Tag: JustDial

V.S.S Mani: The Architect Of India’s Digital Directory Who Revolutionized Local Search

In the early 1990s, when the internet was just an infant and mobile phones were not smart, V.S.S Mani envisioned creating digital yellow pages to connect people and local businesses with just one phone call.

In 1996, Mani sowed the seeds of his idea in the bustling streets of urban chaos in Mumbai and launched ‘Justdial.’ He aimed to simplify the cumbersome task of finding local businesses in a printed directory. Mani invented an efficient phone-based online directory service where anyone could dial in to find local businesses, products, and services.

Who knew what started as a small garage idea with an investment of only INR 50,000 would turn into a multi-million company, altering the way Indians searched for information?

In this ‘Startup Talker’ story, we will explore the fascinating journey of V.S.S Mani, the early days of Justdial, and the challenges he faced along the way.

V.S.S Mani – Early Life and Education
V.S.S Mani – Career
V.S.S Mani – Personal Life
V.S.S Mani – Challenges
V.S.S Mani – Controversies
V.S.S Mani – Awards And Recognition
V.S.S Mani – Famous Quotes!

V.S.S Mani – Biography

Name	Venkatachalam Sthanu Subramani Mani
Born	In 1966 at Tata Main Hospital, Jamshedpur
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Jamshedpur
Education	High School from Tamil Nadu
Profession	Founder, Managing Director, and CEO Justdial
Net Worth	INR 1332 Crore ($13.32 Billion)
Spouse	Anita Mani

V.S.S Mani – Early Life and Education

V.S.S Mani was born in 1966 in Jamshedpur and belongs to a humble and traditional Tamil Brahmin family. Growing up in a middle-class family, he was no stranger to the challenges of making ends meet. Mani’s early life was shaped by strong family values and a zeal to work hard, which later played a crucial role in his entrepreneurial journey.

After completing his schooling, Mani enrolled for a bachelor’s degree at Delhi University along with preparing for Chartered Accountancy. However, he had to quit his college dreams due to financial crunches.

Even as a college dropout, Mani aspired to create something of his own and faced several challenges along the journey before landing on the idea that would later become ‘Justdial’.

V.S.S Mani – Career

Mani started his professional journey in 1987 as a salesperson for a yellow page company, United Database India. Being a man with a strong entrepreneurial spirit, in 1989 he co-founded AskMe, his first start-up venture and India’s first phone-based directory based in Delhi. Even with an initial investment of 25 lakhs and the brains of three other partners, AskMe did not succeed due to the lack of phone accessibility among people and exorbitant call rates.

In 1992, Mani ventured into a wedding planner magazine, yet to confront another setback. For four years, Mani kept trying his hands in multiple initiatives and enterprises with not much success. Finally, with many consecutive misses, Mani shifted his base to Mumbai, a city that made his dream come true.

In 1996, with a small capital of INR 50,000, borrowed furniture, rented computers, and a small office in Malad with only five employees, Mani started ‘Justdial.’ With the liberalisation of telephone policies and a successful meeting with MTNL officials on a unique customer number, Mani’s vision turned into reality. Through sheer determination and innovative thinking, he transformed ‘Justdial’ into a household name, revamping the way people connected with businesses across the country.

In 2000, Mani launched the dot-com version of ‘Justdial,’ expanding the services from mere contact details to online food ordering and ticket booking. Within a decade, with the simple concept of providing a comprehensive online directory of local businesses, Mani had tapped the unmet need of the Indian market. Seeing the massive success with the company’s valuation soaring to INR 4,000 crore by 2007 under his proficient supervision and innovative ideas, the company introduced its web-based version.

In 2013, Mani listed ‘Justdial’ and made the company public by issuing an IPO that further amplified the valuation of the company to INR 6,000 crores. The trailblazing success of ‘Justdial’ grabbed the attention of many investors, and in 2021, Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Retail acquired a total of 66.95% shares in Justdial, which included a 15.63% stake owned by V.S.S. Mani, valued at approximately INR 1,332 crore.

Interview with V.S.S Mani about his Career

V.S.S Mani – Personal Life

Mani is married to Anita Mani and is known to be a family man. Despite his professional success and a strong bond with his wife and kids, Mani believes in keeping his personal life private. Apart from ‘Justdial,’ all his personal affairs are out of the public spotlight.

V.S.S Mani – Challenges

Success did not come to Mani on a platter, both personally and professionally. From not being able to complete his education due to financial crunches to failed startup initiatives, he has faced catastrophe at every step of his life. During the inception of ‘Justdial’, Mani struggled with funding, where he had to sell his wife’s jewellery and withdraw funds from the FDs.

V.S.S Mani – Controversies

Mani has largely maintained a clean public image; however, in 2013, after the release of the ‘Justdial’ IPO, the company’s stocks faced volatility, leading to questioning the credibility of the company. With the rising concerns over the company’s ability to sustain long-term growth, investors started doubting Mani’s leadership and business model.

‘Justdial’ has also been questioned by industry analysts for their take on innovation, and the company struggled to maintain its market share with rising competition from international giants like Google & Zomato, which put Mani under scrutiny.

Moreover, when ‘Justdial’ was acquired by Reliance Industries, there was a lot of skepticism in the business world about the future of the company. Many believed that Mani would lose all his powers in the once-pioneering startup that was more of a dream come true for him.

V.S.S Mani – Awards And Recognition

Mani was honoured with the coveted Ernst & Young ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ Award 2013 in the area of services.

V.S.S Mani – Famous Quotes!

“Believing in oneself is the most important ingredient to becoming successful.” V.S.S. Mani, Founder, MD, and CEO, Justdial Ltd.

FAQ

Who is the CEO and founder of Justdial?

V.S.S. Mani is the founder and current CEO of JustDial.

What is the work of Justdial Company?

Justdial provides local search services, helping users find contact details, reviews, and addresses for businesses and services across various categories in India.

Is Justdial owned by Reliance?

Yes, Reliance Industries acquired a majority stake in Justdial in 2021.

October 24, 2024

Justdial – Local Search Related Services Provider

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 Justdial.

We have long passed the days when we need to go out and search for the services we need. This transformation can largely be credited to the emergence of the latest technologies and the internet.

It is the online searching that we generally rely on today, via which we can search for the services that we require, find where they are located, and opt for them at our ease. One of the major proponents of the Indian internet technology ecosystem that has radically changed how the people of India benefit from the local search results is Just Dial.

Founded in 1996, Just Dial India brings the best local search platform for people across the Indian subcontinent. The Mumbai-based company was founded by VSS Mani and has successfully operated independently throughout the years. Reliance Retail now owns majority stakes (66.95%) in the company, which it acquired on July 16, 2021, for Rs 3,497 cr.

Check out all about Justdial here with this StartupTalky article, including the Founders of the company, Funding, and Investors, Business and Revenue Model, Startup Story, Logo, Tagline, Competitors, Challenges, and more.

Company Highlights

Startup Name	Justdial or JD
Headquarters	Mumbai, India
Sector	Search Engine and Internet
Founders	V.S.S. Mani
Founded	1996
Total Funding	$$85 mn (2021)
Revenue from Operations	$21.37 mn (Rs 159 crore in Q3 FY22)
Valuation	$339.42 mn in (Rs 2,525.15 crore in FY20)
Website	justdial.com

Justdial – About
Justdial – Startup Story
Justdial – Founders And Team
Justdial – Tagline, Slogan And Logo
Justdial – Mission and Vision
Justdial – Business And Revenue Model
Justdial – Marketing Strategies
Justdial – Funding And Investors
Justdial – Growth
Justdial – Challenges
Justdial – Awards and Achievements
Justdial – Competitors
Justdial – Future Plans
Justdial – FAQ’s

Justdial – About

Justdial is an internet technology company based in Mumbai, India that provides local search services for different kinds of companies and services in India over the phone, online. Founded in 1996 by VSS Mani, Just Dial has evolved to be India’s largest and the most popular local listing service company when Reliance Retail decided to acquire majority stakes in it in 2021. With this, the Mukesh Ambani-led company forayed into the local search services space.

Just Dal still operates successfully and is the most popular choice for the Indian people looking for local services or companies via web and mobile applications.

Justdial – Startup Story

“People say proud beginnings are seldom successful,” and Just Dial is just another example to prove the same.

The company, which later rose to the heights of the Indian local search services giant, had a humble beginning. The primary idea of Just Dial was germinated when VSS Mani worked with a yellow pages company in 1987 when he thought to replace the yellow pages with a database of information that the users can use to get what they need while also giving them the opportunity to list their own services.

To start with, Mani first registered the Mumbai landline phone number 2888-8888 under his name. He looked for financial backing to seed fund his company but without being able to find any, he started with a seed capital of Rs 50,000 in 1996. Back then it was a team of 5 employees, a few rented computers, and some borrowed furniture. The place of the beginning was a hired garage where the Justdial employees initially operated from.

The company eventually started gaining popularity and it was in the year 2007 that it launched an internet and mobile app version of the database “Justdial.com”. Beginnings are always tough. It’s never a bed full of roses for anyone! It was really hard for the new startup company too, but anyway it made it and now we all know the word ‘JustDial‘.

Success Story of TNQ Ingage – One of the biggest AR VR Startup in India

Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified informationon different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by the organization it is based on. While the world was still stuck to the smartphone revolution, there was thisfounder who had the …

StartupTalkyVidhi Punamiya

Justdial – Founders And Team

V.S.S Mani is the founder and CEO of the company Justdial.

V.S.S. Mani, CEO, Justdial

V.S.S. Mani

V.S.S. Mani is the Chief Executive Officer(CEO), Managing Director, and the founder of Justdial. He is associated with the business since it was incorporated. He is an experienced visionary with over 33 years of experience of entrepreneurial experience. Born in Tata Main Hospital in Jamshedpur in 1966, Mani grew up in Calcutta and had dreamed to pursue his graduation in Commerce and later obtain a CA degree. Mani was enrolled in the University of Delhi and though he tried to attempt both he failed due to the lack of adequate finances.

Mani started his job at a yellow pages company, United Database India. While working Mani suddenly reflected that the database the company had would be more accessible and useful via phone. This led Mani to start up with Ask Me, which was launched back in 1989, however, the company didn’t make it up that much back then and rather needed a makeover in the form of Just Dial, which he founded in 1996.

Among the key executives of Just Dial, the company currently works with Abhishek Bansal (CFO), V Krishnan, and has earlier worked with Ramani Iyer, who worked with the company as a Director.

Justdial – Tagline, Slogan And Logo

The tagline of the company is Anything Anytime Anywhere. It’s said that it’s India’s number #1 local search engine for its users. Its work is to provide information to its users about ‘anything’ at any point in time – ‘anytime’ and in any place – ‘anywhere’.

The logo of the company is:

Justdial Logo

Justdial – Mission and Vision

To “provide fast, free, reliable, and comprehensive information to our users and enable discovery and transactions for all products and services” is the mission and vision of Justdial.

Justdial – Business And Revenue Model

The business model of the corporation is primarily a combination of free and paid services. The listing of the small businesses is made available free of charge. The company’s goal is to work on a collection of data processes and provide the users with all the data they need on their phones, SMSs, and the internet. The company earns from a list of small businesses paying up to be listed on Justdial. The “Indian Google”, as Justdial is often termed, works just like Google, and has almost revolutionized the Indian local searching.

The Revenue model of the local search services giant largely depends on the premium subscription, classified ads listings, analytical reports, and the data it possesses. Initially, it used to work as a telephone directory-based model. In the year 2019, the company recorded a revenue of INR 984.46 Crores. Justdial noticed a jump in its total revenue, which amounted to 1,092.81 crores INR in March 2020.

Secure Your Business With These Cyber-Security Startups In India

In this digital world, as technologies harm most industries, Cybersecurity worksas a shield for the industries at risk. As technology evolves, the adversariesare also enhancing their attack methods, tools, and techniques to exploitindividuals and organizations which calls for a strong cyber secur…

StartupTalkyDisha

Justdial – Marketing Strategies

Justdial has relied on traditional as well as digital marketing strategies to extend the brand reputation. Furthermore, the company has also depended on popular mediums like Television, Print, and even Radio, along with going with the latest Online media. By selecting a super easy number to remember, Just Dial has made the game super easy. The company had initially chosen the number 2888-8888 and currently operates with the same as well as another mobile number that goes 8888888888.

Justdial also catapults with their word-of-mouth marketing due to the exemplary service that the brand provides its users. Furthermore, the company has also roped in Amitabh Bachchan as their brand ambassador during the extremely popular KBC shows, which helped the company a lot in its marketing. The other forms of marketing that steer the company ahead are Google Keywords, other digital marketing tools, traditional banners, placards, and everything else.

Ingenious examples of Marketing Strategies | startuptalky

‌‌Marketing is, no doubt, the backbone of any company in the 21st Century. Andwhen it comes to big brands, they leave no stone unturned for it. They have avast research team to calculate the risks first. Then they have a separatemarketing department which is always on the go or may outsource it…

StartupTalkyKaran suri

Justdial – Funding And Investors

Justdial has raised a total amount of $85 Million in funding over the 3 funding rounds.

Date	Transaction Name	Money Raised	Lead Investors
January 25, 2016	Post-IPO Equity	$18 Million	Nalanda Capital
June 27, 2012	Series E	$57 Million	Sapphire Ventures, Sequoia Capital India
June 6, 2011	Venture Round	$10 Million	Sapphire Ventures and Sequoia Capital India

Justdial is funded by 6 investors. Sequoia Capital and Nalanda Capital are the most recent investors.

Justdial – Growth

The company is a Mumbai-based local search services company that has seen quite a growth from its humble beginnings. The VSS Mani-led company has last been recorded to be operating with over 10,000 employees and a database of more than 29.4 million listings and 536,236 active paid campaigns.

According to the latest reports dated January 19, 2022, Just Dial has recorded a 61% dip in its net profit in Q2 FY22, which stood at INR 19.4 crore, and earlier was INR 49.9 crore, during the same period in the previous year. The operating EBITDA of the company stood at Rs 10 crore, excluding its ESOP expenses. The Q3 earnings of FY22 were recorded at Rs 159 crore from operations, which was reported to be around a 6.9% drop from Rs 169.5 crore in Q3 of FY21.

On July 17, 2021, Reliance Retail Ventures announced that it would be acquiring around 67% (66.95%) shares in Justdial. This amounted to a total cash consideration of Rs 3,497 crores.

RRVL, backed by Mukesh Ambani had earlier acquired 40.95% stakes in the search and discovery platform, Just Dial, and then made an offer to acquire another 26%. According to a recent press release, Reliance has confirmed that VSS Mani, founder of Just Dial will continue to lead the 25-year-old company as the Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Justdial – Challenges

Beginning in an age where internet services were at their nascent stages, Justdial had to face numerous challenges involving the implementation of the latest search services, improving its mobile app, and more. Justdial also witnessed several issues associated with their data quality, location data, search inconsistencies, data attributes and values, and marketing its services.

Justdial – Awards and Achievements

Some of the prominent awards and achievements that Justdial received throughout its journey are:

It received the E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year (Services) Award at the Ernst & Young Awards of 2013
Justdial was conferred upon the Jury Special Commendation Award at the Young Turks Awards – 2012
The company was declared as the Best VC-backed Media & Communication Company at the VCCircle Annual Awards – 2012:
Amity Global Business School – 2012 recognized Justdial with the Amity Corporate Excellence Award for Customer Service
Justdial received the Award For Innovation In Business Process by Citi Commercial Bank in the Empowering growth of Emerging Enterprises in 2012
The company was conferred upon the International Red Hat Innovation Award at the Red Hat and JBoss Innovation Awards of 2010

Justdial – Competitors

The company has got various competitors working in the same space. The top competitors are:

Sulekha
IndiaMART
Asklaila
Quikr
Urban Company
Zimmber
Nearbuy
Timesinfoline
Exporters India
Fxchng
EC21.

Justdial – Future Plans

Justdial is looking to improve its profitability and emerge stronger as a brand along with maintaining its popularity and further leveraging it via its parent Reliance Retail. It also aims to grow its recently launched B2B marketplace, JD Mart.

Justdial – FAQ’s

What is JustDial?

Justdial or Just Dial is a company that provides local search for different kinds of services in India over the phone, online.

Who is the Founder of JustDial?

V.S.S Mani is the founder and CEO of the company Justdial.

What services does JustDial provide?

The company is engaged in providing search-related services to its users. It is also engaged with other information-related services.

Who are the competitors of JustDial?

The top competitors are Sulekha, IndiaMART, Asklaila, Quikr, Urban Company, Zimmber, Nearbuy, Timesinfoline, Exporters India, Fxchng and EC21.

Who is Justdial owner?

With over 66% stakes in Justdial, the Justdial owner is Reliance Retail.

January 19, 2022

3 Ways Justdial Helps You Grow Your Business Online
Buyers usually search for vendors in popular business directories, which is why many small local business take the help of online directory service platform like Justdial to be able to sell B2B products add get a free listing and grow their business online. This is helps the small businesses to sell directly to customers as these services offer mobile apps and attract huge traffic. While it is also free to list your business on Justdial.

The Mumbai based company runs an India specific local business listing platform Justdial and has expanded the scope of its B2C transaction based services by adding product e- commerce market place. Founded by V.S.S Mani in 1994, Just Dial is a local search firm that provides both B2C and B2B listings of small and medium businesses across the country.

It also provides services across multiple platforms, including the internet, phone, wireless and print. It counts Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global and SAIF Partners as its investors. Just Dial becomes first large Indian listed firm with presence in product e-commerce business. Another small public listed firm is Intrasoft Technologies, which runs 123stores.

Just Dial Search Plus
Other Ways Just Dial Can Help Your Business Grow
Justdial Omni
Services Offered By Justdial Omni
Another Set of Activities Justdial Omni
Justdial Cash

Just Dial Search Plus

The firm had started what it called the Search Plus or transaction services where it allowed people to order food online from local restaurants and even book a doctor’s appointment and flight tickets and much more. With product e- commerce it is now entering a much wider market which can add to its revenue stream.

The company has added a shop online feature on the homepage where it lists products across several categories like mobile appliances, electronics besides a host of others including those that are put out by big e-commerce marketplace such as tiles, sanitary ware, bicycle, paints, etc. Since it is a market place it connect consumers to third party vendors and only acts as a platform linking the buyer and the seller while simultaneously facilitating transaction.

How Justdial helps local businesses through Justdial Search Plus

In the process it comes across as another hyper local e-commerce platform which links local shops to consumers online. This makes a sense for Justdial as it extends the offering by allowing those local sellers already listed on its platform to sell products.

However the consumer would absorb the Justdial offering given there are specialized e-commerce ventures that are doing a similar job with better UI/UX is something that would get to know as Justdial shares user statistics. Justdial also offers same day delivery for some products since Just Dial primarily leverages local sellers, it can actually cut down on delivery timelines.

The site claims some products like grocery and medicine ordered through its platform will be delivered in an hour while for some others like electronics, Just Dial says it offers a ‘7-hour express delivery’ for orders placed before 2 PM and the offer comes with Just Dial’s written guarantee along with manufacturer’s warranty & original invoice. Orders post 2 PM will be delivered in the next 24 hours.

3 Easy Steps to Create Kickass Video Tutorials for SaaS with 10 best Examples

It’s one of the toughest jobs to generate new leads for your software, product,or service. But how many of your leads and sign-ups are you successfullyconverting to customers? Hell, you’ve optimized your homepage, your landingpages. You’ve done your SEO homework. You’ve sweat blood and tears writ…

StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi

Other Ways Just Dial Can Help Your Business Grow

In the day age, where innovation is considered to be an important asset for online business in order to beat competition and stay ahead in the market, the most well-known online classified player in India is going back to the basics to increase the growth of your business online.

Justdial has implemented plans to reinvent its newer offerings such as inventory management platform for sellers Justdial Omni its payment wallet Justdial Cash and Monetization of its advanced meta search cum marketplace offering Search Plus. The public company is looking to put all its energies behind reviving its core which is the search business and its listings model.

Justdial Omni

Justdial Omni is a premium service which is offered by Just Dial group as a business outsourcing tool. This online directory services platform was launched by Justdial Omni in 2016 in order to help small business manage their online and offline sales. It give you the option to outsource multiple task to JD and focus what is absolutely necessary for running of your business. You can sell multiple channels from one platform with the help of Justdial.

The Services Offered by Justdial Omni

Services Offered By Justdial Omni
- Website – expand your market base by selling products on your very own website.
- App – reach out to your tech savvy customers through a personalized Android app.
- Justdial – sell your products on Justdial, anything, anytime, anywhere
- In store billing – Justdial Omni delivers the most adaptable and advanced billing systems providing end to end customer service operations.
- Other Marketplaces – make shopping easier for your customers by collaborating with e-commerce giants in the near future.
The activities that Justdial Omni provides

Another Set of Activities Justdial Omni

These are Optional premium services you can choose according to the need.
- Centralized Inventory management
- Advanced reports and analytics
- Easy and quick bailing systems
- Campaign and discount offers
- Customers and suppliers records
- Inquiries and lead management
- Calendar and appointment scheduling
- Website and mobile apps.
The Justdial Omni will be plug and play as it is cloud based solution which can be accessed over cell phone via a dashboard V.S.S Mani explains in the analyst call. The product will allow small businesses to manage their inventory, billing and third party logistics. The product will also allow businesses to integrate bar code and QR code systems. As enablers, we always think for our vendors and they would probably lose their market share to online players.

Dunzo Startup Story – Business Model | Founders | Revenue | Competitors | Funding

We all are engrossed in our mobile phones and all we want our lives to getsimpler. And if that can be made, with the help of an app, what else we wouldwish for? Dunzo has been such a blessing for many out there. The companycompletely figured out to make young blood lazy as they will do most for y…

StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi

Justdial Cash

Just Dial has also come up with another way of helping businesses online with the help of Justdial Cash, which is a payments platform integration for its Search Plus suite of services. Just dial has also tied up with another existing mobile wallet service provider instead of applying for a prepaid payment instruments (PPI) license itself.

Justdial needs a wallet to operate Justdial Cash because it is a marketplace and not an eCommerce player that owns the inventory or services that customers were buying on its site. It is effectively operating a closed wallet which does not need a license. This helps customers and small local businesses online as, when customers buy from merchants and service provide via Justdial, it needs a semi closed prepaid payment instrument or a semi closed wallet.

JustDial Business Model: How Does It Make Money

“JustDial app se pucho” has now become the main tagline for the local searchmarket JustDial. It has become so popular in India that its advertisements runall across the country on billboards, social media as well as movie theaters.Have you ever wondered how this company become so famous? JustDia…

StartupTalkyPV Vyshnavi

FAQs

What is Justdial?

Just Dial Limited is a company that provides local search for different services in India over the phone, website and mobile apps.

What does Justdial do?

It provides local search-related services to users across India through multiple platforms such as website, mobile website, Apps (Android, iOS, Windows), over the telephone and text (SMS).

How to add your business in just dial?

How to add business in just dial:-
1. You can either list add business to Justdial for free, or get a paid listing.
2. For a free listing, just go to www.justdial.com/Free-Listing and provide all the necessary details of your business.
3. For a paid listing, visit www.justdial.com/advertise and fill in the details and choose from the different packages provided by them.
What is Justdial revenue model?

Justdial works on collecting data and providing information to users through Phone, SMS, and the Internet. The company’s revenue model is of Premium subscription or listing of classified ads, Analytical reports, and Data selling to buyers. Initially, it used to work as a telephone directory-based model.

Craftsvilla Success Story – Ethnic Junction with Artistic Products of Top-Notch Quality!

The Indian handicrafts sector provides livelihoods to millions of people aroundthe country, especially women. However, linking small-scale rural producers tourban and global markets has been a challenge. Efficiently connecting buyers andsellers in the handicrafts and handmade clothing market coul…

StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi
April 2, 2021