Adesh Panda’s Post

I hear this quite often : “Unable to crack a market” “Expensive to sell into a new market” “What I do in India doesn’t seem to work” “ US GTM is extremely hard” ( A lot since late ‘21/ early ‘22) I do empathise. But… Step back. “It’s meant to be hard” Otherwise you will have every 5 year/10 year experienced folks starting a company. And your competition of 1000 other companies raising the Seed or Pre-series A or Series A round. Think about the customer Think about the market Think about all your friends who lived there Think about the other Startup founders who have sold in the market Think about the people who have sold similar things - CRM, ERP, SaaS, etc into that market/ segment Part of wanting to go international and creating value Is to visualise, and speak to as many “relevant” people as possible. Have the right questions prepared earlier Spending time in say US or Brazil or UK or Japan initially might be difficult - Capital, Visa, etc Get a good idea of how much works, how companies buy product, establish links with a few people in companies or the ones who have sold into them. You will end up scratching your head less and making more progress. In my case, it helps that I have a mindmap of the relevant folks in my active network. And I can reach out based on expertise in Product/ Tech or Geography. Founders starting out can choose to have a very singluar focus & build a network that way. Relationships are give and take & some of the best #Growth and #Internationalization people I know are: 1. Genuinely affable 2. Insanely curious 3. Give before take #InternationExpansion #Growth

Today’s days, well established brands and startups want to launch their product, services in market but they face many challenges like - Infrastructure cost, Equipment Setup Cost, Team Formation and Team financial Liability, Local Boundations( languages and employee trust ) and want polished employees who can work in low cost and their terms & conditions, which is completely understandable but due to high employee expectations and a lot of variations in the market. Now it is very difficult. That’s why we’re exist - We are a commission based services provider, Where we offer a dynamic commission-based model that caters to telecom, marketing, and backend services,  And to revolutionize your startup & business so you boost your profits without the burden of fixed costs, and grow your business. We are the world’s best and largest commission based community, where we have a marketing, telecom and backend professionals team too, Speaking almost 13 different languages across India. Who are experienced and skilled and work on a commission basis. YOU WILL GET - Low-cost expansion (infrastructure, equipment, manpower management) Acquire New Customer Onboard New Merchant Conduct Survey Customer Support Customer Engagement / Awareness Benefits of our services Adroit Team Commission based team Low cost - high returns Faster Scale No liabilities and headaches Build your brand repo and maintain it in the market Perform well in competition with an effective strategy Organized operation with incredible productivity Clear and specific statistics and reports More Info. www.augmen.in Like | Spread | Follow #badboybillionairesclub #bbbecindia #augmen . . . . #business #entrepreneur #motivation #marketing #success #money #love #smallbusiness #entrepreneurship #businessowner #mindset #instagram #inspiration #instagood #lifestyle #startup #digitalmarketing #goals #bhfyp #branding #investment #design #finance #follow #fashion #work #openforbusiness

Where Most Indian Startup Workforce Are Going Wrong? In India, we’ve grown up without really understanding how valuable our time is. Unlike in the West, where people know their exact hourly worth, we rarely think of time that way. This is because we're paid monthly in most jobs, not by the hour, so we don’t realize our hourly value. This mindset leads many—even top leaders—to undervalue our most precious resource: TIME. Stop for a second and think: What if you were paid for the quality of your thoughts, not just the hours you worked? When you get this, your view on work changes. The value you bring isn’t in the hours spent, but in the clarity, depth, and creativity of your thinking. But here’s the thing: To think clearly, you need time—time to be with your thoughts and create. Yet many, even CEOs, focus on saving only money while unknowingly wasting their most valuable resource: TIME. Time is the only resource you can never get back. Protecting your time means protecting your ability to think, innovate, and grow. In India, only a few truly understand this. We’ve never been taught to value time in rupees, so we unknowingly undervalue ourselves. But what if you changed that? What if you treated your time like the currency it is? _______________________ At Shiprocket Checkout, we’re solving for time and conversion for D2C website owners. Essentially, we’re a machine that turns time into revenue! Just DM or comment if you want to know HOW? Shiprocket Checkout (formerly Fastrr) Paras Batra | Priyanka Kumari | Madhur Pawar | Chandan Kumar Pandey | Amey Kargaonkar | Karan Gupta | Prateek Kaul

Why Did #Koo Close? Koo's closure highlights the complexities of launching a social media platform in India. While funding and competition played a role, there's also a lingering question: Does the West Have an Upper Hand? Western social media giants have a massive user base and generate significant revenue from user data. They might have exerted undue influence to maintain their market dominance. Data, the New Gold: User data is the lifeblood of social media platforms. It allows for targeted advertising, content personalization, market research and truckloads of money. Western companies might view a successful Indian platform like Koo as a threat to their data collection capabilities. What Can New Startups Do? Focus on Data Security and Privacy: Build trust by prioritizing user data security and offering transparent privacy practices. Target Undeserved Segments: Identify niche markets and regional languages not adequately served by existing platforms and reward them. Embrace Innovation: Develop unique features and functionalities that can't be easily replicated by existing players. Advice for the Government: Promote Data Sovereignty: Develop regulations that ensure user data privacy and prevent it from being misused by foreign companies. Invest in Open-Source Alternatives: Support the development of open-source social media platforms less reliant on user data for monetization. Encourage Collaboration: Foster partnerships between Indian startups and technology companies to create a stronger domestic ecosystem. The Future of Indian Social Media: While Koo's closure is a setback, it won't deter innovation. By addressing user concerns, focusing on unique value propositions, and a supportive environment, Indian startups can and should carve out their space in the social media landscape. Disruption is possible. Look at how China's social media market thrives with its own dominant platforms. With the right approach, Indian social media ventures can achieve similar success. #SocialMedia #Startups #India #DigitalIndia #Innovation #DataPrivacy #Competition #Entrepreneurship #EmergingMarkets #GovernmentSupport #Technology #FutureOfWork #KooApp #SocialMediaStruggles #DataSovereignty #OpenSourceAlternatives #UserPrivacy #WesternDominance #NicheMarkets #Disruption

During my interview with the founders of Highperformr , Srivatsan Venkatesan and Ramesh Ravishankar I inquired why SaaS companies tend to focus primarily on selling to the U.S. market rather than the Indian market. This led to a very insightful and thought provoking conversation SaaS startups in India face significant challenges when targeting the domestic market. - The small online market limits scalability. Despite a large offline market, it doesn't equate to a scalable SaaS model. - Low perceived value of software leads to low Average Revenue per User (ARPU), making it difficult to maintain healthy margins. - The culture of B2B payments and services often requires in-person interactions, which are costly and time-consuming. - Educating potential customers about inefficiencies is a slow process, requiring substantial resources. To thrive, SaaS founders should pivot towards the global market, where opportunities abound. What's your take on it ! #SaaS #India #interview #startup #highperform-ai #Socialsignals #developedeconomy

🚨 SHOCKING STAT: 50% of SaaS unicorns built in India in the last 5 years are STRUGGLING to exit! 🤯 When I first heard this, I was FLOORED. I thought building a SaaS unicorn in India was a guaranteed path to success. But here's the TRUTH I've uncovered: US-style growth at all costs DOESN'T WORK in India. You need SUSTAINABLE unit economics from DAY ONE. Brand marketing is CRIMINALLY UNDERUSED by Indian SaaS companies. Performance marketing alone WON'T CUT IT anymore. Talent density for scaling from $50M to $500M ARR is SEVERELY LACKING in India. You can't just hire your way out of this problem. The "sexiness" of SaaS is DEAD. It's now about running a REAL BUSINESS with actual profits. 💰 REAL TALK: I've seen countless founders chase vanity metrics and ignore these hard truths. The result? Burned cash, unfulfilled potential, and missed exits. 🚀 CHALLENGE TO EVERY SAAS FOUNDER: Take a hard look at your business. Are you building for sustainable success or chasing a unicorn dream that might not exist? #SaaS #buildinIndia

🚀 Exciting News Alert! Lightspeed has just led a $15 million round for Wheelocity as the startup shifts its focus to rural India commerce. 🌏 🔮 Prediction: With this strategic pivot, I foresee Wheelocity becoming a game-changer in rural India's commerce landscape. Here are some reasons why this move could revolutionize the industry: 1. Bringing E-commerce to Rural India: Wheelocity's move to focus on rural India commerce will open up new opportunities for both customers and sellers in these underserved areas. 2. Addressing Unmet Needs: By catering to the specific needs of rural consumers, Wheelocity has the potential to tap into a lucrative market segment that has long been overlooked. 3. Empowering Local Businesses: This shift could empower local businesses in rural areas by providing them with a platform to reach a wider audience and expand their reach. This exciting development underscores the immense potential of leveraging technology to bridge the urban-rural divide and drive inclusive growth. Stay tuned for the impact Wheelocity's pivot will have on the Indian commerce landscape! 🌟 #Lightspeed #Wheelocity #RuralCommerce #TechInnovation #EcommerceRevolution #IndiaGrowth #FutureOfCommerce

Roll up your sleeves and make it happen. In India, entrepreneurs are building billion-dollar businesses that were unimaginable just a few years ago. Industrialists are creating tremendous value, pushing stock prices to record highs, and executives are leading bold business model transformations that have never been attempted before. 5 years ago when I joined inkl, I took on the challenge of growing digital subscribers for a seven year old news startup in Australia. The problem? The employee strength of the startup was just six talented employees and one intern. No sophisticated tools or CDP. I had zero knowledge of the Australian market and no additional marketing budget was available at that time. And yet, we made it happen. Together, we more than doubled the revenue, doubled our subscriber base, and brought the startup to profitability for the first time, in just two years. In 2022, I joined Outlook India and took on a new challenge: building a content-to-commerce business named What’s Hot from scratch. The problem? I had a vast portfolio but no dedicated team members, less than 10% bandwidth for content to commerce, zero marketing budgets, no Capex and no prior experience. And yet, we made it happen. An year later, we generated 14 crore of GMV for Amazon driving high intent users to their platform through the power of content. Today, I’m taking on an even bigger challenge. To transform Outlook What’s Hot section into a standalone website with a completely new business model. This means starting from scratch—no content, no keyword authority, zero domain authority, no social media presence, competition with influencers and established websites, and minimal audience growth budget. And once again, I’m determined to make it happen. What are the big product challenges you’ve faced, and how did you transform it into a success? Let’s exchange ideas.

DIY vs. DIFM: Is India Inc. having an identity crisis? Picture this: It's a Monday morning, and your team is starting on the latest project brief. You’ve got two options. Option A: Roll up your sleeves, channel your inner "jugaadu", and DIY your way to success. Option B: Call in the experts, and let them DIFM (Do It For Me) while you sip your chai and nod approvingly. This could be a real dilemma! Take startups, for example. They’re the quintessential DIYers, bootstrapping and building everything from scratch, and figuring it out as they go. The upside? They own their processes, every step of the way. The downside? Burnout might just be their middle name. On the flip side, enterprises often lean towards DIFM. Need a digital transformation? Bring in the consultants. Launching a new product? Let the experts handle it. It’s a tried-and-true strategy that frees up internal resources, but does it sometimes stifle the innovative spark that DIYers thrive on? But here’s the catch: The line between DIY and DIFM is getting blurrier than ever. Hybrid models are becoming the norm. Companies are DIYing their culture, vision, and core strategies, but they’re DIFMing the nitty-gritty details—like automating processes or setting up cloud infrastructure—because, let’s face it, who has the time to be a jack of all trades? Maybe it’s time we stopped seeing them as polar opposites and started thinking of them as complementary strategies. At ExtraMile Play, we’re big believers in this hybrid approach. That’s why we offer both standard (DIY) and premium (DIFM) plans, giving India Inc. the flexibility to choose what works best for them. Whether you’re a hands-on enthusiast or prefer to leave it to the pros, we’ve got you covered. So, the next time you whip up a quick pasta but still can't resist ordering that biryani from Swiggy, think about bringing that same mix to the office—because who says you can’t bake the cake and eat it too? ExtraMile Play #DIY #DIFM

The cold blooded murder of Dunzo by Reliance! Dunzo was a king of hyperlocal delivery once with >5 million users and 40k + delivery partners. They've raised $40 Mn from Google and $200Mn from Reliance (a total of $457 Mn in 19 rounds). But, Reliance wrote off this investment recently.... Did Ambani lost all the money? Hell, NO! I would say it's a genius master plan to make 1000's of crores on other side -- JioMart. 🤯 How !? - Step.1: Invest the money and get the full control (Reliance has 26% stake in Dunzo with Veto power) - Step.2: They've blocked other investors and further raise - refuse to give money and go for under raise. - Step.3: Set targets which can never be achieved. And then, sit back and watch they're burning tonnes of money every month. What did Reliance get in return? (1). A thorough market research on hyperlocal & QC sector and competitor playbook. (2). Best talent pool and tech insights (3). The customer data worth millions. And, They used all this best things to grow JioMart. Copied their best features, hired top talents and slowly took their market share. Interestingly JioMart grew by ~400% and became a ₹80,000 Cr giant. They've posted 30% increase in their AOV (Average order value) and 94% growth in merchant numbers YoY. What happened to Dunzo? - All founders resigned - Cut the workforce to 50 from 2000 - 1+ year of unpaid salaries. - ~₹500 Cr left in bank account. And eventually they're going to die. Some times the big companies don't compete. They invest and eliminate. The art of business war..... 💀 Comment your thoughts! #ambani #business #startup #dunzo