Aiming to provide unique business telephony services to the masses and next generation technology at nominal cost, YOCC (Your Own Call Center) was developed. In an interview Keshor Daga, Director, Big V Telecom Private Ltd shares the unique, still popular ventures and its future aspirations.
Abha Garyali (AG): How has been your entrepreneurial journey? Kindly share with us the inception, growth and success of Big V Telecom?
Keshor Daga (KD): It has been an exhilarating entrepreneurial journey. Launching a new concept in India which was already successful in developed country was itself a very big challenge and we took up the challenge whole heartedly. Our concept was so good that it kept me and my team driven to do better.
We have been into telecom domain since two decades and have always believed in being creative and doing things differently, thereby adding value to the existing system. After spending a huge amount and time on R&D in this domain, Big V Telecom was incepted in 2009. Since then the concept has been successful in generating good revenue for us. It is a good feeling when people approach us showing their willingness and eagerness to take up our franchise and furthermost our existing franchisees are successfully generating good revenues. Success is the food for every entrepreneur and it is a very joyous feeling to share our success.
AG: The telecom concept is quite novel. How did you get the idea? When and what inspired you to take the franchise route for its expansion?
KD: Before we launched YOCCTM (Your Own Call Centre), call centres were an expensive affair and were only meant for big players and not for SMEs. Cloud technology has however, enabled us to provide state of the art solutions for various SMEs / Individuals. The idea was generated with our aim to cater unique business telephony services to the masses and provide this next generation technology at nominal cost. Our commitment to improve the standards of existing telecom business services led to the development of YOCCTM (Your Own Call Center). It was not an overnight decision to franchise our business. It was our constant zeal to make it a successful pan India venture letting our franchises to generate good business through it.
We needed penetration in local market / SME of India for which we needed to expand our business on large scale. We personally feel that to make a brand available on a mass scale that too speedily, franchise route is the best possible option and hence we resorted to franchise. We strongly believe that franchisees success is our success.
AG: What is the USP of Big V Telecom? What all services are offered?
KD: The main USP of Big V Telecom is: any sector, any pocket size, no infrastructure or investment required, recurring business with no technical qualification required. It also provides an opportunity to encash your existing contacts.
AG: Do you face any competition from other organised brands? What strategies have you developed to face this competition?
KD: We are the front runners and leaders in this sector. There is no opposition as such. Unlike others who are doing things in nicks and pieces, we have launched a concept on a mammoth scale. Strategies related to technological advancement is given in the hands of our cerebral R&D team who constantly develop new and innovative services. This is the reason why we are ahead of the market.
AG: How many franchise centres have you opened till now? What target have you set for the end of year?
KD: We have opened 15 franchise centres and master franchise units across India till date and by the end of this year we plan to come up with 100 more.
AG: What are your future plans in terms of expansion through franchising? Where do you see the company after five years?
KD: We are eyeing the entire Indian market to be penetrated through franchising which includes Tier I, Tier II and Tier III cities especially Tier II cities because the scope of expansion is big there. After five years we look forward to establish a huge network of franchisees in each and every part of the nation, with thousands of clients diversified to different sectors. We also look forward to expand our horizon overseas also.
AG: What according to you is the scope for aspiring franchisees in this business? Is the future bright in the years to come?
KD: Yes, the future is definitely bright for our franchises as there is big turnover as well as margins in this business. This is the era of communication and media. Whoever is in this field is going to flourish. With our organised system and proven business model the process of revenue generation becomes easier.
There are 30 million SMEs in India and the crisp is that the market is still untapped. It is a non-exhausting resource of revenues. Our solutions are readily accepted in the market. It is a part of our observation that majority of our franchisee’s business gets generated via mouth publicity making it even easier for our franchise to achieve his ROI speedily.
AG: What are the qualities and the criterion for the selection of your prospective franchisees? How much investment is required by them?
KD: We are very selective in our approach towards selection of an appropriate franchisee. We look for the strapping zeal and the passion in our franchisee to take this concept to new heights. The franchisees need not have a technical background but should be capable of performing. An aspirant who has basic logic to understand business can effectively and successfully run this business.
Furthermore, if we talk about investment, a bare minimal set up cost of Rs 5-15 lakh is required.
