachelor’s degree in Computer and Information Systems Security/Information Assurance, Oleg started his career as an SEO Manager at Strider. He then served as the COCEO of tirnet.ru before co-founding efind.ru. After being aligned with the previous company for over 3 and a half years, Oleg joined SEOQuake, where he served as the Co-founder and CEO. He is presently serving as the Co-founder and CEO of SEOQuake and SEMRush.

    Dmitry Melnikov

    Dmitry Melnikov is another Co-founder of Semrush, who also serves as the COO of the company. After completing his Bachelor’s from SPBETU, LEEI, Dmitry started serving as a Board Member of efind.ru. He then served as a CEO at tirnet.ru. After leaving the job at tirnet, Melnikov joined as a co-founder of the SEOQuake Team and took the role of COO. He is currently serving the role at SEOQuake along with being a COO of SEMRush.

    The key people of Semrush are:

    • Oleg Shchegolev – Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
    • Dmitry Melnikov – Chief Operating Officer (COO)
    • Evgeny E Fetisov – Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
    • Eugene Levin – Chief Strategy Officer (CSO)

    The employee strength of SEMRush was last reported to be 979 in April 2021.

    Semrush- Startup Story

    Oleg Shchegolev and Dmitry Melnikov, in 2006, developed a tool for personal use, to look out for SEOs and other online strategies. The tool was initially named Seodigger. Later, in 2007, it was renamed to SEOquake. Shchegolev and Melnikov shared their tool with friends, friends of friends and this went on to build a good network for SEOquake. Meanwhile, they kept adding new features and tools to their platform, which further increased their popularity.

    Owing to the reception, both the co-founders decided to take the business further to the market. With a brand image already built, they founded the company in 2008, with a new name Semrush. They further focussed on product development and expansion. Today Semrush has grown to serve users with more than 50 tools and leads the SEM market around the world.

    Semrush – Mission and Vision

    Semrush’s mission is to give a better and transparent online competition for users. They wanted to help their users in developing and improving their website in every possible way.

    Their vision is to create time for professionals and creators to concentrate on their business and creativity. The work of improving the user’s online visibility will be taken care of by Semrush is what the company aims at. Semrush operates with such a mission and vision that helps them grow along with its users.

    Semrush Logo
    Semrush Logo

    Semrush revealed its new logo on December 11, 2020, along with a new visual identity. The company stuck to its core fireball element in the new logo, like their old one. But they have made it look simple and more attractive. Semrush reasoned their logo as “the creative spark that ignites the engine of marketing”.

    Semrush has always used hot orange and dark indigo as its primary color. Now it has included a few more vibrant colors to improve the visual experience for users. The name of the company was also changed from SEMrush to Semrush in December 2020.

    Semrush – Business Model

    Semrush contains a business model that offers its services for advertising, social media, SEO, content marketing, and market research, all integrated into one tool. Here are the in-depth activities provided under each category of services:

    Advertising – Semrush offers the best keyword choices, manages the cost of advertising, and analyses the ad copies of competitors.

    Social Media – It helps the users in scheduling and automatically posting content, analyzing one’s performance and that of competitors, and managing social ads.

    SEO – Potential keyword research can be done along with SEO audits, analyzing backlinks, and tracking SERP.

    Content Marketing – You can find the best topics for your content that might attract your audience. Semrush audits your content and helps it improve for SEO.

    Market Research – Analysis and give ideas to increase traffic for your website and provides reports regarding competitors’ promotion strategy.

    Semrush – Revenue Model

    Semrush has reported overall revenue of $124.88 Million in the year 2020. Their 3rd quarter revenue for 2021 has increased 53% year on year. Semrush raises its revenue by offering its tools and services for a price that is charged from users. Semrush has a free plan available that comes with limited functionality.

    Semrush revenue model consists of three plans out of which, the first two plans come with a free trial for 7 days. With an annual commitment, a discount of up to 17% is offered on the monthly plans listed below:

    • Pro – $119.95/month
    • Guru – $229.95/month
    • Business – $449.95/month

    Semrush – Challenges Faced

    Though Semrush provides a better service than their competitors, they have faced a few challenges in the past and are expecting more in the future.

    • Semrush has been facing continuous net losses since 2016. They have incurred a net loss of $10.2 Million in 2019 and $7 Million in 2020. The company accumulated a deficit of $ 35.8 Million. Semrush is further uncertain about its profitability in the future.
    • The Covid-19 pandemic has pushed the company into a new challenge. It has increased the growth of Semrush rapidly and this pushed them to increase the employee count to manage the growth. But the travel restrictions have made it difficult for them to provide training and other facilities for the new employees. Thus Semrush faces a challenge in managing its growth effectively.

    Semrush – Funding and Investors

    Semrush has raised a fund of $40 Million through a Venture round on April 24, 2018. It was the only fundraising activity, other than its IPO, carried out by Semrush. This round was led by 3 investors namely, Headline, Greycroft, and Siguler Guff & Company.

    Semrush – Acquisitions

    Semrush acquired two companies to date. It acquired the famous Marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) training app Backlinko on January 20, 2022. The popular training platform boasts of pulling in 500K visits a month, as per the reports of December 2021, which it will be adding to the leading online visibility management Saas platform along with its prized resources that are elementary for training purposes for the world of digital marketers of today. This acquisition would be a great help towards building the marketing education that Semrush is currently focussing on. The Co-founder of Semrush and CEO at Exploding Topics, Brian Dean is thrilled with this acquisition and stated that he would continue to be associated with Backlinko on a part-time basis, as part of the agreement with Semrush.

    Semrush previously acquired Prowly PR Software, a public and media relations SaaS company on September 16, 2020. The price of this acquisition remains undisclosed by both companies. Semrush has made no acquisitions other than Prowly PR Software, over the years so far.

    Acquiree Name Acquired Date Price
    Backlinko January 20, 2022
    Prowly PR Software September 16, 2020

    Semrush – Online and Social Media Presence

    Semrush has an active profile on all social platforms. Particularly, their Twitter handle is extremely active. The team responds to every query and grievance raised on Semrush, by people on social media. Their tweets and posts are quite interactive and interesting. In addition to responding to users, they make posts on their achievements, new products and updates, and simplified guidelines. Semrush’s followers count:

    Twitter : 170K Followers
    LinkedIn : 192K Followers
    Instagram : 78.9K Followers
    Pinterest : 11.3K Followers
    Youtube : 91.2K Subscribers

    Semrush – Awards and Achievements

    Semrush has been awarded as the Best SEO Software by various continents. The following are the international awards that recognized Semrush over the years:

    • European Search Awards, 2017 &2020
    • Global Search Awards, 2021
    • MENA Search Awards, 2019
    • US Search Awards, 2019
    • UK Search Awards, 2019, 2021
    • Interactive Marketing Awards, 2019
    • Dutch Marketing Awards, 2018
    • SEMY, 2018

    Semrush – Competitors

    Though Semrush is a supreme tool, it has few notable competitors along the track to race with. Moz and Ahrefs prove to be worthy competitors in terms of SEO, Keyword Research, Backlinks, and Competitor Analysis. Here are some of the top competitors of Semrush:

    • Moz
    • Ahrefs
    • Serpstat
    • SpyFu
    • SE Ranking
    • KWFinder

    Semrush – Growth

    Semrush is a startup that commenced in 2008, has grown to hold the crown of the SEO market, and is trusted by popular brands like Tesla, Apple, Amazon, IBM, etc. The company has run its business without raising funds since its formation, except for the $40 Million raised in 2018. This exhibits the level of hard work, achievements, and quality, their products and services have for the customers.

    With 79,000 paid customers across 143 countries in the world, Semrush had hit a revenue of $49.3 Million in 2021 (quarterly results up to the third quarter in September). The Semrush revenue tops the table when compared to its competitors. The rapid growth in recent years has encouraged Semrush to go public. The company listed its IPO in NYSE on 24th March 2021 and managed to raise $140 Million on the first day.

    In addition to its financial growth, Semrush has developed and upgraded its tools and services. They’ve grown to be the fastest Backlink Crawler, crawling 25 Billion URLs per day. Furthermore, Semrush also enlarged its data warehouse with 808 Million Domains, 43 Trillion Backlinks, and 20 Billion Keywords so far.

    Semrush had more than 20% growth in both free and paid users using the platform, between 2019 and 2020. Their revenue for the 3rd quarter of 2021 was $49.3 million which is up by 53% year on year. This growing customer base results in increased revenue, which further implies the growth of the company.

    Semrush – FAQs

    What is Semrush?

    Semrush is a SaaS platform that provides solutions to SEO, Keyword Research, Competitor Analysis, PPC, Content, and Social Media Management.

    How many employees does Semrush have?

    Semrush has more than 980 employees working in their 7 offices across the world.

    Who are the founders of Semrush?

    Oleg Shchegolev and Dmitry Melnikov are the founders of Semrush.

    What is the Market Valuation of Semrush?

    The market value of Semrush is approximately $3.3 Billion.

    What is Semrush widely used for?

    Semrush is an all-in-one SaaS tool widely used for improving online visibility. Semrush services include:

    • SEO
    • Keyword Research
    • PPC
    • SMM
    • Competitive Research
    • Content Marketing
    • Marketing Insights
  • Success Story of Vikash Jaiswal: Founder of Gametion & Creator of Ludo King

    Vikash Jaiswal is the Founder and Director of Gametion Technologies Private Limited, the company which created the popular gaming app, Ludo King made for Android and IOS. Ludo King has now become one of the most popular game with 180+ million downloads. Also, it is ranked as #1 Top Free Games on Google Play and Apple App Store in India and other south-east countries. Since the lockdown, the app’s revenue has increased from three to four times. In the financial year 2020, Gametion earned a revenue of Rs.44.63 crore and profits upto Rs. 15.96 crore.

    Vikash Jaiswal- Biography

    Name Vikash Jaiswal
    Born 1980
    Age 42 (2022)
    Birthplace Patna, Bihar
    Nationality Indian
    Education MIT Bulandshahar
    Profession Entrepreneur
    Position Founder & Director, Ludo King – Gametion Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
    Net worth $2 Million (2021)
    Marital Status Married
    Spouse Soni Jaiswal

    Vikash Jaiswal – Personal Life
    Vikash Jaiswal – Education
    Vikash Jaiswal – Professional Life
    Vikash Jaiswal – Gametion
    Vikash Jaiswal – Ludo King
    Vikash Jaiswal – Awards
    FAQs

    Vikas Jaiswal – Founder of Ludo King Developer, Gametion

    Vikash Jaiswal – Personal Life

    Vikash was born and brought up in Patna, Bihar, India. His father died when he was two years old and his family then survived on his father’s pension. During his early teens, he used to make hand-made greeting cards and gave them to the local shopkeepers to sell. He had a passion to play video games especially in the game parlors. Nintendo Mario games and Road Fighter were some of his favorites.

    He is married to Soni Jaiswal. His wife is a  business partner at Gametion. She serves as Managing Director of Gametion.

    Vikash Jaiswal – Education

    Vikash started pursuing Bachelor in Engineering specialized in computer science from Marathwada Institute of Technology (MIT), Bulandshahar in 1999. While studying, he had developed a video game, Eggy Boy in three months which is a seven level jump game similar to Mario. The game was named PCQuest magazine’s Game of the month for July 2003.

    Moreover, he took up animation, graphic design, and 3D classes in Patna while continuing to pursue his bachelors at the same time. He completed his graduation in 2004 and thereafter, moved to Mumbai.

    Vikash Jaiswal – Professional Life

    Vikash Jaiswal started working with a video game publisher company, Indiagames. Ltd., as a tech lead after shifting to Mumbai in 2004. After three years, he left the job in 2008 and established mobile app developing venture, Gametion Technologies Private Limited.

    The parent company Gametion launched the popular gaming app Ludo King in October 2015. Ludo King is available in more than 15 languages including English, Tamil, Malyalam, German, Spanish, Hindi, Gujarati, Telugu, Kannada, French, Arabic, Marathi, Italian, Bengali, and Bahasa Indonesia.

    The success of Ludo King persuaded Vikash to work on newer titles. Gametion also launched two other board games Carrom King and Sudoku King, which is headed by his wife, Soni Jaiswal.


    Dream11 Success Story – India’s Best Fantasy Gaming App | Startup Story | Funding | Founder | Revenue
    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified informationon different startups and organizations. The content in this post has beenapproved by the organization it is based on. Fantasy sport is what most young sports lovers today are crazy about. Withfantasy sport, sports l…


    Vikash Jaiswal – Gametion

    Gametion Technologies Logo

    After quitting his job, Vikash started his venture Gametion in 2008 with an investment of Rs. 2.5 lakh and a team of seven. He worked at home for two years and officially launched Gametion Technologies in 2010, with a small office at Kharghar, Navi Mumbai.

    Initially, the company made browser games and eventually shifted to make games for Android and iOS. The browser games were published on oneonlinegames.com. Vikash serves as the Founder and Director at Gametion Technologies Private Limited.

    Gametion is a mobile app developer and publisher that dwells in making popular and trending games for multiple platforms. Moreover, Gametion participated in the IGDC 2019 event, which is one of the most noteworthy game conference in South Asia.

    Vikash Jaiswal – Ludo King

    Ludo King Logo

    The idea of developing an application software for Ludo propagated in his mind when he came across a Snake and Ladders game app in October 2015. Vikash serves as the Founder and Director of Ludo King. He has developed the Ludo King app with one programmer and one graphic designer.

    Ludo King was officially launched in December 2016 and got listed in the top charts in May 2017. Eventually, it had over 120 million users worldwide, of which 100 were from India itself and the rest included users from Pakistan, Indonesia, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, Brazil.

    Ludo King ranks in the top 10 board games category in India. Moreover, the app became the first Indian mobile game to cross 100 million downloads. During the lockdown, it has recorded maximum daily users with around 51 million. The lockdown has cordially increased the audience base of Ludo King and it has become the most successful Indian game till date.

    The sudden and huge amount of traffic which arose during the lockdown period was unexpected. The team has not initially planned and developed the application software for such a big base audiences. It took ten days to resolve the crashing problem of Ludo King that usually happened during the afternoon and the night.


    Harsh Jain | Dream 11 | CEO & Co-founder | Red Digital | Education | Personal & Professional Life |
    Harsh Jain is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Co-founder of India’sbiggest Fantasy Sports[https://www.startuptalky.com/online-fantasy-gaming-startups-india/] platform, Dream 11 [/dream11-biggest-fantasy-game-india/]. Harsh co-founded Dream 11 with Bhavit Sheth in 2008, which has 60 million…


    Vikash Jaiswal – Awards

    At the 19th FICCI FRAMES Best Animated Frames (BAF) Awards, Vikash received the Mobile & Tablet Game: Arcade/Casual International in Gaming for Ludo King.

    He has also been recognized as “Icons of Navi Mumbai” by the Economic Times. Moreover, Gametion has been accorded with Bootstrap Champ award at the ET Startup Awards 2020.

    FAQs

    Who is Vikash Jaiswal?

    Vikash Jaiswal is an Indian Entrepreneur who founded Gametion Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

    Who is the CEO of Ludo king?

    Ludo King is developed by Gametion Technologies. Vikash Jaiswal is the CEO of Ludo King.

    Is Ludo king a Indian app?

    Ludo King is an Indian mobile game application developed by Mumbai based Gametion Technologies Pvt. Ltd. Gametion is owned by Vikash Jaiswal.

    What is the net worth of Vikash Jaiswal?

    Vikash Jaiswal has net worth of $2 Million (2021).

  • 5 Financial Management Tips for Early-Stage Startups

    Did you know? 82% of startups fail because of cash flow problems that result from poor financial management, such as lack of funding, poor budgeting, or awful product pricing. Financial management is crucial for business success. It’s more than just balancing business accounts or bookkeeping, and you know that a lack of it often results in significant monetary losses and ultimately closing down the business.

    But as an early-stage entrepreneur, you also know that there are thousands of unattractive routine decisions calling out for attention underneath every growth milestone and performance target. In this post, we’ll list 5 financial must-dos for startups who want to move from oblivious to financially savvy.

    Restore your financial literacy

    woman in blue crew neck t-shirt using silver macbook

    Gathering the proper tools and learning resources to understand and manage your early-stage business’s finances takes time, but you will save a lot of stress and money. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you don’t understand something; after all, you’re doing it for your business’s sake.

    Financial experts say that a very low number of CEOs actually index every number in their balance sheet every month, and even fewer actually make sense of the numbers on the page. The point is you don’t have to go to a fancy college to be a complete expert on business finances, but you should develop a sense of how money works and how everything should be tracked and managed.

    Hire a dedicated financial team

    The chance is your finance team may consist of you alone as of reading this. However, the minute your business begins to scale – or receives that big cash investment – you will likely be setting up a financial team to help you out.

    The moment you have the financial potential, it’s worth hiring a couple of financial professionals or at least subscribing to reliable accounting tools like QuickBooks. This won’t just ease your work and life, but it will also help you protect your cash flow and avoid compliance problems with local tax agencies.

    Hiring a financial expert will help you better manage your business’s income and expenditure, including budgeting and forecasting. Someone with extensive experience in business finance will assist you in setting the direction for the company’s future growth and making sure your daily operations and processes contribute as much as possible to accomplishing those goals.

    Routine tasks like tracking business spending and expense reports are time-demanding and often tedious. A CEO, however, should be more concerned with finding customers and growing your business.

    Create a spend management system

    The latest financial management tools have so many advantages. These tools simplify and automate the entire reimbursement and reconciliation process: no more paperwork or manual error. Your financial team will no longer need to juggle with paper receipts to get reimbursed or spend hours manually calculating each employee’s expenses.

    A spend management system creates limits for expense categories and team members, keeps track of payment in real-time, reduces paperwork, and authorises expenses as they happen.

    Forget papers- go digital!

    As a startup entrepreneur, you’re likely already tech-savvy and familiar with the vast array of startup tools out there. And just because bookkeeping and finances aren’t fun, that doesn’t mean there are not an enjoyable range of tools to help you manage your early stage, like accounting software.

    Finding one might have been a difficult proposition a few years back; however, the growth of cloud-based accounting software options provides early-stage businesses with many cost-effective, user-friendly choices.

    Because more often than not, an increase in productivity translates into time savings, the benefits of using accounting software for your business are invaluable. With accounting software, you can streamline operations and use automation to your advantage. As invoices, quotes, and sheets will often be pre-filled, you will only have to enter minimum operations and using this will help you complete and deliver projects in a timely manner.

    reliable accounting software will also help you undergo a predictive analysis. Even better if your financial team is using the software to predict funds movement and the increase and decrease in your accounts receivables. You can also simplify and streamline elements in your accounting process that can be prone to mistake or human error.

    Research your funding needs

    While some early business entrepreneurs bootstrap their ventures, others turn to outside funding to grow their businesses. There’s a lot to plan if you want to go this route, including how much money you need, your credit history and score, the loan repayment terms, and when you need funding. There’s also the trouble that not every kind of funding will work for your business.

    Here’s an overview of seven typical sources of financing for startups:

    • Personal investment – being your own investor either with your own cash or with collateral on your assets.
    • Love money – this source of finance usually comes from families, friends, parents or spouses. Banks and investors consider this as “patient capital”, which is money that will be repaid later as your business scales.
    • Venture capital – you should be aware that venture capitalists are looking for tech-driven startups and businesses with significant growth potential in the communication, technology, and biotechnology sector.
    • Angel investors – these are often experts in their own field and a massive network of contacts.
    • Business incubators – these investors generally focus on the high-tech sector by providing support for early-stage companies in different stages of development.
    • Government grants and subsidies – government agencies can offer financial support to early-stage businesses with the guarantee that startups meet several criteria.
    • Bank loans – different banks offer different financial advantages. Be smart and shop around to find the bank that meets your specific needs.

    Your time and money are valuable, so you want to ensure they are spent efficiently. It would help if you took the same attitude with your business’s financial health. Dedicate your time, energy, and knowledge to maintaining your business’s financial health.

  • Steps to Understanding the Mobile App Development Lifecycle

    A sleek mobile app is a powerful driver of sales and brand awareness. Yet, the process of building it is a black box for many business owners. What resources and steps do you need to gain a presence in app stores?

    Few companies have enough resources and expertise to handle mobile app development in-house. A reputable company like AppKong will focus on your niche, audience, and goals every step of the way. However, even when working with a dedicated team, you still need to understand the key stages.

    Step 1 – Discovery, Research, And Tech Stack

    Clients’ expectations are the starting point for a development team. Before your experts get down to work, they will dive deep into research. The discovery stage will consist of an in-depth analysis of your business, industry, competitors, and target audience.

    First, what do you want your app to accomplish, and how should it fit in your overall marketing strategy? Who is the target audience, and what do you want them to do through the app? What language and framework will power your app? Will it be available on iOS, Android, or both?

    These are just some questions addressed at this stage. Based on your requirements, the behavior of the target audience, and competitor analysis, your contractor will work out the necessary features.

    Thanks to mobile app development frameworks like Flutter and React Native, one team can build an app accessible across mobile platforms. It can even be extended to desktop and web! A unified code base will help you expand your online presence relatively quickly and at a low cost.

    Step 2 – Wireframes and Storyboards

    Armed with research insights, your developers will create a design plan. It will correspond to the required functionality and visual features. The team will determine the scope of work and break it down into stages.

    Next, they will start sketching out the app and its storyboard. Wireframes and storyboards are interconnected. The former are simple visual representations of your app. Boxes and grey areas will show how different components are positioned.

    A storyboard is a roadmap showing connections between screens and overall app navigation. This tentative design gives a clear picture of how the proposed ideas and features will work together.

    Step 3 – Defining the Backend

    Even the most elaborate design is useless without a robust back end. It comprises structures forming the backbone of your app. They include servers, APIs, data integration, push notifications, etc.

    To facilitate back-end development, you may use the services of a mobile BaaS provider. Otherwise, the team will arrange databases, storage solutions, APIs, and everything else from scratch.

    Step 4 – Finalizing Your Wireframe and Testing Your Prototype

    Subsequently, based on the chosen server-side solutions, designers may need to modify their wireframes. Once the design is finalized, the team moves on to prototyping. Unlike wireframes, prototypes are interactive, so clients can see how their design concepts work in action.

    Using a high-fidelity model, your team will achieve several goals. It will collect feedback, find broken links and other imperfections, and assess usability overall. It is advisable to test the prototype on a group of users outside the development team.

    During the tests, team representatives observe users as they interact with the app and ask open questions to collect feedback. The main focus is on usability and functionality. These evaluations may be monitored or unmonitored — i.e., conducted using special software. Based on the results, developers change the interface or user experience to remedy shortcomings.

    Step 5 – Application Development

    App development itself includes a series of stages and evaluations. While programming and coding, the team will zoom in on the specifics of the target operating system (or systems, depending on your needs). When working with a dedicated team, sign a non-disclosure agreement and establish a clear timeline for deliverables.

    Wireframes will be turned into actual screens in the mobile app. These are high-resolution renderings demonstrating the interface for interactions. These final designs must include ideas and feedback collected during the initial testing.

    Step 6 – More Testing

    Now, you are ready to test a complete version of your app with all the stunning graphics and features you envisioned. This is probably the most exciting stage in the process. When developing apps for multiple platforms, it is essential to test the compatibility of images, graphics, and UX across operating systems.

    Your team will subject the app to rigorous testing in a variety of realistic scenarios. If something worked while in development, it is not guaranteed to work in the final concept. Thus, developers will refer back to the original design and planning documents for every feature.

    User testing may reveal new questions and insights that weren’t obvious before. The development firm may use online mobile UX testing tools, which reflect feedback and analytics in real time. You cannot launch your app before making sure that:

    • it works perfectly well in all scenarios, and
    • its appearance and usability are up to scratch.

    Step 7 – Preparing for Launch

    The final preparations have a big impact on the ultimate results. Functionality and design alone do not ensure visibility in app stores! Businesses should get their marketing departments involved early in the process.

    Experts in digital promotion suggest the right keywords optimize the app description for SEO. They create optimized titles and descriptions, attractive screenshots, and a demo or promo video.

    Finally, any app needs a website or at least a landing page. Web presence, although you are marketing an app, is critical for credibility and brand awareness. Additionally, it will help with analytics and increase discoverability. Google’s App Indexing API will consider your app’s content and web page in its search rankings.

    Create anticipation to maximize adoption at the early stages. Your customers will be excited to install your app if it enhances their convenience!

    Use your existing web resources to promote your app. Advertise it on your website and social media. Share updates on the development process in your blog. Inform customers by email, too!