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Malavika Tewari meets Mr. Satish Sikha – a successful fashion designer and serial entrepreneur who has left behind his life of material riches and dedicated himself to a greener world and healthier children, as he sincerely believes that Healthy children are Happy children. We salute his thoughts, spirit and efforts and we hope it will inspire many. “Children are the world’s most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.” This was once stated by the very prominent US President John F Kennedy. But is the future of today’s children safe? Are our children hale and hearty? How is our Ecosystem doing? There are many questions we have, but are we doing something? India is running fast on the tracks of development, the government is trying to bring in 100% education; media is present throughout the country to spread awareness. As we are climbing the ladder of success, life has become a marathon and there is an urgent need to ensure that the baton is passed through all the hands to create harmony in the country, and here is Mr. Satish Sikha who has instigated initiatives and lighted lamps in the lives of innumerable children. Mr. Satish Sikha with the children after a distribution drive of free biscuits It has been a great pleasure to know a man of such stature and brilliant ideas and to read about the various activities being done in the vicinity for the children and for the environment. Global warming, hazardous gases, extreme pollution, hunger, illiteracy etc are few dark sides of a developing society and Mr. Sikha is leading the way out in his own way by the simplest and the most difficult fundamental of “Thinking good and doing good”. Team Better India had a great opportunity to interact with him and when approached, he was very kind to give us a detailed input about his group in an interview as below: Q:Please tell us something about yourself? I am a man of simplicity and I love challenges. Life started with a boat in the middle of the ocean, and the will to reach the shore. The journey took me to study engineering but then I realized that fashion design was what I wanted to do. After 18 years of experience in fashion, I realized that I wanted to see something else and traveled on to fine dining and investment services. I’ve been navigating for 20 long years, and I realize that I still have not reached the shore. After being CEO & President for 3 incorporated companies: SIKHA INC. (investment & consulting services), SIKHA & TSUFA INC. (an Haute Couture bridal & evening line based in Toronto’s trendy Yorkville area), and the 5TH Element: Fine Dining Italian Cuisine & Lounge (The Official Hospitality Partner Of Toronto International Film Festival Group), I have decided to sail away from my businesses and go to the inviting shore I see approaching. My safe harbor are two inspiring causes: helping school children & combating global warming. Today, I feel like I was running on empty all those years in business pursuing personal gain and that I am finally living a life worth living. From a well-established career as fashion designer, what inspired you to walk for the cause of children and earth? Children’s health always inspired me. The happy smiles on the faces of healthy children always motivated my soul. Money would get the luxuries that are materialistic but when I see children happy I give luxury to my athma (soul). Making the environment better and happy for the children is what I am focused on doing. Today I am happy to live a life that gives me peace and luxury to my soul. Please give us a brief detail on the various foundations and projects which you have been involved in? I made the longest hand-woven silk fabric with messages from dignitaries from different parts of the world. The project was to create awareness towards the importance of acting now against global warming and to keep our Mother Earth Clean and Green, especially for our lovely children to live a better and healthy life. I was the first and only person to present on the Arctic Ocean – North Pole the World’s longest Eco Silk Fabric. Every one yard of eco hand woven silk fabric has got one message from these dignitaries. All the fabrics are put together by hand and sewn as a single long piece. These days I am involved in providing Free Food Service 24*7, Free Education to the children and Free Health care. I believe serving another human being is equal to serving God. Mr. Sikha with the longest hand-woven silk fabric having messages from various dignitaries, at the North Pole Q:What do you think are the major challenges you face in your day to day operations and in the accomplishment of various projects? The biggest challenge in life is thinking good and doing good. But as I am doing good, every challenge that comes my way seems easy. The focus is very important when you are doing good and I am very focused and have a clear vision when I want to achieve something. Q:What is your dream and ambition? What is your future plan of action? My dream is to make others’ dreams come true. It all goes this way ‘Your Happiness is My Happiness’ and ‘Your Success is My Success’. I am passionate about seeing children around me healthy. Healthy children are happy children and the very name of my foundation ‘Healthy Kids Happy Kids Foundation’ utters the ambition of my life. This is the mantle on my shoulders right now and my purpose which is in action. You are a well traveled person and with large scale operations of the various events, workshops etc. all across the world, do you face issues with financial funding? How supportive have been people all around? Money is not everything as long as you get food and shelter. When I am thinking and doing good, people take care of everything (Food and Shelter) so I do not have to worry. When people invited us they were really gracious to take care of us. Is there a difference in the execution of initiatives in India when compared to foreign nations? ‘Laksh’ (Goal) is something I want to achieve no matter wherever I am. Good is always the same for any country or any culture. The place actually does not matter when you are focused in what you’re doing and are strong-willed to achieve it. Q:What do you think is the impact of social media such as facebook, twitter etc in creating awareness? The impact of social media has been very great when it comes to creating awareness. In this contemporary world, facebook and twitter play a vital role. Personally also, facebook has been helpful to me. So yes, the impact of social media is very significant. Q:Thank you so much for your precious time and kindness, would you like to share something with our readers? It was a pleasure to share a little of my experience with you. I want to tell all the readers that make sure the person who is next to you is healthy and happy. “In life we all pass through hurdles and hard times, it is up to us whether we choose to cross with a smile, a cry, a scream, fear or something else. We have to cross anyway, so why not choose a smile and cross, which can make others happy at least” God Bless. Source:The Better India

Jun 12,2017 The world is a busy place, we have no time to catch a break, enjoy and revive ourselves from the daily workloads inside a cubicle. What if we could do all that while working too? This is just what business seminars are for. Attending business seminars aren’t just fun and games and it is of course a serious matter but, it is also a platform that gives us the extra push or a breath of fresh air which enable us to do more. Here Are 5 Reasons Why You Should Attend Business Seminars: Break From The Mundane Existence - We often drown in the ocean of papers and files. The daily routines of the workplace pull us down and cause frustration. Business seminars provide us with a change in scenery. This is helps us to re-energise ourselves and break free from the routines inside the workplace and thus, be happier individuals. Bigger Circles (Networking) - As the saying goes, “keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” Here, enemies aren’t ‘enemies’ per se, it simply refers to our competitors. Business seminars provide a platform to see what your competitors are up to. It also enables peers to engage themselves in interactions and eventually form new bonds and ideas. Therefore, it widens our networks and allows us to improve our old ideas and device new plans. Make Room For Self-improvement - With the change of scenery and new interactions, business seminars also test our skills. It gives us the opportunity to voice out our plans and strategies and put them out for discussion and criticism. This gives us room to learn from each other which includes both triumphs and the pitfalls. With this, the original plans are molded with new ideas and are reformed into an even better one. Meeting and engaging with professionals helps individuals to learn, improve and grow. Create New Comfort Zones - Business seminars are perfect for each and every one of us to break free of our comfort zones. It pushes even the shy people to get out of their timid demeanor and allow them to grow. We all have our ‘comfort zones’ but if we allow ourselves to do new things and be accustomed to it then, we eventually get comfortable in doing that. Thus, that will be a new comfort zone. Motivation - Business seminars are just what we need for a change from the day to day patterns of the office. All the above points finally lead to us being re-energised. It gives us that push and inspiration we need to pull up our sleeves and take on the work with a fresh new zeal. This extra boost is beneficial for both the individual and the institution’s success. Now business seminars don’t seem so bad right? We SHOULD attend it as it allows us to be better at the work we do. It’s an investment in ourselves as well as the institution we work in.

Jun 12,2017 Profitability and Business Growth are different aspects yet very inter-related terms. Many investors aim for profitability in the long run and think about business growth later. The typical mindset of an investor makes them carry out the solitary profitability route unlike a prudent decision maker. There seems to be no potential threat in following the narrow way but the organization will have to certainly go through a rough sledding eventually. The ideal relationship between profitability and business growth can be established only when a foreman understand that profitability is necessary but not quintessential for the sustainability of a business. Therefore, managers are advised to stop aiming exclusively for profitability and mull over the overall business development. The following points will make the stance comprehendible. Dynamic Environment: The time has changed ever since. In this day and age, managers need to think ahead of their time. The competition is neck and neck. If a business continues to adopt a retrograde approach and maintains the supremacy and importance of profitability above everything else, the firms are certain to get routed. The companies that are stick to their core products are most unlikely to understand market changes and new opportunities. Kodak can be exemplified. Only one of the 30 original firms that constituted the Dow Jones Industrial Average is still alive and kicking. Customer- Centric Environment: The markets are changing very swiftly. The managers should think about the customer friendly products even if it tends to increase the cost of making. The business could possibly grow manifold times if taken a customer developing approach. It will eventually pay off the firm in form of good returns. ​​They need to work seamlessly towards customer satisfaction. Social responsibility: Working towards fulfilling the social responsibility helps in reconciling. Unfair, fraudulent practices to increase short term profits will lead the firm nowhere. So, it should be an obligation to follow the customary. Developing a Holistic approach is the key to business growth and profitability eventually. Managers need to have multidisciplinary perspectives. They should listen to the market, absorb and improve ideas to keep learning. Business growth is altogether a broader term and encompasses the factor that necessitates healthy profit developing schemes. With business growth, value and strength of a firm is increased. In a nutshell, firms should go for business development and growth as it will help in protecting the rootstocks. Profitability at length will follow.

Jun 12,2017 A Small Business Venture can be defined as “start up entity developed with the intent of profiting financially”. Since every business firm needs funding in the initial stage, there are many ways of funding your small business venture. Out of these options, in my opinion, following are the best 7 ways to get your Small Business Venture Funding: Own Investment: The first and the most basic option to fund your startup is put your own equity. The reason being that only you know exactly how much investment you require and equity is never a loan, so you are not debtor to someone. Moreover, when you are putting your own money into the business, you are answerable to only yourself for the consequences and not to anyone else. Friends/Relatives/Family: The people besides you who believe in your ideas and put trust on you are your friends, relatives and family members. In fact, you can make your friends, relatives or family members, your business partners so as to diversify the risk of the business. But even if your motive is to control the business solely, these individuals can provide you money even without any credit worthiness of yours. Government Schemes: There are certain schemes from Government to promote small business start ups. Taking loan from such Governmental schemes is beneficial as these loans are generally provided at lower interest rates. Following are the few governmental schemes for small business venture funding: ​The Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises. Small Industries Development bank of India (SIDBI). Micro – Units Development and Refinance Agency Ltd. (MUDRA) Bank Loans: There are various schemes for Bank Loans provided to Small Businesses. Working Capital Finance can be availed either through direct funding or by a letter of credit. A lot of banks provide Working Capital Finance like State Bank of India, Andhra Pradesh and Bank of Baroda. Besides, for starting new venture, Corporate Term Loans are also available. Factoring: Factoring means selling your Bills Receivables to a third party in exchange of immediate cash. Factoring is useful when immediate need of fund arises. Angel Investors: Angel Investors can also be used to fund your small business. These individuals or group of individuals in the business of field of their interest. Venture Capital: These organizations provide money loan to startups in exchange of equity control. But, these organizations like to invest in huge amount and gain greater share in the company, or we can say, greater control in the company. The above mentioned sources of funds are easy to obtain and simpler in process. Obtaining funds from these sources is easier, that’s why these sources, I believe, are the best ones.

Q: Hi Ashwin and welcome. You’re from India so I have to ask, what’s new to the entrepreneurial India? Most people think about India as a place to get cheap labor and outsource stuff. Ashwin: The new India has more people taking risks, and even more people willing to facilitate the process of taking risks. Entrepreneurial India is abundant with angel investors and venture capitalists, who have now understood that India can also innovate. And India is innovating, like never before! Labor is still cheap and we still outsource, but we also know how to utilize the ever increasing globalization. Q: Did the crisis change the business rules? What do you think, during the crisis companies outsource more or cut spending altogether, outsourcing included? Ashwin: To some extent, it did. India saw a strange trend, different from what US showed. We did see a number of large corporations losing big money and businesses including outsourcing showing loss, but the period also brought risky entrepreneurs in the business world who wanted to benefit from the negative times. Number of small businesses increased significantly during the crisis, and many businesses centered on these SMEs also surfaced. Q: You recently started a new company, what is it about? Ashwin: Well, this question looks like a continuation of my previous answer. Because, we also started our company to utilize the fact that India has more than 2.5 million SMEs and this number is growing at a very high rate. Our company Incept creates, sells, and services unique Office Automation products for SMEs (small and medium businesses). Q:Cristian: So who exactly is your customer? Ashwin: Every Small and medium sized enterprise across India belongs to our current target group, and we are also looking at global expansion. Small shops as well as commercial offices can benefit from us. We are starting with Time & Attendance Management Biometric Systems and will move on to many more exciting products. Q:Cristian: What is what makes your company special? Ashwin: This is an interesting question, considering the fact that there are more than 600 companies in India who supply office automation products. But when you consider the fact that our products are created with only SMEs in mind, we become somewhat special. Add to this the fact that our products are novel and innovative, and we become even more special. But the final nail on the wall of specialty is the way we do our business: our business model is such that we do not involve distributors or resellers, but sell and service our products directly, using our own service partners. Q: Did you start alone or you have some partners? Ashwin: I started with the help and support of an entrepreneur who had seen the risks to come out clean, Hariom Sharma. And today we have a 12 member dedicated team. Q: What are the most difficult things to overcome when starting a company in India? Ashwin: Though the answer may vary based on the sector to which a company belongs, the biggest problem faced by us and also by various other entrepreneurs, is the legal tangle which forces you to take undesirable steps. For example, the taxation system in the country is so complex and poorly managed, that small businesses still suffer hugely and the worst effects are seen during starting up. Q: How was your path from idea to getting the first customer? Ashwin: Tough but exciting. We decided to pitch the idea to a customer who could have been the last choice for our products. But after various meetings, when he was convinced, we knew that we would succeed. So we took the tough road, hoping to get rewards if we are able to cross it. Q: What about the future? New product lines? New customers? Ashwin: Future plans include expansion into tier 2 and 3 cities of India. And talks of expansion to other countries following similar economy as India are also on. Among new product lines, we are next coming up with remote employee surveillance systems. Q: What was most difficult? Finding an idea? Making the first steps to transform the idea in a real business? Getting your first customer? Ashwin: The most difficult, according to me, is always the first set of steps. Idea can be abundant, but the implementation of the idea to be able to create a business out of it, requires lot of mentoring and support from investors as well as peers. Q: What about the legal part? Is it difficult to comply with the business rules in India? Ashwin: As mentioned earlier, though things are easier than ever before, still there is no flexibility to support small businesses. Also, various small companies work while blatantly disregarding laws and they still thrive, which is sad. But situations are changing. Q: What would be your best advice for companies abroad working with Indian companies? Ashwin: There are a huge number of innovators in India who remain hidden unless seriously scouted for. So while making associations with Indian companies, you should be able to find out these hidden talents so as to maximize the utilization of resources. Also, on a different cautionary note, it’s better to avoid companies following traditional rules in conventional fashion in India, as the market is changing and it’s time to welcome unconventional thought processes. Q: Coming back to your business, how did you come up with the idea? Ashwin: It was the period of recession which forced us to come up with products especially for SMEs. We analyzed the target group and steadily zeroed on the products. So it was customers first, products later. Q: What are the most important advantages your customers get when working with your products? Ashwin: That they feel it’s made only for them. Moreover, high level of interactivity, and focused customer support, are our other high points. Q: Any success stories you would like to mention? Ashwin: I’d like to share one testimonial from a customer, who said that they improved their profit in the quarter in which they bought our product by about 20%, due to the indirect effects it brought. They had bought our attendance management system which helped them reduce their HR loads and focus more on work while helping increase productivity. It was nice to hear someone giving us a quantitative compliment, rather than a qualitative praise. Q: Are you proud of what you have accomplished so far? Ashwin: I’d say it’s the beginning and we are still learning. We are proud of what we have achieved, and also of what we have failed to achieve, as it has taught us more. Sounds like a dialogue from an inspirational book, but its really true. Q: Any advice for young people not having the courage to start their own businesses? Ashwin: As I also mentioned in one of our company’s newsletters, try to run naked in public and that’s when you’ll be ready to become an entrepreneur. Source: Entrepreneurship Interviews

Did you know that handicrafts of all kinds constitute the second largest occupation in India? And that it is a dwindling sector with people steadily moving out of it and entering other fields? One of the reasons for artisans to move out of this business is the lack of easy access to consumers and the intense competition from machine-made goods. The Color Caravan aims to create livelihood opportunities for artisans and in turn preserve our traditional crafts. It tries to do so by presenting traditional handicraft products in contemporary style & marketing them to urban buyers. Here is an interview with Swati Seth, the founder and the main driving force behind The Color Caravan: Q:Tell us more about The Color Caravan – what is it all about? The Color Caravan is a platform for Indian handicrafts. It is a link between the artisan and urban market. The Color Caravan is not a NGO. It is very much a business venture but supports a social cause. We basically partner with independent artisans, NGOs and SHGs to not only source products from them but also develop new products with them. In this way, we help create livelihood for the artisans and thus preserve our traditional craft. Besides this, we try to educate our customers about the product that they buy from us by sharing craft stories with them. We want them to know the kind of effort and time that an artisan puts in creating each piece of craft. Q:What inspired you to start The Color Caravan? A lot of people, ventures & incidents inspired me to start The Color Caravan. Having said that, the one person that inspired me the most (and continues to do so) is the great Indian rural artisan. Everytime I see a beautiful & fine piece of traditional craft created by an artisan, it leaves me awestruck & inspired. At the same time, it worries me to see our traditional craft getting lost – dying away because gradually artisans across the country are moving on from traditional crafts, handed to them over generations, in search of other opportunities. I knew that one day I would do something of my own and it would be something to do with the handicrafts. It was always there on my ‘bucket list’ but I wasn’t sure when and how. And then I reached a stage where this thought that ‘if I don’t do it now, I would never be able to do it‘ started bothering me but I still did not have the courage to quit my decently paying secure job. They say taking the first step is always the toughest part. After contemplating the idea for months, and with encouragement & support from family and some close friends I gathered the courage and decided to take the plunge. So, you can say that The Color Caravan was born out of my passion for travel, love for art & craft and concern to preserve and propagate age-old traditional Indian crafts. Q:Can you tell us a little bit about your background? Your past experience? I am a qualified commercial artist with over 10 years of experience across the design & online industry (design, e-commerce & content). I spent the early years of my career doing wall art, designing furniture & interiors for children, painting for a textile export house, visualising & illustrating for digital & BTL agencies before moving over to online content. In between all this, I also had a short stint with a BPO. My last stint was with one of largest Indian websites for advertising, media & marketing. Q:What are the kind of products The Color Caravan showcases? What is unique about them? Besides sourcing traditional handicraft products that are already available with the artisans, we help them design and develop new products using traditional craft. We try to present traditional handicraft products in contemporary style. So, while some of the products that we sell have been completely created by the artisan, others have been co-created by both the artisan and The Color Caravan. Some of the artisans that we work with are national and state awardees. Currently, we have crafts like terracotta jewelry from West Bengal, Madhubani from Bihar, Pattachitra & Dokra Orissa, basketry & Longpi pottery from Manipur, Charamkari and Kalamkari from Andhra Pradesh, Bandhej & weaves from Gujarat, Chikankari from Uttar Pradesh, Blue pottery from Rajasthan & Batik and Meenakari from Maharashtra. Our current product range consists of fashion accessories, home decor, home furnishing & utility items. Since each product, each piece is handcrafted, there are no two identical pieces! Handcrafted boxes, bottles, pottery and baalis. Q:suppose in this field you would have a lot of stories to share about artisans and their crafts. Any particular event/incident that you recall? Every piece of craft and artisan has a story to tell. However, I’ll share this particular one. I was traveling across Kutch (Gujarat) to explore the local craft and meet artisans to partner with. Every village that I visted, every artisan that I met and every piece of craft that I saw left me awestruck. Then, I met this very old lady in a tiny village. She must have been close to 85 or 90. She was once a very fine hand embroidery artist but was forced to give up the art because of old age. Her family showed me some of her out-of-this-world creations. I asked them if someone would be able to embroider something similar for me. I was disappointed and shocked to know that that particular embroidery art was not passed on to the next generation. No one from the younger generation bothered to learn it. No one from the current lot of artists in the village knew that particular stitch, that particular embroidery and she was too old teach now. She could barely see – it meant that that particular embroidery, that craft was now lost. It was heartbreaking. Q:Any specific issues that you face and are trying hard to address? I want to add about one of the biggest issues that we and other social enterprises working for the handicraft sector are facing. People often find our products expensive and we have a tough time explaining that handmade stuff will be expensive especially when we pay fair wages/prices to our artisans and don’t exploit them like others. It is sad that most customers end up comparing our handcrafted products with machine-made, non-ecofriendly products purchased at low prices & sold huge margins & profits. Q:Clearly The Color Caravan is a much-needed initiative in this space. What are your future plans? How do you plan to shape this initiative? We have already started retailing through a couple of stores in Bangalore and Lucknow and are products will be soon available in Mumbai. We will continue to do exhibitions across metros. Besides this, we have plans of launching a couple of customised services. Q:How does one get in touch with your organization? Tel: 011-46534315, 0522-2624182 Write to us at: swati.seth(at)thecolorcaravan.com Look for ‘The Color Caravan‘ Page on Facebook and click the LIKE button for updates. To see where & how can one buy our products, please see the SHOP tab on our Facebook Page. Source: The Better India

Jun 11,2017 Snapchat, a video messaging app allowing users to record and send “Snaps” that are viewable for between 1 to 10 seconds following its self destruction, allows users to express their content creatively. It provides all-in- one service where people can use audio, video, text, phone, and drawing in one place- making it more wholesome experience. The platform allows companies to express themselves in an entirely new way, providing a ‘personal window to the way you see the world’. The sense of urgency and standing out are things marketers can tap into on a low budget, and get a lot of reach. Here are 8 ways to encourage Small and Medium Entrepreneurs to expand their performance with Snapchat for their activities: Coupons, Giveaways and interesting video snippets from business offer personal touch to well defined market segment. It provides a great opportunity to reward one’s followers with promotional codes, coupons, contest and giveaways; who doesn’t appreciates such a deal! Coupons, Giveaways and interesting video snippets from business offer personal touch to well defined market segment. It provides a great opportunity to reward one’s followers with promotional codes, coupons, contest and giveaways; who doesn’t appreciates such a deal! Snapchat Stories, use stickers and text captions to post a series of images and videos in a sequence to tell the story of the brand. Creative minds can use the app as a part of an integrated marketing campaign to link social media and live events. Snapchat has over 100 million active users and over 7 billion daily video views which proves as a strong enough reason to attract marketers. Not only Youngsters but also people from every generation are adapting to it daily and active users continue to increase in a volume. This allows the marketers to connect to a large population on a single platform. Snapchat familiarizes to people in many ways and instills in them a sense of affinity. It provides a face-to-face communication than any other social media. One of the new features of Snapchat, “ Discover”, launched in 2015 connected its users to with media companies and they started publishing content to the app users. With the prime motive of monetization companies like ESPN, Cosmopoliton, BuzzFeed, Brothers and CNN published alongwith to influence their followers. Promotes Transparency, provides behind the scenes footage. Every customer entertains lucidity and by giving an insider’s view of the company and its culture helps engaging followers with interesting content. Live Event Reporting, Snapchat allows the followers to have an access to the live reporting of current happenings in a company and further builds trust and loyalty with customers. The most important feature, Geofilters is the most interesting and trending feature which is accessible for small and medium sized businesses at a nominal price. They are visual overlays which can be added to the user’s photos. The companies can create custom Geofilter and target its use at locations within a few kilometers in radius. However, using Snapchat for business is all about staying updated and innovative. On the other hand, Snapchaters also have to face some challenges. Hence, the firms need to have a clear understanding of their objectives and consider how it adds value to their overall social marketing strategy.

Jun 10,2017 What's so cool about the robotic, cold not trustworthy voice that comes up when you used to contact any firm for query or even a little question? Likewise no one finds it easy to press a set of buttons and then reach the solution to your query. These lengthy procedures used by the firms have a common flaw i.e. they can be adopted by leaving the sale which is definitely very inconvenient to the customers. The world is shrinking and so is our time, so we need understand that people no longer admire the robotic voice which takes so long. The customer thrives for warmth and a truthful advice without any complications. Help is what the customers want! So the live chat is doing nothing but rectifying that flaw possessed by the old methods. When you visit your nearby retail shop, the first thing that happens is the arrival of the salesperson to assist you with your shopping. Let us take a close look at how live chats are doing wonders. 1.Live chat is warm and friendly As while shopping online , the little doubts left unanswered can change the whole scenario , in this way the sale will not enhance as much , so the clearing the doubts and queries by the live chat while shopping is very comfortable and friendly. Since the chat is friendly enough, the customers opens up easily and ask even the tiniest things which makes them satisfied and confident about the product they have bought just now. Live chats creates trust for the firm, online automated responses can't increases the sale as they are based on the past experiences while the live is based on the problem the customer is facing right now . You get to know about the customers You come to know why and for what your website is visited. This way you can shape up your future plan. Also the customers clicks on the live chat for "help" , hence by providing the help that too at the very moment , you can initiate a strong relation between you and the customer thereby increasing your sale. You can cross sell thing in a non imposing way. For example: - If a person has bought a new mobile phone, you can recommend him /her the accessories related to it such as tempered glass and mobile cover etc. ​Live chat is less costly and comfortable. When it comes to cost, its cost nothing to the customer as well as for the retailer too the cost is very nominal, as the live chat can tackle so many queries at the same time and the customer can too multitask as they get the reply. The cost to maintain the chat system is far less than the call center. The customization in the chat system are also very appealing and tend to keep the customer engaged and being less impatient as he/ she need not leave the deal and contact the BPO or email them. Hence the live chat cut down cost and increases the working hours as you have spent your money, energy and thoughts wisely. So, rather than watch people clicking away from you website just because their queries are not answered is not fair at all.

Jun 9,2017 Business world is full of opportunities and threats but the ice on the cake is that such opportunities and threats are uncertain and dynamic. Every business organization should stay prepared for these situations. Due to intense competition, small business organizations are the one who are most affected by such situations. To avoid unpredictable threats and exploit opportunities, small business owners should keep enough resources in reserve so as to face the uncertain situations without affecting daily operations. Such reserve fund is often called Rainy Day Fund. All business owners should keep Rainy Day Fund to be used in times when regular income or revenues do not match expenditures. Studies reveal that keeping Rainy day Fund helps small business organizations to develop as they perform better than those who do not keep Rainy Day Fund, in difficult situations. In many cases, Rainy Day Fund are often used interchangeably with Emergency Fund but both these terms are different in certain ways. An Emergency Fund is kept in order to have enough money to pay expenses for a period of three to six months. On the other hand, Rainy Day Fund is kept to face unforeseen situations or events. In brief, these two savings accounts are different in their amount value, purpose and usefulness. Moreover, a Rainy Day Fund is comparatively smaller than Emergency Fund. There are many benefits of keeping Rainy Day Fund: Rainy Day Fund provides liquidity of fund during emergency period. During the time of recession in the industry, Rainy Day Fund can prove beneficial. Rainy Day Fund provides security against uncertainty of future. Small Business Owners have to face a lot of problems in their business. In such situations, Rainy Day Fund provides relief to stress. Rainy Day Fund provides courage to small business owners to take risks as they don’t have to worry a lot about future. This helps them in exploiting the growth opportunities which they otherwise would not have been able to do so. In the vast and dynamic business environment, it has become necessary for small business owners to stay awake and hit the bull’s eye every time in order to develop and expand. For better tomorrow, one must focus on present and present can be focused only when worries regarding future are reduced to null. In case of small business owners, Rainy Day Fund acts as a safeguard against uncertain events of future. So, the question arises- SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS, HAVE YOU CREATED A RAINY DAY FUND?

Jun 9,2017 Entrepreneurship is not, oddly enough, this bling-bling glamorous lifestyle that it is often portrayed to be. Entrepreneurs are not your normal Type-A personalities – overtly motivated, overarching ambitious-wise people that are always hungry for success. In fact, a 2006 paper proposed that entrepreneurs, personality wise, are far removed from Type-A personalities, which are more suited for corporate and CEOs. Entrepreneurs were found less neurotic, which made them greatly tolerant towards stress. They were also found extraverted, conscientious and far more open to innovation. So, what exactly makes an entrepreneur successful? There are a quite a few surprisingly common traits that are found in all the successful, top-brand entrepreneurs across the world. First things first, a good entrepreneur is one who is not afraid to take risks, experiment and innovate. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, says that, “If you can increase the number of experiments you try from hundred to thousand, you dramatically increase the number of innovations you produce.” And this rings true. Risk-taking is something that should be a conscious decision; a good entrepreneur should know when to push through that fear and take that risk. A good entrepreneur is also someone who is tenacious enough to crawl through bad times. The importance of tenacity and perseverance is often overlooked, but cannot be emphasised enough. Steve Jobs, when he returned to Apple as its CEO in 1997, found the company nearly bankrupt. From there, he took the company and pushed it to be one of the biggest technological giants of the 21st century, with the iPhone, iPod and the iTunes being deemed to have huge 'cultural ramifications'. So, a successful entrepreneur is not someone who is able to work during bad times, but someone who can work despite bad times. An entrepreneur knows the importance of the customer and s/he makes the business all about the customer. It is a customer who ultimately decides that whether the product is a boon or a bust, and it is the customer who would decide whether you should continue doing what you are doing, or give up your entrepreneur-apron and get a new job. Also, if an entrepreneur does not have an unique product or service line under his belt, there is quite a chance that it would not work out. An entrepreneur must always ask himself/herself, “Why would anybody want to buy my product, or use my service?” There must be something unique, or different in the product/service line that differentiates the entrepreneur from the incumbent competitions, or in other words, the entrepreneur must, through his/ her product, create a competitive advantage. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, an entrepreneur must have passion and the confidence that what s/he is doing would change the world. Starting a business from scratch is not an easy task, and there are numerous obstacles thrown your way. However, if an entrepreneur is genuinely excited at the work, doesn't fall trap to the naysayers, and sail past the opposition, there's magic that happens. So, do you have it in you to be a successful entrepreneur?

Jun 8,2017 Travelling gives you an opportunity to see the need for opportunity. When you travel, you come across multiple cultures, traditions, ideas. You learn about people, their needs, their endeavors and how they work to fulfill their dreams. Whether it unfolds in the avenue of social entrepreneurship or larger more grandiose endeavors, one can truly see an opportunity ripe for the proper capitalist. Here are some major benefits of travelling and why every entrepreneur must consider it once. Better communication Travelling makes you meet new people from all over the world and over time as you come across their language and traditions, you start communicating better, both verbal and non-verbal. For example, when you are on a business tour, you meet people of all ages, careers, races etc. Refuga conducted one such business tour with entrepreneurs and at the end of the tour the experiences not only helped the curious minds to communicate better but also helped them with developed business networking, which is extremely valuable in future. Introduction to teamwork A business can’t stand alone on one man. It requires a team of people who can understand each other at the same level and also sometimes help others to overcome their difficulties. Travelling will introduce you to new people with new demands and their idea of working which you bring back to the team to help each other grow and help the business grow. It will teach you when to be the leader and when to rely back on others for their strengths and area of expertise Better time management skills Anytime, anywhere you travel, if you don’t maintain a schedule you are going nowhere. Thus, to experience and take out most of your trip, time management is extremely necessary. Thus, travelling helps you hone the skills. Thus, the better you learn time management, the more you work efficiently to expand your business Introduction to various cultures It is always wise to work with people from various cultures as you have something new to learn from them and their traditions. In fact, it is the soul of internet marketing. Travelling introduces you to multiple cultures through the journey. You learn about their ideas, their needs and how they work to overcome their difficulties and needs. Thus, back home you can always mix all the learning and bring out the best to grow and expand your own business and develop your own culture at workplace for maximum productivity. Not only this, it also opens your mind to various possibilities of business in future. Working with constrains Sometimes, you have limited resources which can actually limit you while travelling. Thus, you learn to work with constrains and make the best out of limitations. And by far, this can prove to be the surviving skill when your business is in troubled waters. You will know how to navigate your ship safely to the shore, and start again.