Connect The Dots

by Rashmi Bansal

I thought, we IITians - we can do anything. Dimaag to hai na!”

read about an accident where the driver got drowsy, and lost control of the car. And I said this is it!”

Raghu worked on a ‘drowsy driver detection system’.

“When I meet brand managers they have all kinds of crazy ideas. If I say, ‘Sir yeh nahin ho sakta hai’ they reply, ‘I am the client, I can demand anything’!”

“How did you get the idea of starting this company?”

coveted

Schlumberger

That wasn’t the best thing to say in a job interview…

“Would you like to get paid to put a sticker on your car? If so, register here!” Raghu had no idea what kind of sticker.

There were a couple of months to kill, so Raghu decided to continue working on his gaadi par advertising wala idea.

rudimentary

Within 3 days the Brand on Wheels website got 1500 registrations from car owners and 22 companies seeking advertising space. Tiwariji promptly printed this news as well.

Because no one will be as passionate about it as I am.”

“Are you the same as ‘Brand on Wheels’ from South Africa?”

Raghu decided there could be a copyright issue and changed the name of his venture to Cashurdrive.

Raghu got his first client: Bonn Bakery, bas...

At Bonn Bakery, the owner was the sole decision maker. And since hoardings had been banned in Shimla, he was willing to give this new medium a chance.

charges were exorbitant.

Reliance Mutual Fund booked 75 cars for a duration of one month. Close on its heels, Tata Indicom booked 125 cars over 3 months.

Chandigarh, Shimla, Patiala and Ludhiana.

evangelising

“I had to generate leads, meet new clients, get their campaigns. The

Raghu learnt that the two most important people he had to win over were the guard, and the receptionist.

He also learnt the art of sending ‘proposals’ and of coming up with innovations which would hook brand managers.

For Adidas, Raghu suggested an ‘L-shaped creative’, made to look like a guy playing football with the tyre.

Meanwhile, Meru cabs approached Raghu - could he sell ads on their cabs?

Should I put my energy in making business plans or simply get more business?”

“I wanted to be in a stronger position - abhi to jo wo keh rahe hain karna padega…”

The trouble was, business suddenly dried up… but there were salaries to pay. Raghu remembers this as the worst crisis he’s had to face - so far.

“I literally used to google names of brand managers and make cold calls at their offices.

The lure of ‘easy money’ spawned many copycats such as ‘Cash ur ride’ and ‘Cash ur wheels’.

But the secret sauce lies not in the idea but in the execution.

‘What is the scalability of your business?’

My answer is there is no definition of scale. It depends on your capabilities, on your selling skills.”

“I never bought a train ticket but always managed to get a berth!” he grins.

nascent stage.

Internet ki duniya mein sabse bada fayda hai

When your idea is new, no one knows any more than you about how to make it happen. You simply have to figure it out along the way.

So the earlier you start, the better!

ventures

atheist,

‘Log kya kahenge’ never bothered him,

That something was his love for books.

“I think one of the things reading does is it gets you to start looking at yourself, reflecting and helping to face who you are, what you want to do, what you are passionate about.”

Sriram was in class 7 when he first wondered, “Who am I? Why am I here? What is my purpose in life?”

apprenticeship

stint

anxious

when you get up in the morning if you don’t feel inspired to go to work, then there is something wrong.”

have to be passionate and involved and engaged with what I am doing. If I am not, I cannot put energy and effort and discipline into doing it.”