Is coworking right for you? Arguments both for and against coworking space

With the rise in real estate prices, it became very easy and convenient option for start-ups or freelancers to pay a small amount to operate in a readymade office kind of environment (actually better than that), rather than investing bundles of money in buying an office. Coworking spaces are often confused with collaborative office rental facilities and incubators. It is not exclusive to people looking to build tech startups and it is also not limited to a better way to rent space, it offers a lot more than that

Let’s look at what really are the advantages of working in a coworking space that professional are not able to resist themselves:

• First of all, it offers the office like infrastructure that has facilities like dedicated desks, conference rooms, cafeteria, wifi/internet connection, print & scan facilities, power backups, etc. at single cost and also saves time in maintaining records of such overheads.
• These spaces organize some events or conferences for its members, sometimes just as a part of motivational activities and sometimes specific to particular topics.
• It offers the most wanted feeling of an office environment to the freelancers or startups who cannot or don’t want to invest in their own office spaces.
• Contact building becomes very easy for the young entrepreneurs and that will help them grow their businesses in future.
• A very important advantage of a coworking setup is it has variety of business ideas and concepts operating from a single place which can really be helpful for its members as some of them can find the services helpful for their businesses right on the next desk which will provide prospective clients to that service provider who’s also a member.
• Idea-sharing becomes easy and insightful which makes the environment exciting.
• Because generally the members of coworking spaces are young or open minded freelancer or startups, the culture is highly energetic and rocking.

But, it is said that something that glitters is not always gold, same as that this highly aspiring concept of coworking space also has it’s own drawbacks which make it avoidable for some professionals:

• The biggest disadvantage one will have opting for a coworking space will be spending money just to have an office environment which is not always affordable for the freshers or people who do not earn much. Coworking spaces are not always cheaper as currently the concept is quite new and is only available in big cities.
• If a coworking space is not available nearby, one will have to incur the transportation cost and also time to reach at the location.
• Coworking spaces sometimes observe too many changes. Coworkers are never the same and same goes with the desk that one uses. Their staff and location are also bound to change if they have very low-profit margins.
• Coworking spaces are sometimes more noisy than what members who like peaceful working environment would have expected. Constant noise sometimes becomes annoying and distractive.
  Such places are not really meant for people who are working on some top secret projects. Privacy of ideas becomes very rare in coworking spaces, especially when members are of same work domain.
• Coworking spaces are not complete substitutes of typical offices. Sometimes, you might not get the same level of guidance or help from the coworkers that you get from your office colleagues.

Understanding how e-wallet is changing definition of transactions

Basically, a wallet is something which holds money, credit card, debit card, shopping cards, ID proof etc. When you are already out for shopping and you forget your wallet at home then do you think it is a done thing ? No, it is not. In this fast moving world, everyone believes in smart work which will save their time and make work easier.

eWallet trend

E-wallet is a digital wallet in which you can preload some amount, credit card number, user’s identification and contact information behind a secured password. With the help of e-wallets, everyone can shop efficiently. According to open source survey, more people prefer online marketplace platform for shopping and e-wallet become its payment arm. Not only online stores, but e- wallet is helpful in physical stores too. E-wallet has made tedious paperwork transactions easy and fast. A person can pay for goods just by transmitting a number from one device to another and the transaction is done. Isn’t it Fast and Interesting?

E-wallet can be classified into three parts:

1. Closed E-wallet : Closed e-wallet can be used at particular places authorized by e-wallet offering organisations and it does not allow cash withdrawal. e.g.Freecharge.
2. Semi-closed E-wallet : Semi-closed E-wallet like Paytm can be used as prepaid online accounts. One can buy services and products from merchants having tie-up with the issuing entity. It does not allow cash withdrawal
3. Open E-wallet : Open E-wallet can be used for purchasing products and services. Unlike closed e-wallet & semi-closed e-wallet, it allows cash withdrawal at ATM’s. e.g. MasterCard, Visa card, Rupay card.

Digital wallet uses various methods to accomplish transactions such as Pull method, Push method & Tap-and-go method. In Pull method, a merchant will ask you for your mobile phone number and will enter it on their payment terminal, after that you will get one-time password (OTP) on your mobile phone then you have to share that OTP with the merchant, and in this way, money gets pulled from your e-wallet. Another is Push method, in which you have to send quick response (QR)code to merchant for scanning, which will help you to transfer money. The merchant will send you a QR code with the bill. QR code is nothing but a barcode which has details of the merchant’s establishment, bill details, etc. When code scanning is done, money from your e-wallet gets deducted and merchant’s account gets credited. Tap-and-go is an interesting and easy method in which you just have to tap your mobile phone with merchant’s terminal for money transfer. Both phones should be NFC (Near Field Communication) enabled phones to perform transactions by tap-and-go method.

What is making E-wallet a boom

• It is time saving.
• It comes up with various offers and coupons.
• Password security service is provided to maintain the confidentiality.
• People can track their expenditures as it facilitates them with their transaction history.
• Some of them offer data retention till 40 years.
• It is easy to use and easy to access.

Let’s see the downside of E-wallet

• E-wallet of one country can not be used in another country.
• Yet few merchants do not offer digital wallets. e.g. Amazon.
• In some conditions like lack of network, a Dead battery of the device or device is not in a working condition then one can not access E-wallet.
• It does not provide 3D secure password which helps to avoid unauthorized access of data.
• E-wallet does not assure you the security of your money if the device is lost.

A deep dive into online marketplace : how does it works, pros and cons

A marketplace is generally a location where people purchase or sell goods and services. It is the place where the seller meets the buyer, whether it is a B2B or B2C type of market. A market can be a wholesale market, retail market, high end or a street market according to the brands available, and the target customers of the locality. There are concepts like Supermarkets and Hypermarkets where one can find everything, from Safety pin to High-End cars under one roof.

Online Marketplace is an e-Commerce marketplace where products/goods/services are provided on an online interface. Here the transactions are facilitated by the operators of such online marketplace. e.g Amazon, Flipkart etc. the online marketplace is a dais from where the sellers display their products with the help of online marketplace operators, who in turn facilitate the financial transactions on a commission basis, while the final delivery of the goods, the after sales services responsibilities lie with the sellers. Hence and online marketplace provides a vast array of goods /services as compared to retail stores, where the prices are also competitive due to huge inventories of goods.

Sellers/Wholesalers have started selling their products through the online marketplace with the help of marketplace operators. Sometimes, these sellers also concern business mentor who guide them to select the best suited platform for business. Sellers can sell their products to the customers through multiple online marketplace operators, simultaneously. The inventories/ stock, never lie with these online marketplace operators. These online marketplace operators enable buyers meet sellers online and facilitate financial transactions thereof. The sellers usually make a list of products they intend to sell and thus upload them with the online marketplace operators. In few cases the sellers give the responsibilities of advertising, financial transactions, delivery of the goods, and after sales services of their product entirely wit the online marketplace operators, while in some cases the responsibility of delivery and after sales services lie with the sellers, while the responsibility of advertising the product lies with the online marketplace operators. The online marketplace operators generally pay the sellers for the goods sold in 7 days. On an average, the online marketplace operators charge around 15% commission for the products on their portal.

Worldwide Statistical Analysis :

Customers prefer online marketplace because,

• 73% find it time-saving.
• 67% think there are more varieties.
• 58% feel relaxed because it is less crowded.
• 59% think it’s easy to compare prices.

From a sales perspective, in 2016 global B2C e-commerce sales is expected to reach 1.92 trillion US dollars which will increase to 2.14 trillion, 2.36 trillion and 3.42 trillion US dollars in 2017, 2018 and 2019 respectively. In 2020, it is expected to grow almost double the figure of 2016 to 4.06 trillion US dollars.

In India, the sales figure of e-commerce marketplace in 2016 will be around 23.39 billion US dollars which will zoom to 37.5 billion US dollars in 2017, 52.54 billion US dollars in 2018, 65.09 billion US dollars in 2019 and 79.41 billion US dollars in 2020.

In 2016, Worldwide number of digital buyers is expected to reach 1.61 billion which will increase to 1.77 billion, 1.91 billion, 2.07 billion in 2017, 2018 and 2019 respectively. The forecast for a number of digital buyers in 2020 is 2.59 billion.

A number of digital buyers in India is expected to touch 112.7 million from there it will go on increasing to 153.2 million in 2017, 192.6 million in 2018 and 239.7 million in 2019. Further, it will go on and reach 288.9 million in 2020.

Let’s look at some benefits of online marketplace:

• The online shopping trends are increasing day by day and the sellers have also started catering to the demands of the consumers.
• The online marketplace is having its own numerous profits and positive points involved, both for the consumers as well as the sellers.
• All the products are just a couple of clicks away, as one can shop right from his home, flexible payment options, the customers can easily return the products if no satisfied with the products, can review his shopping etc. the buyers can compare thousands of products and prices to purchase accordingly.
• A consumer can shop anytime as the online marketplaces are open throughout the entire day and night.
• A local seller gets an opportunity to sell his products to the customers of the entire world with the help of online market.

There are some drawbacks as well:

• The consumers cannot check the product quality before the delivery of the products.
• The consumers in few cases, incur losses due to the faulty products and faulty handling during delivery.
• The sellers incur losses due to the return of the products, logistics involved in it and in some cases return of used products (used by the customers for 5-7 days).
• The online marketplace operators take around 7-30 days for the payment of goods to the sellers.
• Sellers have to offer coupons and discounts to stay ahead in the competition which will affect their profitably.
• Apart from product cost, a buyer has to pay shipping cost as well.

Important Startup Terminologies that should be a part of vocabulary

As an entrepreneur are you planning on boot-strapping or is it the help of a venture capitalist that you are interested in? In either case you would need a great pitch. When attracting investors, you should impress upon them that they are going to get good ROI soon enough.
Confused at what was written above? If you are a young entrepreneur with huge dreams but little experience, the jargons used above should startle you. But worry not. They are just jargons and you can easily learn them. They won’t be a roadblock to your dreams – but nevertheless knowing them will help. Let us take a look at some of the startup terminologies that should be part of your vocabulary.

#1 Accelerator

Mentorship and financial support are two things that help every entrepreneur understand the business environment. This is what accelerators do – they are formal learning centers for startups to acquire knowledge from industry experts, aka, mentors. Startup accelerators are also known as seed accelerators, and are formalized centers for learning.

#2 Advertorials

It has become a common trick to generate revenue through advertisements in the garb of “real content” and this is called advertorials. When you pay for publishing content but what it to appear as an ad, it is referred to as advertorials. These type of advertisement gimmicks are becoming popular because the effectiveness of ‘traditional ads’ are decreasing, especially in online media. Advertorials are proving to be great means of capturing ad revenue.

#3 Boot-Strapping

The term boot-strapping evolved from the phrase “pulling oneself up by one’s bootstraps” and literally means to start a business using funds from one’s own resources. This could mean starting the business by using your own savings or taking help just from close family and friends. Once the startup starts running with the initial investment, and slowly starts making profit, the revenue is used as further investment.

#4 B2B & B2C

These are two very common terms used in the business world. B2B translates to Business-to-Business and suggests that a business sells products or service to other businesses. For example, if you are into the business of selling machinery to a garment manufacturing store, you run a B2B. On the other hand, in B2C or Business-to-Consumer, products or services are sold to consumers. For example, the clothes made by the garment manufacturer are sold to consumers.

#5 Deck

Also known as Pitch Deck, it is a standard slideshow presentation, normally with just 10 slides. A deck has to be concise and informative so that when an investor sees it, he is convinced that there is merit in your idea and funding you would be rewarding.

#6 ESOP

ESOP or Employee Stock Ownership Plan is an investment plan that encourages employees to acquire stock of the company and earn direct profit. Most often employees do not have to bear any upfront cost to acquire the stocks. They are more or less seen as remuneration given to employees for their work done. It is common practice to keep the allocated funds in an ESOP fund that employees can sell once their leave or retire from the company.

#7 MVP

Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is a product in its early phase of development which is launched with bare minimum features for the public. As more customers start using the product, they also offer feedback on its drawbacks – which is then incorporated by the startup. MVP has become a tried and tested method of launching products as it helps startups invest less on product development while at the same time get direct feedback from customers. MVPs reduce the stress startups have to put on R&D.

#8 Ramen Profitable

When a startup aims to earn just that much profit so that basic living expenses are met, it is called ramen profitable. When startups aim for just ramen profitable, they are looking at just initial profits, without thinking of earning huge profits right at the beginning. It is like giving yourself more time to improve your startup.

#9 ROI

ROI or Return on Investment is what the investor expects as revenue returns from a startup. It is usually expressed as percentage and the standard formula used is ROI = (Net Profit / Cost of Investment) x 100. ROI is generally the investor’s methods of finding out how his/her investments are bearing fruit and whether the money has been efficiently used.

#10 Venture Capitalist

An investor who helps a startup or a small company financially by venture capital funding in the initial phase is called a venture capitalist. Venture capitalists usually help people with big ideas but little or no financial support. They believe in the credibility of the idea and hope that they will earn huge returns on investment once the startup succeeds.

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7 ways to build right team for your startup business

Startup is the new buzzword. Anyone with a unique idea deems it fit for a startup route. But that’s not entirely true. Though you need a very good idea to start a business, you also need to focus on other important things, such as getting financers to fund your idea and a solid team that can give wings to the idea. You will find that attracting financiers may not be that difficult considering the fact that many startup investors are willing to put their money on start-ups. But if you show a lackadaisical attitude in building your team, your startup may fizzle out even before it really started. In this write-up, we will highlight seven things you need to keep in mind while selecting your team for startup.

#1 Common Passion

Ideally a startup should have a small team which acts and works like a close-knit family or lifelong friends. Thus it is important that every member of your team identifies your passion and becomes equally passionate about it. While it is true that every person has a different thought process (which in the long-run can be conducive), there must be something strong that binds every member of the team together.

#2 Go-Getter

A go-getter is an informal term generally used for a person who is aggressively enterprising. If each member of your team is not a doer and doesn’t have an attitude to succeed, you may end up with people who are good but not great! Every member should be able to give his 100% to his area of expertise and make sure that he compensates for the lack of manpower.

#3 Ability to Work as a Team

It is very important for the team members of a startup to be able to work with each other. When we talk about a startup, we usually understand that a small team works together for hours, sometimes days without break. If all the members of the team cannot work together as a team, the going will only get tough.
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#4 The Right Mix

You would need all kinds of people to make an idea work. You cannot be a jack-of-all-trades and yet believe that your startup will work. You need to have the right mix of expertise in your team so that the idea actually sees the light of the day. You would need a person with a strong marketing acumen and can sell your idea to others. You would also need a manager who ensures that everything – from the washroom to the computer – is in working order. A team would also be incomplete without a leader who can motivate others to put their heads together and make the startup work. Finally an industry veteran, who has a deep understanding of how things work, would be a great asset to your team.

#5 No Place for Egos

There is no room for personal egos in a small startup team. This is one thing you must remember when you are building your team. Just as you cannot work with a team where people have strong individual egos, they too will not be able to work if you have a stubborn ego. You may be the person with the idea but your team will have people who are better experienced than you in several areas. Everyone should have the right to voice his/her opinion, should agree to disagree and yet should continue to work as a team.

#6 Be Prepared for Failures

Very few businesses can boast of having a smooth ride all the way to success. Initial failures are a part of the deal and each member of your team must be up for it. When you are selecting your team, you must find out whether they can deal with failures – even big ones – and yet continue to work with you. If any member stumbles at the very beginning and decides to quit, you must be able to motivate and retain the person.

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#7 Long-term Commitment

You should build a team that is committed to the company for a long time. When hiring members for your core team, you come across a person’s CV that reflects that he often changes his job, you should be wary of recruiting the person. The reason is quite simple – such a person would invariably jump the boat whenever a lucrative offer comes his/her way.
At the end of the day, you must have a team that is able to complement each other and cushion weaknesses. Everyone cannot be the decision-maker but everyone should have a democratic right to voice their opinions. You should be working with a team that is able to see and literally live your dream.