Abstract
ZipDial Company is a well recognized technology business based in India. This paper intends to look at the company’s background and how it is trending in the current market so far. The paper will also clearly analyze the possibilities of ZipDial surviving and succeeding in the global market. While going international for every organization or business, it is essential to carry out a thorough marketing research in order to understand the market you intend to enter and also get full knowledge of the customers, suppliers, government and competitors as well Therefore, this paper is going to generally analyze the various barriers that ZipDial may face in the global world as they make their effort to go international.
Company Background and Current Situation
ZipDial Mobile Solutions is a company based in China which was founded by three entrepreneurs who had technology degrees from graduate schools and top world universities and entrepreneurs who also had high quality experience in professional leadership both in United States and India including certain companies as eBay, Xerox, Zapak.com and mChek. ZipDial Company has undergone tests and become proven through past campaigns with various global companies such as Pepsi, KFC and Sanofi-Aventis and also medium and small companies such as NGOs, live event managers and individual celebrities. A booming business has been created by a team of brilliant individuals who have turned a phenomenon that is very essential and unique to the country of India. This phenomenon is known as missed calls.
This might not sound like a big and profitable business however, once you realize the meaning of this prevalent behavior in India then it makes perfect sense. Most of the residents in India use prepaid cell phones. Each call that is connected and that send texts costs money and this is what lead to the birth of missed call a strategy that ZipDial wants to expand to Asian markets. This concept for example allows one to call and hang up as a way of passing a message, a strategy that most of the countries globally do not have since there are no charges for the call. It is considered a very economical mode of technology that most countries if given a chance would highly embrace in order to reduce cost. Going international is a move that needs a lot of screening and strategizing for any company in order to ensure that the company is able to survive and make profits in the long run.
The services that ZipDial provides have become a great marketing strategy for many companies including international companies such as Gillette and Disney. The company gives a phone number that the companies are able to use for advertising whereby the number is stuck in billboards and ads in the newspapers thus allowing customers to call the number and disconnect with no charges at all. This is a business opportunity that ZipDial has in Asian markets. Many international markets would welcome this idea greatly since it is going to reduce costs for the individuals and thus increase sales for the Companies. Not many in Asia have adapted this business opportunity and it is clear that ZipDial will get less competition according to the current market analysis thus acquire greater sales and cover a wider market share compared to other companies providing similar services. After the client makes the free call, a text message is sent to them with various communications on coupons, deals or other relevant messages that the company or business would want to convey. This is very essential since the text messages are free for those using prepaid cellphones. It is evident that this strategy is creating traffic in India that has never existed in history and the telecom companies in India are in love with the strategy.
Introducing this ZipDial idea to Asia is a benefit to both the businesses and the clients as well and the idea is likely to get a higher response on introduction stage. Everybody likes free opportunities especially those that are benefiting and open to business opportunities. The Companies or businesses will be able to learn more about their customers and followers through sending those surveys and profiles. These campaigns that are performed in this manner have been found to outperform those taking place in social networks such as Twitter and Facebook. ZipDial announced its acquisition of 400 million missed calls a milestone that is said to have been reached faster than expected according to CEO and founder Valerie Wagoner who discussed the waves that ZipDial has made in the market that never existed before.
Trends
Many would ask why missed calls? Over the last five years, it is clear and evident that growth in adoption of mobile has been astounding and it has shot up to more than seven hundred million users globally. This according to ZipDial is a great and challenging opportunity at the same time. Within 2009 to 2010 there was a registration of more than twenty million new users of the mobile in every month. This for example is like Australian population joining the network in a span of four months. However the challenge which ZipDial faced was the massive gap between smartphone apps and innovations in the industry around data and the major real user’s capabilities who currently are still ninety six percent feature users of phones in India. Though this might come up with the drop of handset prices it still leaves a big gap in the market between the tools that people have and what people want. Only 4% of Indians use smartphones and less than fifty percent have the knowledge of sending text messages, one hundred percent of the users love dialing missed calls and this is the reason that introducing this to other countries looks more attractive than any other strategy that ZipDial provides. It is claimed to be a prevalent peer-to-peer behavior of the users whereby they dial a friends number and go on to hang up on purpose so as to put a signal on something like I am thinking of you, I’ve arrived home safely or call me back.
It is evident that word of mouth is very powerful in marketing and it is powerful beyond our anticipation. This was clearly evidenced by ZipDial launch of the missed call a service that acquired millions of users within a few months of introduction while it zipdialled millions of times in a day. This only happened in India. The Asian market has billions of people who would welcome and embrace this idea putting in consideration that ZipDial do not have a competitor in this. This thus gives the company a competitive edge and this is a great strength for this opportunity in the market. It is evident that Companies such as Disney have taken up this opportunity in India. Disney is known to be an international company located in several markets internationally including Asia. Therefore, there is a possibility of the company adopting the ZipDial strategy in most parts of the world where it is allocated. This will not only happen with Disney but a lot international Companies globally.
Companies using ZipDial capture their social graph more intelligently compared to other businesses. There is ZipDial friend referrals which help in incorporating in a company’s customer campaigns and most companies who have used it claim it has worked very well. The experience of the user starts with an ad in media such as TV and after a response by ZipDialing the user is then given an opportunity to refer friends to the brand. In all cases there is a viral addition in reach of between twenty to seventy five percent in all responses because of friends who invite their friends to take part in the campaign. Despite the fact that less than ten percent have smartphones in India or have access to internet they are still able to build a social graph and make viral campaigns. India is among the poorest countries globally. However, the willingness for low income customers to pay is more stronger than others would give credit most especially in payments of mobile. It is therefore evident that the system of missed call introduced by ZipDial would most likely do better in developing countries compared to others. ZipDial would have greater opportunities in most Asian countries as well. The customers might make lower value transactions though they will have strong willingness to pay for services and goods of value.
Going international and becoming profitable is a matter of strategy and how fast a company wants to grow. The last twelve months ZipDial has spent trying to understand the metrics of their customers like acquisition cost, ARPU, customer lifetime value and retention. This is also an area that the company is working on before entering the global foreign market so as to turn the dials to scale fast even if it will mean stretching profits.
Strategy Analysis
It is important for ZipDial to test the global market and their target market in order to have a clue on the response to expect. ZipDial followers normally recruit their friends in order to engage. Therefore it is evident that in every real world traditional media like TV will not only become sticky and interactive but viral as well. Marketers globally use ZipDial analytics for their campaigns just the same way Facebook or Google Analytics would be used for engagements and performances online. It is therefore essential for the ZipDial Company to carry out a market research in order to understand some of the challenges that they might face while trying to introduce this service in the new world market. Some of these challenges include:
Tariffs and barriers: Each country has got their own rules and regulations on international companies entering their market. It is therefore very important for ZipDial to understand the tariffs and barriers imposed by Asian countries so as to have full knowledge on whether they will manage or not.
Political Stability: Where there is political instability there is most likely to be failure in business. Political stability affects a country’s effective running of business and this in most cases will and up affecting the economy of the country as well and to some extent global economy. Therefore, when ZipDial is entering a new global market, it is essential to enter a market that is politically stable.
Competitors: While entering a new market it is essential to be fully aware of those carrying out similar businesses as you. ZipDial should search the Asian market and know how their competitors operate and this will help come up with strategies on how to defeat them in the long run.
Target Market: The analytics of ZipDial allow marketers to slice data through geography, channels, profiles, users and others. It is therefore important for the company to ask themselves if this service will work in any other market such as in Asia. Regardless of what phone an individual is carrying, the simplest thing one can do is dial number especially when it takes for one ring, a split second. When it comes to interaction driving with traditional media, Zipdial is likely to drive higher responses even in other markets.
The reason ZipDial is focused on global expansion within the emerging markets is due to the high market need. Certain markets such as those in Asia have largely connected customers and generally large data amounts on consumer personalization and profiling. This is a process that doesn’t exist in India or emerging markets currently and thus the recommendation for ZipDial to expand to U.S though is a ground the company is trying to break.
Recommendations
ZipDial has a great market opportunity that can turn the global market into a cheaper world of using the missed call service. It is evident that there is no other competitor that is providing this service directly and thus giving ZipDial a competitive edge. This reason and the fact that Asia is recognized as a world fast class market give ZipDial an opportunity to go international smoothly with fewer challenges especially in terms of competition. The world marketing companies would highly embrace the idea of missed call since it is a strategy that will attract more customers for international businesses and also an opportunity that will give customers an opportunity to learn more on international companies.
Before going international, it is recommendable for ZipDial to carry out a thorough marketing research on the target markets so as to acquire a full and clear understanding on their trends. This helps the company or business to also understanding on the competitor’s services and products, suppliers, wants and needs of their customers and the operations of the market. A market research is important since it will assist a company in realizing and getting a full concept on what to provide to their target market so as to beat the competition and achieve success.
Used of missed calls is a great opportunity for ZipDial to expand to Asia and other emerging global markets. It is an opportunity that will enhance the company’s profile by increasing their profits, enhancing on their public image, increasing their geographical coverage area through penetrating deeper in the market and also helping them work with international companies to improve on their marketing. On my part, I advice ZipDial to take the opportunity and enter the new market especially the Asian Market which looks very ready to embrace the service of missed calls.
Work Cited
Baack, Daniel W., Eric G. Harris and Donald Baack. "International Marketing." Baack, Daniel W., Eric G. Harris and Donald Baack. International Marketing. SAGE, 2013. 583.
Bergan, Mark. Valerie Wagoner: Tapping the missed-call trade. 19 August 2013. 4 October 2013 <http://www.livemint.com/Industry/DxwH4TNGtKS58r7npgjnnO/Valerie-Wagoner-Tapping-the-missedcall-trade.html>.
Brady, Donald L. Essentials of International Marketing. New York: M.E. Sharpe., 2011.
Chamikutty, Preethi. ZipDial with its missed call solution claims to have cracked the code for mobile as a marketing medium. 7 September 2011. 4 October 2013 <http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-09-07/news/30123048_1_mobile-user-base-marketing-campaign-mobile-penetration>.
Czinkota, Michael R. International Marketing. Canada: Cengage, 2012.
Doole, Isobel and Robin Lowe. International Marketing Strategy: Analysis, Development and Implementation. U.K: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2008.
Lindenberg, Marc and Coralie Bryant. Going global: transforming relief and development NGOs. Kumarian Press, 2001.
Lundby, Kyle and Jeffrey Jolton. Going Global: Practical Applications and Recommendations for HR and OD New York: John Wiley & Sons., 2010.
Money Control.com. ipDial connects clients with customers through missed call. 23 February 2013. 4 October 2013 <http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/zipdial-connects-clientscustomers-through-missed-call_829716.html>.
Mühlbacher, Hans, Helmuth Leihs and ee Dahringer. International Marketing: A Global Perspective. London: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2006.
Olanoff, Drew. ZipDial Has Turned 400M Missed Calls Into Moneymaking Connections. 6 March 2013. 4 October 2013 <http://techcrunch.com/2013/03/06/zipdial-has-turned-400m-missed-calls-into-moneymaking-connections/>.
Team NextBigWhat. Zipdial secures funding from 500Startups for international rollout. 4 December 2012. 4 October 2013 <http://www.nextbigwhat.com/zipdial-secures-funding-from-500startups-for-international-rollout-297/>.
Vasudeva, P. K. International Marketing. India: Excel Books India., 2006.
Zou, Shaoming and Huifen Fu. International Marketing: Emerging Markets. UK: Emerald Group Publishing, 2011.
