Mayank Sharma2016-12-02T18:00:41+00:00http://mayanks.meMayank Sharmamayanks@gmail.comHappy Birthday Ola2012-12-03T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/happy-birthday-ola
<p>The other day I wrote a blog post about how <a href="http://mayanks.me/go-olacabs-go/">Olacabs is going about ensuring a good customer service</a>. Little did I know how well Olacabs would respond to that simple gesture of sharing my insights.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.olacabs.com">Olacabs</a> turns 2 years old today. And they decided to celebrate it a little differently. They chose about 5 customers each from Delhi/Bangalore/Mumbai who have shown some love to them in the last couple of months, Personally visited their home, delivered a fine custom made OlaCake and brought a nice smile to us and our families. My daughter in particular had a fab time cutting and finishing the cake right then and there.</p>
<div class="image"><img src="/images/ola-cake.jpg" /></div>
<p>You can look at their <a href="https://twitter.com/i/#!/Olacabs/media/">twitter timeline</a> to see the others who got the surprise treatment.</p>
<p>As I wrote earlier, Customer Service is something that Olacabs is relentlessly focusing on as one of their key differentiators. This small gesture of sharing happiness with their customers will definitely go a long way in building trust with their customer. Word of mouth marketing, Brand loyalty and success would soon follow.</p>
<p>Olacabs in my opinion is scripting an amazing startup story which should serve as a case study to many aspiring entrepreneurs. Employing 400 people, operating in 3 prominent metros, and running about 2k (my guess) taxis. All that in just a matter of 2 years.</p>
<p>Here’s a toast to Olacabs on their second birthday and wishing them success in their quest to be the most amazing customer friendly company from India, ala Zappos. Cheers!!</p>
Go OlaCabs! Go2012-10-28T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/go-ola-go
<p>So finally I booked a <a href="http://www.olacabs.com/">Ola cab</a> in Delhi. Well technically I booked it on my mobile (mobile internet, they don’t have a Windows app) while sitting in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orchha">Orcha</a>. A small town close to another small city Jhansi. The booking was for the next day 4:30 AM for my family to be picked up from railway station to airport. Last time the Taxi I picked up outside the station fleeced me by charging 500/-. This time I was going to be well prepared.</p>
<p>Obviously the technology that OlaCabs has developed/used for a good customer experience is quite good. It just works and is quite seamless and is very transparent. There is a sense of simplicity when you see things just happen as and when they should after you book the cab. But what really impressed me was a little chat I had with the driver. It showed how the culture of customer satisfaction was being drilled down to the Taxi drivers who infact are the face of the company. And they are the one who give you an impression of the company.</p>
<p>Here’s a brief summary of the chat I had with the driver.</p>
<ul>
<li>The work is good sir. Infact at times it is quite demanding. But that pays us well also, so not complaining.</li>
<li>Sir, there is only one rule in our company. <strong>There are no rules</strong>. We are supposed to do anything and everything to make sure that the customers are satisfied. If a customer is unhappy and we get reported, we get suspended for 15 days. That’s a lot for us to lose. Even in our deepest sleep, a call from a customer just wakes us up completely.</li>
<li>Customers are quite happy. After they use Ola cabs once they keep on using it regularly and often recommend us to their friends.</li>
<li>I work the night shift. 8PM to 8AM. And there are customers all through the night. The company must be doing quite well.</li>
<li>They (Ola cabs) have chosen the drivers for the night shift quite carefully. They ensure that the driver is very familiar with the city and can reach even a remotest location with just the address.</li>
<li>They have chosen to run only diesel cars. No CNG. Especially during the rains a CNG car breaks down quite often and customers are often stranded in a CNG Taxi. But not with our Taxi.</li>
<li>Our Taxi’s are periodically called for inspection and they service the car quite frequently.</li>
<li>Bhavish sir is an amazing person. He must be just 27 or 28 and he is already running a business worth crores. How is that possible?</li>
</ul>
<p>While talking to the driver the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Delivering-Happiness-Profits-Passion-Purpose/dp/1610660242">story of Zappos</a> kept coming to my mind. I seriously think OlaCabs is setting the bar for customer satisfaction as high as Zappos did, and is definitely succeeding so far. Thrilled by this experience I immediately booked the Cab for my pick up at Bangalore airport as well.</p>
<p>In Delhi I paid Rs. 300/- instead of the 500/- I paid last time. And in Bangalore I paid Rs. 500/- instead of Rs. 880/- (actual bill value) because of an introductory offer they are running here. So am a super happy OlaCabs customer now :-)</p>
Amagi Here I Come2012-10-07T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/amagi-here-i-come
<p>I join <a href="http://amagi.com">Amagi</a> today. Amagi is a wonderful startup (a second one) by Baskar, Vidhya and Kas. The trio had earlier successfully sold their first startup Impulsesoft to SiRF. I was part of their first startup.</p>
<p>I am quite excited to join my old friends. The company itself is rocking and making a lot of good noise in the startup space. It is doing good business in Indian market and is poised to start offering in International markets.</p>
<p>My job here will be to create CloudPort product. Using CloudPort, Broadcasters will be able to save on the expensive transmission cost over the satellite by doing it over the cloud.</p>
<p>Here’s to an exciting journey with Amagi. Cheers!!</p>
Leaving ONZE2012-09-30T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/leaving-onze
<p>Leaving a company is never easy. Particulary when you have nurtured it with your blood and sweat. But sometimes, Time just runs out. Nirvana seems just around the corner, but you realize that personally you cannot survive til then. And so with a heavy heart you call it quits.</p>
<p>I leave <a href="http://onze.in">ONZE</a> today, but will never leave the amazing Sud, Ever optimist Rahul and other folks at ONZE.</p>
<div class="image"><img src="/images/onze-team.jpg" /></div>
Lokasi Presentation @ Cartonama2012-09-28T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/lokasi-presentation-at-cartonama
<p>Location is something I am quite passionate about. I have worked for sometime at a GPS semiconductor company and for 2 years I worked at <a href="http://onze.in">ONZE</a> developing and running a SMS direction service. This is the time when we came up with <a href="http://lokasi.latlong.in">Lokasi</a>. A unique, India specefic way of representing location that is understood by everyone.</p>
<p><a href="http://cartonama.com/2012/">Cartonama</a> provided me an opportunity to showcase Lokasi. This was also my second opportunity at public speaking. It apparently went quite well.</p>
<script async="" class="speakerdeck-embed" data-id="505eaff8714d9400020373d7" data-ratio="1.33507170795306" src="//speakerdeck.com/assets/embed.js"></script>
<p>Theme of the presentation is inspired by an <a href="http://zachholman.com/posts/slide-design-for-developers/">amazing blog post</a> by <a href="http://twitter.com/holman">@holman</a>.</p>
Why Meditation?2012-04-06T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/why-meditation
<p>Is meditation only for elderly folks? Is it only for religiously or spiritually inclined folks? Is it so esoteric that you and I cannot do it?</p>
<p>Very simply put, Meditation is an exercise that you undertake to keep your mind fit and relaxed. The way you go to Gym or that early morning walk to keep your body healthy. Mediation keeps your Mind healthy.</p>
<p>Mind is a very complex entity. If your body gets physically strained, you know you need to take rest and you promptly do. Your mind on the other hand is getting strained every single waking moment and yet it neither gets any rest nor the exercise to keep it healthy. You disagree? Ok what are you thinking about right now? about a minute ago? an hour ago? Try to observe the thought that you are having right now and see how quickly it leads to another and yet another one ad infinitum until someone calls your name. Your mind processes thousands of thoughts every single day. And that strains your mind.</p>
<p>Meditation helps you get rid of those continuous thoughts that you are processing to a point where not a single thought runs through your mind. That is an ultimate state of relaxation your mind can experience. You are aware of your surrounding and can react to an external stimulus if you chose to, but your mind is completely free from any thoughts. It is blissful.</p>
<p>For a healthy life, Keep your body healthy and give equal importance to your mind as well. That is Art of Living.</p>
ONZE in Times of India2012-03-18T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/onze-in-times-of-india
<p>Helping you find your way through sms - Onze featured in today's Times of India.</p>
<p></p>
<div class="image"><img src="/images/ONZE.jpg" alt="ONZE in Times of India" /></div>
Pepperfry Fiasco2012-03-05T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/pepperfry-fiasco
<p>Earlier this year a brand <a href="http://www.pluggd.in/pepperfry-funding-297/">new ecommerce store</a> made splashing headlines fresh with a big funding and claiming<a href="http://www.pluggd.in/pepperfry-review-297/"> unimaginable signups</a>. Soon people started <a href="http://therodinhoods.com/forum/topics/how-to-make-15-crores-in-1-day-from-from-an-e-commerce-site">dishing out this venture</a> with it's unscalable tactic of acquiring customers. This business was pepperfry. Last week after getting spammed every week with crazy discounts I decided to test how much water it could hold.</p>
<p>I had a fresh newsletter from Pepperfry offering me a Rs. 501/- Discount on anything purchased above Rs. 1000/-. Fare enough if you are willing to pass on some hard earned (or rather a wind fall) money of yours my way, you cannot blame me for taking the bait. So promptly I order a 1200/- Jewelry for my wife and mentioned the coupon code at the time of checkout. So finally a 2000/- something stuff with 50% discount and a Rs. 500/- coupon costed me approx Rs. 600/-. 5 Days to deliver is what the checkout page said.</p>
<p>Yes Flipkart has spolied me with a 24 hour delivery but what the hell, I was getting a Rs. 2000/- stuff for Rs. 600/-. The least I could do was wait. Right? So I waited. 5 days over and not news. 7 days over and now I am feeling a little jittery. Was there something in fine print which I missed which would allow them to have my hard earned money the easy way rather than the other way around?</p>
<p>I fire-up couple of emails, and login couple of support request on their website. 10 days later I see my money credited back to my account (thank god), My order status on the order page shows "Canceled", and all my support tickets closed with no explanation.</p>
<p>Now my question to Pepperfry. Seriously guys what the hell are you upto? Are you just trying to acquire more signups by promising ridiculous coupons and then not delivering stuff? Do you expect any repeat purchase to happen on your site with this kind of behavior? Aren't you setting a wrong precedent and reducing the trust that people are starting to build up about buying stuff online?</p>
<p>Anyone else had a similar experience with Pepperfry?</p>
Lets talk about Inhibition2012-03-01T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/lets-talk-about-inhibition
<p>When you were in school, you knew each and every person in your class. Did some teacher take the initiative of introducing you all? When you were in your college or university, How many of your batchmates did you actually know? And then you joined a job and knew how many people? </p>
<p>Today when you are working how many friends do you think you have? Not the facebook one. They won't turn up when you die. Go back to your college time and try remembering how many friends did you have then? And now go back to your school. How many friends did you have?</p>
<p>As you grew older your number of friends started reducing. Why? You got busier? A lot of responsibility started coming your way? You became too important?</p>
<p>Back in the days of school there was no <i>inhibition</i>. You could walk up to any person and start a conversation. You did not need someone to introduce you to some other person. As we grew older we started becoming more and more conscious about ourselves and what others would think about us. </p>
<p>There is a universal connection between each and every living human being. I don't know what that connection is, but the energy flows from one person to the other through this connection. Lesser the number of friends you have, lesser is the energy you will get from this common pool. This energy is directly proportionate to your happiness. The only way out of this vicious cycle is to get rid of your inhibition. It's not because you are too busy that you are not able to have more friends today. You have a lot more <i>inhibition</i>.</p>
<p>Without <i>Inhibition, </i>in your childhood you could go to anyone and talk. You can talk your heart out to someone without thinking what they will think about you. That helped you get better at what you wanted to get better at. There was no negative feeling about anyone. And there was no such thing called <i>Stress. </i>Whereas today we resist talking to anyone about your problems. Or about the problem you are having with them. End result, you keep all those negative thoughts within yourself and succumb to it. This then gives rise to the <i>Stress </i>that you may be encountering.</p>
<p>Facebook and other <i>Social Communities </i>let's you keep the <i>inhibition </i>and yet claim that you have more friends. Reality is far from that. So quit being social on Facebook and start becoming social offline. Reclaim your child hood innocence and get rid of your inhibitions. Not just with respect to making friends and talking to them, but in general. Whenever you feel there is <i>inhibition </i>stopping your from doing certain thing. <i>GET RID OF IT.</i></p>
<p><i>That is, if you want happiness.</i></p>
<p><b>Thought Credits : </b>Sri Vinod MenonJi from DSN course at Art of Living Ashram.</p>
Strong vs Weak Person2012-02-28T00:00:00+00:00http://mayanks.me/strong-vs-weak-person
<p>Are you a strong person or a weak person? Strength as in mental strength. A person with strong mental strength is bound to do things which may qualify as <em>success, happiness </em>and<em> contentment.</em></p>
<p>You are driving on a highway and you see two sign boards. One says <em>This way </em>the other says <em>That way</em>. Which one do you choose? This way. Why? because it is <em>easier</em>. because it is <em>convenient</em>. because I <em>feel</em> like taking it.<em> That way</em><strong style="font-style: italic;"> </strong> by the way is opposite of what I said about This way.</p>
<p>You set an Alarm for 5 AM. Alarm rings, you wake up. You <em>feel</em> like sleeping for 5 more minutes. What do you do? Chose the <em>This way</em> and sleep for 5 minutes (maybe more). You have a meeting at 5PM and at 4:55 PM India is playing the last over of the match and you don’t want to miss it. What do you do? Chose the <em>This way.</em></p>
<p>You are presented with choices every single day, multiple times a day. Every time you chose <em>This way </em>over <em>That way </em>you get into the habit of choosing <em>This way</em>. This habit is what makes you a weak person.</p>
<p>That way on the other hand is the path of <em>commitment, discipline</em> and <em>responsibility</em>. Indeed it is hard to take <em>That </em>way<em>. </em>But the habit of choosing <em>That way </em>every time you are presented with the choices is what makes you a strong person.</p>
<p>Do you have problems with commitment? Do you want to be a strong person and don’t know where to start? It’s very simple. Start choosing <em>That way </em>whenever you are presented with choices, and the habit of choosing <em>That way </em>over <em>This way</em> will eventually make you a strong person.</p>
<div>By the way, only strong person can be entrepreneurs :-)
<strong>Credits:</strong> Above thoughts are from my new found Guru Vinod Menon Ji. He teaches a course called Divya Samaj Nirman at Art of Living.
</div>