AirTel Hello Tunes for Free – last day, Hurry

Yes it is true, Airtel is offering Hello tunes for free and the last day is 22nd of August 2008.

Here is the msg, please read it carefully

Set Kangal Irandal(Subramaniyapuram) as your HelloTune for FREE.Rental of Rs15 for 1st 3 Mths & Rs30 from 4thMth onwards. SMS HTNEW to 700.Offer till 22-AUG-08!

I am sure many of you would have received similar msg from Airtel, may be the song are regional ones.

I am happy that Airtel has partially implemented my idea of Hello Tunes, here is the link to the post.

By the way I like the up selling ideas of Airtel, If you use pre – paid card you will have an Idea of what I am referring to.
Enjoy.

Technorati Tags: up-selling, prepaid, Airtel, Chennai, India, Hello Tunes, Free, Offer, Idea

Do Freebies players actually worry about the market?

The answer is simply No.

Freebies players actually don’t worry about the market value, they just want their share.

This brings to an interesting note.

A store like Walmart or Saravana Stores (Chennai, India) wants to acquire a million copies of a product and shares it willingness with its distributors and their offering price being half the selling price, and their selling price to consumers being 40 percent off on the product. Remember the distributor gets huge monitory benefit from this deal.

If you being the distributor will you sell the product to them?

If you say YES, you end up as slave to Walmart or Saravana stores, as consumers are going to flood their stores and killing the entire availability of that product in small stores. You being a distributor, the willingness to buy the product from you by small vendors is going to be nil.

If you say NO, what will be your conditions?
The condition has to be. Walmart/ Saravana Stores can sell the same product at 10-20% less than the MRP (maximum retail price) and if they want they can offer any freebies as their wish to promote sales.

In that way the value of the product is still not lost. If you remember the popular tamil magazine Kunkumam their intial offer was with lots of other products as freebies and still maintaining the MRP.

Technorati Tags: sales, distributor, small stores, marketing, freebies, free, chennai, India

How Commercial Software, can fight against the Free Softwares?

Before you jumping in to making of a software you looked in to the market and realized there is enough market share. Now you made it, wanted to test them. You made it free as a beta Phase, you now started making commercial version of the same and by retaining the free version with limited features for people to try.

Guess what? A new player comes and provides a me too version of the software for free, only revenue channel being advertisement inside the product.

How do you fight the free version?

Now let us look at same problem solved by the big software companies, I am just taking 2 examples.

1. Microsoft Windows VS Linux
2. Camtasia snagit VS Firefox addons Screen Grab VS WINK (Free)

Microsoft Windows – People continue to make fun of the “Blue screen of Death” in Windows, but funny bone people continue to run their machines with the same Microsoft Windows OS at least the majority of them.

When the threat came from Linux for Windows, I remember every media said that it was death of Windows and even now people say that web will be the new OS, that is still speculative.

What did Microsoft Windows do?
If I am not wrong, they came with lot of advertisements to educate users about the benefits of using Windows. They came with Windows XP SP1, SP2 & SP3 and fixed as much as they could. They executed it well.

I believe the marketing spend on Microsoft XP could have been almost or significantly nil when XP sales was at its peak. Word of mouth still holds good in business. Techies still continue to say XP is stable compared to Vista and there is no major innovation in Vista, that people have upgrade to Vista.

To say, we are still dependent on Microsoft for most of our office productivity. Aren’t we?

The second story is the most significant one. Their product is easy to create and it requires less effort and they still continue to be leaders in their USP. I am taking about TechSmith the makers of Camtasia Snagit.

They did face the similar issue of free software from the open source community.

The popularity of Firefox add ons created a market slow down for Camtasia Snagit and on top of that was the Freeware software called WINK, it did almost the same functionality of Snagit and it was free and forums was available for support.

How did TechSmith Camtasia Snagit fight?
Camtasia Snagit 7.2.5 the earlier commercial version of the software was given free.

Do you want to know why they made it free?
The story goes like this in the Indian shop vendors or Medical Shops, If you ask for a medicine and if it is currently out of stock, they will send one of their members to collect the same medicine from the medical store just opposite their store or even few streets away to procure the same and give it to their customers. It is that the customer gets a feeling that any medicine he needs can be obtained. And that he will come back to the same medical store if he needed one.

TechSmith didn’t want end users to try free software instead allowed users to try the previous commercial version for free.

I use Camtasia Snagit free edition as I experience the reliable, proven and easy to use screen capturing/recording software. BTW, I have already tried the software and its features, and even know each and every interface. It is just that it is easy to use, Comfortable. The only feeling being left out, that I am unable to use the advanced features, which are available in the current commercial version.

For the extra mileage they have contributed few projects called Jing Project and ScreenCast
That takes care of community etc etc

Final Notes: Winning over Free is difficult, but not impossible. If you believe in Free, you can’t win over Free. Undo the learning and fight against Free. If you wish to.

Technorati Tags: software, free, commercial, fight, microsoft, Linux, techsmith, camtasia, Snagit, Jing, Screencast, story, advertisement, revenue, marketshare

College Students, Bee a smart Lender – use LendBee

Photo Courtesy: Rosie Hardy

Imagine countless books for reference on top of your semester books, Carrying them, taking care of them is a much pain. Here is a cool solution which will make you feel better

Lendbee is a system which allows you to share books, CD, DVD, Movies, Magazines, Ebooks and those online manuals which you can actually share with a closed group of friends and college juniors. The best part is no ones else knows what materials you share except the ones on your group.

Bee a smart Lender and let some one take care of your materials and how to place them in their apartments, when you need them back, the lendbee allows you to track the materials on who currently has them.

So check the lendbee today, remember knowledge is power, so can even expect your friends to share materials which you can get them for free.

Technorati Tags: free, books, CD, DVD, Movies, Magazines, Ebooks, lendbee, social networking

Mahindra Renault Logan free service – unveiled

My First Mahindra Renault Logan 1.4 GLX service explained and here is the userexperience. Comparison with Maruti Service explained

First things first: I had a loyal Maruti 800 for 4 long years 2003-2007 untill I replaced it with a Mahindra Renault Logan 1.4 GLX 2007.

My first experience with GMS motors | Sahil motors in terms of service.
I had been to the service station personally to drop my Mahindra Renault Logan last Friday the 21st of December 2007, so a gentleman supervisor assisted me, early morning at 9:10 A.M, took careful notes.

My requests were:

1. Front left door rattling noise
2. Remove the plastic covers for the back seats
3. Replace new headlamps black dot stickers
4. Remove the reverse horn and not the reverse horn which comes with my remote lock.
5. Scratch on the left side doors (check and give me the quote)

Apart from the above list, His suggestions were:

1. Anti corrosion coating under the car body ( I stopped him. When he suggested that, as I know that the rubber coating is not gonna do anything good for the car)
2. Fully powder coating of the body of car with a scratch resistant formula (comes with a 3 year warranty) cost a mere 3700 and odd Rupees. Item 5 of the above wish list is covered.
3. Labour charge of 150 Rupees + tax for just removing the reverse horn. That would be Item no 4 of my wish list.

As far I know there is no oil change in this service and I was not charged for that.
What things got fixed and what not?

1. Front door rattling noise not fixed, and the safety latch of the left door got buried. Any ways that safety latch was not of any use, you could still open the door with the safety latch down.
2. Our supervisor was holistic, he felt that it was better if I not remove the back seat covers for quiet some time as it is still a new car, his explanations went more like “have it for some more months, kids would tear for you”. What a shame? tell me either you forgot it or your technicians were lazy enough to unlock the rear seats to remove the plastic cover.
3. One thing rightly done was to replace the black dots on my headlamps
4. The second thing, reverse horn removed and placed in the boot.
5. Before doing the scratch painting fix. It was supposed to be tested, after the testing was done, the call said the scratch can fixed. Meanwhile a friend suggested with sticker which would work out cheaper. So I asked them not to fix the scratch.

There happened one evil incident on my Mahindra Renault Logan, While We returned home from shopping the same after service. My wife and son at the back seats. My right side back door could not be opened from inside. So what did happen? know it right here.

Now let us look in to the comparison of Mahindra Renault Logan and Maruti Service centers

My experience at Maruti service center
A profile or service history of my Maruti 800 was already available with the service advisor
A job sheet, which will note the requirements for the service to be done for my car

This job sheet comprises of

1. history of previously done KMS
2. history of parts changed previously
3. Things to do list
4. Dents and body parts marked when I leave my car for service ( a diagram of car top view and side view detailed diagram to mark the scratches and dents)
5. Accessories contained in my car, which include how many floor mats, Air refresher, dolls, body cover (the plastic one) and what ever minute details which belong to the owner.
6. Apart from that the costing proposal, date and time of delivery
7. after delivery a customer feedback form to be posted after driving the car (postage will be paid by the addressee)

Now on the Mahindra Renault Logan service center
Job sheet contains

1. to do list of service
2. date and time of delivery
3. ofcourse the customer feedback form before even you pay the service bills and before even you touch the car.
4. once nice badge which is attached to the mirror which talks about the names service adviser, technician and the quality inspector. Apart from that I have the mobile number.

At the time of delivery, My experience with the Maruti’s was best when compared with the Mahindra’s.

The first free service was charged 75 Rupees for replacement of odd stuffs + labour charges + tax. Did I say free service.

Some more post which are in continuation with Mahindra Renault Logan

1. Why Mahindra Logan, Renault Logan, Dacia Logan?
2. Mahindra Logan – Usability Explored
3. Is your Mahindra Logan in safe hands – After sales, What service
4. Mahindra Logan – Look out for the new version
5. Mahindra Renault Logan free service – unveiled
6. The Devil in my Mahindra Renault Logan
7. Tested on animals – Mahindra Renault Logan

Technorati Tags: Renault, Logan, Mahindra Renault Logan, Review, safety, kids, usability, car, chennai, dealer, howto, best, petrol, diesel, fear, marketing, sales, savings, automobiles

Creative Kiddo Contest – Win POGO TV MAD kits

Creative Kiddo brings contest in association with POGO TV fan club.
Win MAD kits by entering the contest. check the contest details here

FusionCharts Free V2 – Free Flash Charts

Good news from IndSoft Global for Software/ Web developers. Now IndSoft Global is offering its Fusion charts V2 for Free.

Terms of use:

InfoSoft Global grants you a nonexclusive right to use FusionCharts Free subject to the following terms and conditions:

• FusionCharts Free can be used for free if you are a individual/research/commercial user.
• FusionCharts Free can be distributed for free with your free or commercial softwares, irrespective of whether they’re open source or closed source.
• You must not sell FusionCharts Free as a component in itself. However, your commercial product can embed FusionCharts Free.
• You must not represent in any way that you’re the author of FusionCharts Free.

That’s right it is free and the best part is the license, check the full terms of use right here.

Now your websites and products could offer RIA experience with interactive & meaningful flash charts.

You may want to know why the software is free and the comparison between the new Fusion Charts V3 and V2, find the info right here

Start downloading the Free Fusion charts V2 software right here

Like this link, care to share it with fellow developers.

Convert Home made videos to DivX Pro holiday format. Free, limited time offer

Good news for the home video lovers, DivX pro is currently  available for free.

Yeah Free for a limited time only so don’t wait. here is the link to the DivX pro holiday download page

And thanks to Tal Siach for sharing the resource.

Professional screen capture tool snagit – Full Licensed Version, Now for free!!!

Camtasia is giving out its old version of it screen capture tool snagit, so that customers could try and play with the software. The marketing part comes here, The latest version of camtasia screen capture tool snagit can be upgraded at half the price.

Ok here are the details of the screen capture tool on how to download

ftp://ftp.techsmith.com/pub/products/snagit/725/SnagIt.exe [English]
ftp://ftp.techsmith.com/pub/products/snagit/725/snagitde.exe [German]
ftp://ftp.techsmith.com/pub/products/snagit/725/snagitfr.exe [French]

and here is the link where you can obtain the free license 

I guess Camtasia want to kill its competition from the market.

courtesy: digital inspiration thanks to  amit.