No, I don’t get a kick out of using the revered Captain’s expletives. And this article is not about the Captain either. This is about how to increase sales revenues if you are a mobile service operator. It would certainly not make a good title to the blog!
Nevertheless I have come up with a brilliant set of strategies to increase revenues of a mobile service operator. So if you are one, keep reading. If not, keep reading, just in case you become one in the future.
1. Increase call-drop rates. Thus, say, I intended to speak to someone for 5 minutes. Assume the rates are 1 Re per minute. If there are no call drops, then the billed amount is Rs. 5. If there is one drop, and there are 2 calls of 2 minutes 30 seconds each, then the billed amount is Rs. 6. Simple yet brilliant.
2. Single-way calls. Introduce calls in which only one way communication happens. This would mean the caller would have to reconnect. But then a computer can connect the caller through a 2-way call after a preset number of attempts.
3. Loop-back call-centers. Have automated call-centers which loops you back to the original menu ("Welcome to the helpline...") after a set of long painful menu choices and cumbersome entries. Save on your call-center wage bill.
4. A variation of this strategy would be to preset the choice of help-line language to something that the customer is not familiar with. Thus a Punjabi user could have a Tamil help-line.
5. False billing. Slip in a few charges here and there. Something as innocuous as a few ring-tone downloads or special sms-es will almost always be overlooked.
6. Sell the phone numbers of customers to banks selling credit cards. Boy they would lap it up.
7. Complicate the process for the customer. For example, to have roaming deactivated ask the customer to go to the sales office in Timbuktu and submit a hand written application to the tribal chieftain.
8. Decrease connection quality. The caller therefore, will have to repeat what he is saying, increasing call times.
Now I only need to wait for some mobile operator to read my blog. I can sell this to him and make a bunch out of it.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Blistering Barnacles!
"Billions of Bilious Blue Blistering Barnacles" is my favourite quote !
It is the simplicity of the character of Captain Haddock that has immense appeal for me. He enjoys the small things in life. He does what he loves to do. Has a strong sense of duty towards his friends. He looks at the world through the eyes of a child. It is this innocence that we are missing in our lives. This is what complicates things for us, to a large extent unnecessarily. For me that very precisely sums up my attitude towards life also.
Keep things simple, straight and effective. Of course the two of us share a liking for a certain beverage also. :)
It is the simplicity of the character of Captain Haddock that has immense appeal for me. He enjoys the small things in life. He does what he loves to do. Has a strong sense of duty towards his friends. He looks at the world through the eyes of a child. It is this innocence that we are missing in our lives. This is what complicates things for us, to a large extent unnecessarily. For me that very precisely sums up my attitude towards life also.
Keep things simple, straight and effective. Of course the two of us share a liking for a certain beverage also. :)
Am back back back!!!
Well well well. This is my first post after a long long long time. (3 is my lucky number!) Glad to be back even though no one reads my posts.
I used to have another blog. But somehow I have chosen to forget the password for that hapless account. And now it is a lonely, unattended, orphaned blog out there, roaming the dangerous by-lanes of the internet.
It would not have happened if I had migrated away from Yahoo at the opportune moment, like every other discerning internet-surfer (What else would you call them?). Unfortunately I had set my email in the blogger account to an old Yahoo mail account. And I do use this id pretty often. But Yahoo has chosen to banish this mail-id from the land of the internet. Hence I can’t log in to my account now and check my new blogger password. Sad but true. Google I am coming!!
This is the sad story of how a multinational internet corporation orphaned a little, unassuming, innocent, doe-eyed (Think Pussy Cat in Shrek 2) little blog of mine to starve and roam the streets of internet.
I used to have another blog. But somehow I have chosen to forget the password for that hapless account. And now it is a lonely, unattended, orphaned blog out there, roaming the dangerous by-lanes of the internet.
It would not have happened if I had migrated away from Yahoo at the opportune moment, like every other discerning internet-surfer (What else would you call them?). Unfortunately I had set my email in the blogger account to an old Yahoo mail account. And I do use this id pretty often. But Yahoo has chosen to banish this mail-id from the land of the internet. Hence I can’t log in to my account now and check my new blogger password. Sad but true. Google I am coming!!
This is the sad story of how a multinational internet corporation orphaned a little, unassuming, innocent, doe-eyed (Think Pussy Cat in Shrek 2) little blog of mine to starve and roam the streets of internet.
Need for need for speed
The latest craze on the campus is need for speed 5. A game that allows upto 8 racers to race on a LAN and pit their skills against each other. As usual it has more appeal than a class discussing the nuances of the financial instruments. A few tips for new racers. This is a highly specialised area and this post is not for people who are blissfully unaware of this piece of software.
1. Familiarise yourself with the ins and outs of a track. Common mistakes that can occur. Keep special track of the turns that lead to overturning. :)
2. Try to keep to the centre of the track and exercise restraint when overtaking at the corners.
3. Dont blindly follow the guy in front. More often than not he makes a mistake and you follow in his step.
4. Do not accelerate through the turns, unless the turns have a large turning radius or have a banking. If damage is on, then this could lead to a damaged car. Problems are bound to follow.
5. Do not look at the rear view mirror or the standings regularly. At least not until you have really mastered the game.
6. If you have an accident, the sooner you restart the better. Keep the finger on the accelerator for an instant start.
7. For very sharp turns use the handbrake (space bar). However this requires a lot of practice and decreases the speed quite a lot. Chances are there that the car will swing out control. Use of the normal brake is advised for slightly difficult turns.
8. Try and have a race with the minimum number of restarts, that will automatically lead to a good position. Most people, even the winner will make at least one mistake.
There could be a lot more tips. Just a few for the rank amateurs. Needless to say, even I am learning the tricks of the trade.
1. Familiarise yourself with the ins and outs of a track. Common mistakes that can occur. Keep special track of the turns that lead to overturning. :)
2. Try to keep to the centre of the track and exercise restraint when overtaking at the corners.
3. Dont blindly follow the guy in front. More often than not he makes a mistake and you follow in his step.
4. Do not accelerate through the turns, unless the turns have a large turning radius or have a banking. If damage is on, then this could lead to a damaged car. Problems are bound to follow.
5. Do not look at the rear view mirror or the standings regularly. At least not until you have really mastered the game.
6. If you have an accident, the sooner you restart the better. Keep the finger on the accelerator for an instant start.
7. For very sharp turns use the handbrake (space bar). However this requires a lot of practice and decreases the speed quite a lot. Chances are there that the car will swing out control. Use of the normal brake is advised for slightly difficult turns.
8. Try and have a race with the minimum number of restarts, that will automatically lead to a good position. Most people, even the winner will make at least one mistake.
There could be a lot more tips. Just a few for the rank amateurs. Needless to say, even I am learning the tricks of the trade.
Out of breath in college!
It is 4 o'clock in the morning, speakers are blasting away lounge music, have 3 more chapters to finish before tomorrow's test. Chances look bleak. And yet I am up writing my blog.
The seniors are in the proess of leaving the campus after finishing their course. Thats it, they are done. They have completed their MBA. Done with it. Standing here it still feels like there are a million miles to go before I finish my MBA. Looks like it has only just begun. I am reliving an old feeling. As a young lad, I used to take swimming lessons. And when I was asked to try and swim the length of the pool, more often than not I would get out of breath in the middle. The edge of the pool would seem a kilometer away. And soon enough the body would give up and I would sink to the depths. Survival Instincts would kick in after swallowing a mouthful of chlorine water. Gasping and out of breath, I would make a beeline for the nearest edge. And then hold on for dear life. Confidence busted, it would take almost 5 minutes for me to garner enough courage to restart my attempt.
I can easily draw a parallel here. Except that both the final destination and the easy way out look like a distant target. Hope to get to end of this term without running out of breath. Hope to. I maybe already out of breath. It is going to be a struggle. Hoping those survival instincts kick in and I am rescued by a last burst of adrenalin.
Sometimes, I wonder what it would take to get into a job like the one Ian Wright has. He is the traveller photograher of "Lonely Planet", a travel show aired on discovery channel. I rather juggle a camera and visit the most exotic places rather than work on a PC for a living. But looks like I am destined for the later. Maybe someday I will apply to Discovery Channel for a job. As of now, they dont come to the campus for placements. A little piece of fantasy?
The seniors are in the proess of leaving the campus after finishing their course. Thats it, they are done. They have completed their MBA. Done with it. Standing here it still feels like there are a million miles to go before I finish my MBA. Looks like it has only just begun. I am reliving an old feeling. As a young lad, I used to take swimming lessons. And when I was asked to try and swim the length of the pool, more often than not I would get out of breath in the middle. The edge of the pool would seem a kilometer away. And soon enough the body would give up and I would sink to the depths. Survival Instincts would kick in after swallowing a mouthful of chlorine water. Gasping and out of breath, I would make a beeline for the nearest edge. And then hold on for dear life. Confidence busted, it would take almost 5 minutes for me to garner enough courage to restart my attempt.
I can easily draw a parallel here. Except that both the final destination and the easy way out look like a distant target. Hope to get to end of this term without running out of breath. Hope to. I maybe already out of breath. It is going to be a struggle. Hoping those survival instincts kick in and I am rescued by a last burst of adrenalin.
Sometimes, I wonder what it would take to get into a job like the one Ian Wright has. He is the traveller photograher of "Lonely Planet", a travel show aired on discovery channel. I rather juggle a camera and visit the most exotic places rather than work on a PC for a living. But looks like I am destined for the later. Maybe someday I will apply to Discovery Channel for a job. As of now, they dont come to the campus for placements. A little piece of fantasy?
Age of Innocence and Tintin
Honestly a lot of things have gotten in between me and my blog recently. Not to mention the fact that we did not have a party of significant consequence since my last post.
Now that I have started writing, let me share a few interesting insights on Herge's works. Tintin. Tintin, has not just been a comic book character for me. To me he has been more of a friend philosopher and guide(Sorry about that cliche). To such an extent, that when in the first term our OB prof asked us to write 3 characters who have had the greatest influence in your life, I chose to mention Tintin. Tintin personified the lofty ideals of truthfulness and faithfulness. The never ending quest to pursue the truth. Faithfulness was portrayed in the various relations that he shared with his friends and most importantly his dog, Snowy. The underlying theme that came through in the comic books is that never at any cost should one ditch his or her friends. They are our companions and to them we should show unwavering faithfulness. Though Herge does not stress on family values but such lessons can easily be stretched to cover the family as well. Is it that in an age such as today, such values have lost their relevance? Have we lost that young innocence or is it still there, hidden, deep within us and have we chosen not to reveal it? Today if we pick up any of the comics that are availble at the friendly local bookstore, the only theme that comes forward is that of violence and revenge. The age of innocence may well be on the way out with in these times of FPS games.
Now that I have started writing, let me share a few interesting insights on Herge's works. Tintin. Tintin, has not just been a comic book character for me. To me he has been more of a friend philosopher and guide(Sorry about that cliche). To such an extent, that when in the first term our OB prof asked us to write 3 characters who have had the greatest influence in your life, I chose to mention Tintin. Tintin personified the lofty ideals of truthfulness and faithfulness. The never ending quest to pursue the truth. Faithfulness was portrayed in the various relations that he shared with his friends and most importantly his dog, Snowy. The underlying theme that came through in the comic books is that never at any cost should one ditch his or her friends. They are our companions and to them we should show unwavering faithfulness. Though Herge does not stress on family values but such lessons can easily be stretched to cover the family as well. Is it that in an age such as today, such values have lost their relevance? Have we lost that young innocence or is it still there, hidden, deep within us and have we chosen not to reveal it? Today if we pick up any of the comics that are availble at the friendly local bookstore, the only theme that comes forward is that of violence and revenge. The age of innocence may well be on the way out with in these times of FPS games.
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