Business – Dutch Uncles

Artificial Intelligence and Robotics: Transforming Academia to Industry

Abhilash Bapanasha — Fri, 23 Jul 2021 03:14:52 +0000

While even a decade ago, the scenario of robotics would sound like the figment of a sci-fi writer’s colourful imagination, but today, it is our reality. The advent of superlative technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics, has caused us to make significant strides in the robotics sector. We are now at the cusp of a revolution through which robots will give us complete freedom from laborious, mundane tasks and even they are doing the tasks beyond human capabilities. Building these technologies is our speaker for MentorED, Dr. Munish Jindal. MentorED is our weekly live 45-minute workshop where industry veterans share their knowledge and experience and discuss topics that are apt and relevant to the start-up and small business fraternity. Each workshop focuses on entrepreneurship development for ambitious entrepreneurs, small business enthusiasts, founders and small business owners.

Dr. Munish Jindal is the Founder and CEO of HoverRobotix and the Founding President of MENTORx Global. He is awarded and honoured with the highest civilian honour ‘Karmaveer Chakra’ by the United Nations. Born and raised in Ludhiana in an Entrepreneurial family, Dr. Jindal is a PhD in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence from the USA besides having an MBA from University of Technology, Sydney and a CPA – Chartered Accountant from Australia. He launched the concept of Hoverboards, Autoboots and Mobility Robots in India.

‘‘

At this very moment when we are talking, there are 52 million opportunities available just in the domain of artificial intelligence and who is developing these robots? It is on us humans so all we need to do is learn to learn, continuously learn and unlearn to learn. We just need to develop ourselves so that we can keep on innovating, creating, producing and forcing disruption so that we keep on moving to the next level.

Dr. Munish Jindal thrilled the audience at the initiation of what was a largely informative and illustrative presentation about how ordering a pizza over phone would sound like in the near future, thanks to the rapid strides in artificial intelligence. Although largely portrayed in Hollywood science fiction movies as the wow factor for the audience, it is a reality now as he rightly points out, “It is embedded in our lifestyle and that is how you are going to see that artificial intelligence is in every sphere of our life and how it is transforming our lives.” It needs to be mentioned here that his venture, HoverRobotix is the pioneer of e-mobility in India with hoverboards, autoboots, mobility robots and many more in the list.

“Imagine a camera in your room, the way we get up, the way we walk, the way we move or we exercise, it is taking note of everything and analysing it and letting us know what kind of areas in our body needs improvement. What kind of future events are we going to face so that we can even correct them before we face any kind of disease.” Dr. Jindal shared his encounter with IBM Watson in February 2020 and shared, “We can ask IBM Watson everything it can analyse our personality as well as it has answers to everything. So, this is how we are entering the brave new world of mind matter and computing whereby robots and humans are going to work hand in hand. So, it is not humans versus robots, it’s man with machine synergies. Once volumes of data are fed into these systems, they tend to learn from the environment and in no time produce the desired outcomes.”

Dr. Jindal from his own experience as a pioneer in the robotics space of the country feels that there is a need for a common platform to share awareness about AI in order to ethically, successfully and knowledgeably harness its benefits. He envisions that such a platform will bring the mentors, trainers and educators together and build a bridge with the industry leaders.

While there are speculations that continue to remain about robots posing as threats to human employment in jobs, Dr. Jindal negates such apprehensions,“At this very moment when we are talking, there are 52 million opportunities available just in the domain of artificial intelligence and who is developing these robots? It is on us humans so all we need to do is learn to learn, continuously learn and unlearn to learn. We just need to develop ourselves so that we can keep on innovating, creating, producing and forcing disruption so that we keep on moving to the next level.” Thereafter he shared the curriculum of AI giving examples of popular applications in our smartphones like Facebook, WhatsApp and their own set of data processing techniques. Whether it is just a mouse click or a photo upload, data is continuously being processed and retrieved in systems all within fragments of seconds.

‘‘

Whenever we face a problem our first reaction is why does not someone do something regarding this problem? Any problem you face is the next unicorn idea. Whenever you face a problem, if you want to solve it is going to be the next silicon idea in your hand.

Audience Asks

What are some basic requirements to bring AI into an already established business?

You need to understand what exactly you want to do, what processes you want to automate. Certain times it does not even require much. We people feel that okay to automate their processes they may require huge investments or they might need to bring the new systems. No, it’s not that you just have to check out what processes you want to automate. Accordingly, you can develop the software or required hardware and the processes can be streamlined into established business. The best part is artificial intelligence is becoming very affordable and it can be used in any sphere in every sphere of establishment business as well as upcoming start-ups as well.

“Whenever we face a problem, our first reaction is why does not someone do something regarding this problem? Any problem you face is the next unicorn idea. Whenever you face a problem, if you want to solve it is going to be the next silicon idea in your hand.” As the mentor rightly points out, it is that one idea that is essential to fill the void and make the difference. He urges everyone to embrace technology to decode the future of a beautiful world.

The post Artificial Intelligence and Robotics: Transforming Academia to Industry appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Tech Startup eSahayak.io Simplifying Government and Legal Documentations

Vaishali Das — Tue, 22 Jun 2021 05:30:25 +0000

With the launch of this Chandigarh-based tech startup, eSahayk.io, legal and governmental documentation work has become hassle-free and are ready at our fingertips. The startup eSahayak is a one-stop solution for getting all the government issued paperwork, from driving license, birth certificate, rent agreements to passport applications, NDAs, offer letter, etc. everything is accessible one tap away and is provided under one niche.

About eSahayak.io: Idea and Technology Used

In the post COVID world, when everything is going digital, the government and legal documentation work is still scattered and has not been digitized properly. The founders of eSahayak, Gourav Manchanda and Charanjit Singh, after trying their hands in the IT service sector during their college days and working for companies, providing them tech-based software, were struck with a product development idea in 2019. Later, they brainstormed on one of the tools, that is, documentation and focused on turning it into a viable venture. They established their platform in January 2021 and launched the final eSahayak portal in March 2021. The eSahayak platform is powered with an in-built technology Crove.app, a documentation engine providing customers with templates that can be used for hassle-free paperwork.

‘‘

eSahayak brings all the paperwork under one niche and provides a platform for all kinds of legal paperwork.

How eSahayak is easing the documentation process?

Government and legal documents are a complex process, having lots of third-party involvement and eventually creates a hectic environment. It also takes a lot of paperwork and generally the government portals and websites don’t work on smartphones. eSahayak brings all the paperwork under one niche and provides a platform for all kinds of legal paperwork. It also is working towards bringing each and every state in India online and thus providing an easy way out for the people to create their own forms and use it as per their requirements.

The platform has collaborated with CA, CS Firms and Lawyers for online documentation processes and is planning to connect with some offline agents as well who can break down the documentation process to the general public in offline mode too.

Future of These Startups

There are many other websites that are working under the same model but what makes eSahayak different is that it has its own documentation handling in-house technology which provide the users with the real-time status regarding repetitive documents. The startup is also simplifying the paperwork and easing out the way of accessing documents from one’s phone, with a simple form fill-up.

The need of documentation starts from the day of birth. This is one market that will never lose its importance as recorded data in the form of documents is something that is highly important in personal as well as business world. The startup eSahayak make sure that everything, starting from birth certificate to death certificate, all in between documentation process is hassle-free. It aims to become a one-stop platform in India for all kinds of legal documentation.

The post Tech Startup eSahayak.io Simplifying Government and Legal Documentations appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

The Cost of Entrepreneurship And The Impact It can Have on Your Family

Santosh Mehta — Sun, 20 Jun 2021 11:31:35 +0000

Entrepreneurship is not only a tough but challenging act. It’s not easy when you are your own boss. It does not mean that you don’t have to do anything! Having your own business means more hard work. Because you don’t have a fixed-hours job like government officials do. You have to work for longer hours day and night. These things are quite challenging when you have to send your deliveries and place orders in a specific time-frame. Or your orders will be cancelled by your clients!

Therefore, being a business entrepreneur focuses on your priorities. And you have to spend more time and energy on your business. At the same time, you have to supervise and assist your team so that you can get desirable results. Otherwise, you will lose your regular clients and you have to be in a position to make wise decision at a particular time which does not affect your business. Sometimes, especially on weekends, you spend your time on your business. Only then you can deliver your goods along with your team.

On the other hand, you may be stuck up in your office and at the same time, you are getting several phone calls from your clients regarding your delivery to be sent in time. Imagine a critical situation that arises at times. But you have to be a calm, cool and quick decision-maker who not only focuses on his business but thinks more on your future and family as well. That is more important. Therefore, make good decisions and get help from your family members.

Three Sets of Plan for Every Entrepreneur

Ideally, you should establish three sets of plans:

A family plan

Whereby members determine the overall goals of the family and the resources needed to achieve those objectives.

An individual plan

This helps each family member determine his or her own personal goals and how to balance those needs with the family’s and business’s needs.

A business plan

This addresses issues as ownership and management control, family involvement in the business and overall strategic direction of the business.

‘‘

Imagine a critical situation that arises at times. But you have to be a calm, cool and quick decision-maker who not only focuses on his business but thinks more on your future and family as well.

The Cost of Being an Entrepreneur

Incidentally, most of us think that getting into business entrepreneurship is quite glamorous. It looks that way from the outside, but it’s not. And the reality is the opposite. You have to sacrifice a lot while working continuously and sometimes relationships get affected. In order to get good profits or results, even your personal health gets affected. Success and profits take their toll: relationships suffer; personal health suffers. And you suffer silently.

Therefore, top executives and business leaders are beginning to use their stature to facilitate discussions about healthy work-life balance so that they can save their time and use their precious time with their family and friends rather than be stuck with petty issues. They live simple lives and spend family time, work systematically and select their team members wisely.

Simple Life, Long Term Success

If you are into business and getting into entrepreneurship, then learn simple methods, maintain healthy life-styles, go to the gym or go for morning exercise, sleep at least eight hours, have healthy food, avoid junk or fast food, don’t skip morning breakfast, and must have good immunity. Besides all these, you should have a close circle of friends and family.

You should spend your leisure time with your family and go for a holiday just to recharge your own batteries. This will enhance your energy and make your body fit.

What makes entrepreneurs effective, then, is their ability to not only build a successful business but manage their time in a way that allows them to maintain a healthy personal life throughout the process. While some entrepreneurs operate from the mentality of “Whatever it takes, whatever the cost, make it happen.” Whatever you sacrifice in the short term with your interpersonal relationships and personal health, you will end up paying for in the long run.

Take the example of Diljeet Singh Dogra, who is having three different companies along with his wife.

Learning from the Life of An Entrepreneur

Talented Diljeet Singh Dogra is a brilliant and successful business entrepreneur and winner of several awards. Dogra was born and brought up in the beautiful city of Jammu. After he finished his schooling, he got admitted in the Delhi University and completed his graduation. After that, he did MBA and MCom from Indira Gandhi National Open University(IGNOU).

He has worked at the Embassy of Afghanistan, but he loves the entertainment industry. Later on, he participated in “Mr Ghaziabad: A talent hunt show” and got a good response.

Having confidence and ability, he started his own co-production company called Voice Infotech. Till now, he has launched several popular singers and done many glamorous shows.

Diljeet is very supportive when it comes to helping poor children in need, or promoting upcoming artists’ albums. He always believes in helping and promoting artists and supporting them professionally.

Now, he runs Shades of Diamond India Private Limited, Jatt & Jatti by Nature, and helps the World Charitable Foundation, among others. Diljeet is Chief Executive Officer, Director and Producer in these companies. Working along with him is his beautiful and talented wife Yashasavi Dogra, who works as a Director. Besides her professional work, she is also a social-activist.

Diljeet and his wife Yashasvi are a happily married couple. They work as a team.

Excerpts from the Interview

Being a business entrepreneur is not easy. One has to spend long, odd hours. How do you manage your family, etc.?

Yes. Of course, it’s so tough to manage both at the same time. But, as family and business are both important, sometimes we have to keep aside our work for our family because family is always everyone’s priority. But we organise get-together parties on weekends, so we can spend time with our family. Even both of us cook food for them!

How many hours do you work?

We work for 13-14 hours daily according to the workload from 10 am to 9-10 pm.

What are the big challenges people in business face?

Competition is a big issue in business, especially in the glamour business. Always keep an eye on the market. Competition is tough in the 21st century! Trends change a lot on a daily basis. So, we have to get updated all the time for our magazine, our clothes range and everything so we can provide better products.

The other challenging task is the Chinese companies. They have totally hijacked the market! They sell a lot of cheap and fake products. Our Indian people run after them! Therefore, keeping them interested in Indian products in the affordable range is a big task itself!

What kind of problems do you face while working as business entrepreneurs?

Shortage of time for completing and finishing my job in time! Time management and giving time for my investors take a lot of my time.

‘‘

What makes entrepreneurs effective, then, is their ability to not only build a successful business but manage their time in a way that allows them to maintain a healthy personal life throughout the process.

Do you think being a business couple helps to cope with the work stress?

Yes, you are right. It helps us a lot to cope with work stress as we stay all the time together whether we are at home or work. So, whenever I am feeling down or stressed, my partner takes all the responsibilities of work. So, it helps us a lot. As a business couple, you can definitely trust and depend on your business partner blindly.

What is your experience in delegating tasks?

There’s nothing a person can do individually as you see if you wanna clap then you have to use both your hands. It’s teamwork. We have different teams for different jobs as we do different businesses.

What comes first: Family or Business?

Achieving a healthy and sustainable work-life balance is no easy task. Ask any serial founders, and they’ll tell you that peace of mind, health, and happiness are vital components of building a successful business. How exactly are you supposed to structure your lifestyle so that you are properly allocating resources to both your personal and work lives? Does your business or your family come first?

The blunt reality is that often the more your business succeeds, the more attention it demands. Do the math. That means less family time, which can quickly turn detrimental to building relationships with your children and other loved ones.

Jim and his Co-founder, Brian Scrone, built Family Board Meetings to prove that you can be a busy entrepreneur, and still have plenty of time to nurture your relationships with those closest to you-your family.

Quality time is a lot to ask for when you’re building a business. The constant buzz of our cell phones easily distracts us from focusing on what really matters.

So, what exactly does an entrepreneur experience at these retreats? Scrone says: “Through our quantitative and qualitative research over the last five years, we have identified that the most successful parents either have some kind of involvement in their child’s education, or keep consistent rhythms to keep the lines of communication.”

There truly is no substitute for quality time. And for some entrepreneurs, these are skills that require practice and learning. In the same way you don’t stroll into your first business and do everything perfectly, being a parent or an effective spouse is no easier a job.

These skills take time to learn. What’s important is that ambitious entrepreneurs always remember the value of investing in their interpersonal relationships.

The post The Cost of Entrepreneurship And The Impact It can Have on Your Family appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Astra Security is Securing Businesses’ Websites from Malware and Hackers With New SaaS Security Solutions

Aakash Sharma — Fri, 11 Jun 2021 06:35:03 +0000

Astra Security is a network and cybersecurity company that provides SaaS solutions under its Astra Security Suite in the form of firewall, malware scanner, vulnerability scanner for websites, mobile apps and APIs. Shikhil Sharma and Ananda Krishna founded the company in 2018 in the United States.

Astra Security is a leader in network security and has recently introduced state-of-the-art technical security measures. The start-up has recently launched an exclusive programme to help Astra Security users increase cyber transparency and confidence in their customers and potential partners.

This innovative new feature is part of the company’s latest product, Pentest Suite. It is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution that provides hacker-style security testing for applications and meets standard compliance requirements for small and large online businesses.

Astra Security – The New SaaS Solution for Security

Astra Security’s new Pentest panel provides users with more options and information, such as 1,500 test cases, developer collaboration, CXO analysis, certificate downloads, assessments of potential risks based on risks, etc.

In the current situation, many companies are working to provide their potential customers with unique services mixed with the safest measures. Hence, regardless of the size of an organisation, they are rapidly moving towards affiliations with a publicly verified company that meets all required cybersecurity standards.

‘‘

Astra Security is seeing a growing interest for its cyber safety resolutions from start-ups. The start-up's plans include managing internet security and payment exceeding set thresholds

Astra Security is Addressing Industry’s Growing Security Concerns

With the boost in online services and pandemic induced widespread digitisation over the past year, consumers are becoming more aware of online safety. With increased sensitivity toward cybersecurity, customers want to be involved with companies that have passed online safety tests and inspections. It is, therefore, becoming all the more critical for companies of all sizes, who have an online presence, to protect the interests of their customers.

Additionally, as the number of cyber-attacks continues to increase, businesses are increasingly recognising their responsibility to perform defensive functions for themselves and the victims of cyberattacks. According to a recent risk-based security report, hackers exposed 36 billion files to data breaches between the first and third quarters of 2020, and malware usage increased by 358% in 2020.

Astra Security is playing a vital role in maintaining cybersecurity and going one step further by issuing verifiable cybersecurity certificates. Today, start-ups in the segment must meet industry needs by translating the needs of consumers into solutions based on their concerns. Astra Security understands current sensitivities and is committed to bringing products to market that provide a seamless and secure customer experience.

The post Astra Security is Securing Businesses’ Websites from Malware and Hackers With New SaaS Security Solutions appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Buy One, Get One Free: Can BOGO be your Sales Approach?

Aakash Sharma — Thu, 20 May 2021 08:35:05 +0000

In recent years, one of the critical retailing concepts to have emerged is the ‘Buy One Get One’ model for customers or ‘Buy One Give One’ for businesses. If you go by the book, Buy One Give One, or BOGO, is a social entrepreneurial model that encourages customers to buy products while helping those in need.

Founded in 2006, the Los Angles based Toms Shoes initiated the BOGO model by donating many items to needy children in developing countries for every item sold to a customer; thus, Toms Shoes is accredited for this model. Though Toms Shoes was embraced, the model has often been criticised by consumers and businesses alike.

Advocates of the BOGO model believe that it is sustainable to add more social and business value to society. Critics argue that these measures are used as nothing more than selling opportunities by commodifying low-income families. There are also various limitations to this model. For instance, it can be a promotion and branding experience however it cannot be a long-term viable business option for new ventures.

‘‘

Consumers place a high value on brands that try to serve those in need.

Buy One Give One Sale and which Businesses Use it?

The BOGO sales structure varies by industry. Although sold as buy one, get one free, in most cases, customers get both items at a 50% discount. In some stores, customers also receive a 50% discount when purchasing only one item. Afterwards, companies send the equivalent products sold under BOGO to charity and such related causes.

Most commonly, Buy One Get One sale is witnessed in supermarkets and retail stores. Most businesses use this format to clear their inventory or marked down goods which mean items approaching expiration date. Here in India, this practise is prevalent in Reliance Retail grocery sections such as Jiomart and Reliance Smart. Stores that sell perishable items as well as Fast-Moving Consumer Goods are more likely to have this sales model.

Pros and Cons of the BOGO Model

Pros

The Buy One, Get One model is an effective way to generate cash flow. Businesses can use BOGO if they want to earn more. Often, enterprises mould the terms and conditions so that people tend to buy more products to meet the BOGO criterion, which makes more money for the company.

This model has foundational lines in its ability to help those who have a set budget for the week and for the month or are living with the budget provided by the government. Despite, not having surplus for oneself or if the consumer wants to be a part of the philanthropic act (donation), BOGO can be an option. The consumer through this model feels they have made a positive difference.

Cons

On the other hand, the BOGO model effectively destroys local businesses while going against local industry and increases local unemployment. In terms of philanthropy, people living in poverty do not benefit much from it in reality. The benefits they get generally depend on the goods rather than getting empowered. Due to this, BOGO is rendered as a mere marketing gimmick and a sales promotion propaganda.

The Larger Limits of Buy One Give One Model

Most socially responsible companies cannot succeed by providing products and services for free. It is a mistake to consider that the BOGO model can solve the problem of economic inequalities. The buy one give one model cannot explicitly differentiate between companies’ nature and category, which could compromise the company’s long-term stability. This model is not concerned with supply chain equality but creates a simple short-term selling solution.

At the end of the day, an all-embracing business sells commodities that people want while inspiring employees to do their job adequately. Evidently, buy one give one model is not a sustainable business model. Donating goods or resources does not address the core underlying causes of poverty. In fact, donating stuff for free could potentially prevent any transition to a longer-term, deeper solution by creating dependence within a beneficiary community for external help.

The post Buy One, Get One Free: Can BOGO be your Sales Approach? appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

An Insight into Real Estate

Smruthi Krishnan — Sat, 01 May 2021 07:35:03 +0000

Real estate is a part of your property that consists of land and the buildings on it. It also includes natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an item of real property like buildings or housing. Real estate involves property, land, buildings, air rights above the land and underground rights below the land. The term real estate itself means real, or physical, property. Real estate is different from personal property. Personal property is not permanently attached to the land, such as vehicles, boats, jewellery, furniture, tools and the rolling stock of an agricultural farm.

Examples of Real Estate

Several examples fall under the ambit of real estate. Each of these differs in definitions in terms of size and type of property.

Single-family dwelling: A house designed for only one family
Multi-family dwelling: A group of houses designed for more than one family like a housing society
Attached: Any unit that’s connected to another unit and is not a separate dwelling
Apartment: An individual unit in a multi-unit building. The boundary limits are set by doors and walls and differ in the number of rooms and floor space. For instance: multi-story apartment buildings. The size of an apartment or house can be described in square feet or meters. In some countries it counts only living space and excludes other non-living spaces while in other places like Europe it reflects the total area of the walls enclosing the home, thus including any attached garage and non-living spaces.
Multi-family house: Multi-story detached buildings where, unlike flats where there is more than one unit on each floor, these houses have a separate apartment or unit on each floor.
Terraced house: Several single or multi-unit buildings in a continuous row with shared walls and no intervening space. For example townhouses or row houses.
Condominium (Condo): A building with individual units owned by individual people. Common grounds and common areas within the complex are owned and shared jointly.
Detached house: A free-standing building not connecting to anything else. For example a small bungalow.
Portable house: Houses that can be moved on a flatbed truck
Mobile home: A vehicle on wheels that has a permanent residence attached to it
Hut: A dwelling typically made of raw materials such as bamboo, mud, and clay. For example kaccha houses in Indian chawls and village areas. They are also found in urban poor areas.
Cooperative: A type of multiple ownership in which the residents of a multi-unit housing complex own shares in the cooperative corporation that owns the property, giving each resident the right to occupy a specific apartment or unit.
A studio apartment has a single bedroom with no living room with a tiny separate kitchen.
A one-bedroom apartment has a living or dining room separate from the bedroom. Two bedrooms, three-bedroom, and larger units are common.
Other categories include Chawls, Villas, Havelis whose size is usually measured in Gaz (square yards), Quila, Marla, Beegha, and acre.

Characteristics of Real Estate

Immobility: The geographic location of any piece of land can never be changed. It remains the same forever. You can alter the topography, you can move the things on the land sometimes like turning farms into houses or houses into farms but the location remains the same. You cannot transport land.

Indestructibility. The land is durable and indestructible. It can lose its quality due to soil erosion or water pollution or even during floods and landslide but the piece of land remains intact even after the storm passes.

Location or area preference. Location is the most important economic characteristic of the land. People have choices and tastes when it comes to a given area which is called location. They base their location preferences on factors like reputation, proximity to work, convenience, etc.

Scarcity: The total supply of land is fixed and cannot be changed. It is a resource that cannot be created by technology or produced artificially. We have a limited supply of land.

Improvements: Private nature improvements like homes and fences are referred to as improvements on the land while on the other hand improvements like sidewalks and sewer systems which fall under public nature are called improvements to the land. Both of these add value to the property.

The permanence of investment: Improvements like drainage, electricity, water, and sewer systems can’t be removed or replaced economically and thus remain constant.

‘‘

Real estate is different from personal property. Personal property is not permanently attached to the land, such as vehicles, boats, jewellery, furniture, tools and the rolling stock of an agricultural farm.

Four Types of Real Estate:

Residential real estate: Includes new construction and resale homes. The most common category is single-family homes. There are also condominiums, co-ops, townhouses, duplexes, triple-deckers, quadplexes, high-value homes, multi-generational and vacation homes.

Commercial real estate: Property for commercial purposes like shopping centres and strip malls, medical and educational buildings, hotels and offices. Apartment buildings are often considered commercials as they mass produce homes to produce income.

Industrial real estate: Includes manufacturing buildings and property, as well as warehouses. The buildings can be used for research, production, storage, and distribution of goods.

Land: Consists of vacant land, working farms, and ranches. The subcategories within vacant land include undeveloped, early development or reuse, subdivision and site assembly.

Real Estate Industry

The real estate market involves producing, buying and selling real estate. By producing we mean building houses, apartments, factories and putting them on sale with the added value. Several people participate in the real estate market as a business opportunity and several others engage in it for their own homes. Real estate affects the economy by being a critical driver of economic growth. The construction of new buildings is a component of gross domestic product. It includes residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. Indian real estate sector has witnessed high growth in recent times with a rise in demand for office as well as residential spaces. Real estate attracted around Rs. 43,780 crore (US$ 6.26 billion) in investment in 2019.

Real estate agents are experts who assist homeowners, businesses and investors in buying and selling properties. Sellers’ agents help them find buyers and price your property, using comparative listings of recently sold properties in the market. They assist in negotiations with the buyer, helping you get the highest price possible.

Buyers’ agents are well researched on the local market and provide similar services for the home purchaser to find a property that meets the buyer’s criteria. Buyers’ agents negotiate prices, help with the legalities of the process, etc.

If you choose to invest or venture into the real estate market, make sure you read up on current market prices and trends, follow up on booms and blows in the sector and make well-researched choices. Depending solely on brokers or agents may not always be the smart choice as they might take advantage of you.

‘‘

Real estate affects the economy by being a critical driver of economic growth. The construction of new buildings is a component of gross domestic product.

Real Estate Investing

Anyone who buys or sells a home is engaging in real estate investing. Several questions pop into one’s mind like will the house rise or fall in value while you live in it? How will future interest rates and tax affect you if you get a mortgage?

There are several ways to invest in real estate and several people take it up as a successful business. Some of the most common ways to invest directly include:

Homeownership
Rental properties
House flipping

Flipping a house involves the purchase of a house to improve then sell it. Rentals include buying houses but letting other people stay in them for a fixed amount per year/month. Many people own several homes and rent them out. Nowadays several investors use Airbnb as a convenient way to rent out all or part of their homes especially for converting their homes into vacation houses in tourist areas. You can make money in two different ways: Revenue from rent or leases, and appreciation of the real estate’s value.

Investing in the real estate business has lots of long term gains unless the prices hike too much and the bubble bursts like the US crisis which started with the real estate boom. Factors such as employment rates, the local economy, crime rates, transportation facilities, school quality, municipal services, and property taxes can drive real estate prices up or down. This is why you must be aware of where we are in the current business cycle. It can be extremely risky to start if the chances are that the real estate market is going to crash.

Advantages

Offers steady income
Offers capital appreciation
Diversified portfolio

Disadvantages

Is usually illiquid
Influenced by highly local factors
Requires big initial capital outlay

Indirect Investment in Real Estate

One can invest in housing without buying a home by purchasing stocks of homebuilders. Their stock prices rise and fall with the housing market. Another way is with Real Estate Investment Trusts, called REITs in commercial real estate. These are companies that hold a portfolio of income-producing real estate.

There are several broad types of REITs, including equity, mortgage, and hybrid REITs and they also classify based on how their shares are bought and sold as Publicly traded REITs, Public non-traded REITs and Private REITs. Their stock prices lag behind trends in residential real estate by a few years. You earn income from REITs through dividend payments and appreciation of the shares. You can also invest in real estate mutual funds and real estate exchange-traded funds. REITs are very liquid and transparent as the shares trade like any other security traded.

The post An Insight into Real Estate appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

How to Use Social Media to Promote Your Business?

Roopali Kotwal — Thu, 29 Apr 2021 09:35:05 +0000

Far-off, yet so close, that’s what technology has done to us. Smart electronic consumer technology devices/products have contracted the world. Within a few clicks, one is connected to the world virtually. With the increased use of consumer tech products especially smartphones, use of Social Media platforms has also increased to promote businesses online by the entrepreneurs.

Social media binds the world and it is one of the most effective ways to build the customer base for any business if used effectively.

Effective Ways to use Social Media for your Business

Social Media is a boon for businesses – big or small. However, it is important for entrepreneurs to understand that their product/service captures the right market and audience. Here some tips especially, for small businesses to use the social media in the most effective way:

Choose the Right Social Media Platform

With many options available, confusion can prevail. Hence, one must understand the business need and then decide on the right platform.

Follow the Schedule

Consistency is the Key! Create a calendar to share the information of the product/service on a regular basis to create visibility and build trust.

Post High Quality content

Don’t just post but, post quality pictures/videos because ‘quality’ matters.

Don’t Over Promote – Add Value

Excess of everything is bad! Be consistent in sharing product/service posts. But don’t make it a regular advertising platform. Don’t over sell. Instead, add value by sharing relevant and short impactful posts for the audience.

Brand Recall

Frequent advertisement is a way for brand recall but you must use that effectively. Impactful marketing messages can help the customers to visit your website for their next buy.

Build Community

Focus on the audience who shall be loyal to the brand instead of increasing the followers.

Provide Quick Response/Resolution

Nothing can beat a swift response so a good customer service will establish a goodwill.

Social Media: Benefits

With proper social media strategy, one can promote business and can avail many benefits such as:

Expanded Reach

With Social Media, one can expand their business and provide their product/service in the Tier II and Tier III cities which may or may not be accessible otherwise.

Increased Web Traffic

High quality promotional videos/pictures add value and will compel the user to click on the company website and these customers will most likely promote the product to their friends/family.

Networking/Real Time Interaction

Keep the clients up to date on any new launch. The real-time communication builds a strong network between the customer and the business.

Brand Awareness

Increase the reach of the brand to potential and existing clients with frequent insights into any new product/service being offered.

‘‘

Social Media binds the World. In today’s age and time, Social Media turns out to be the most effective way to build the customer base for any business if used effectively.

What’s in it for me?

India is a big market with a huge population using smartphone devices. As per February 2021, Statista Research Department Report, the number of smartphone users worldwide are forecasted to exceed 3.8 billion users in 2021 and smartphone users in India are to reach over 820 million in 2022. This explains the potential of reaching the highest possible number of potential customers through top-notch social media promotion.

Social Media is a solid platform and helps to promote small businesses in many ways. For instance, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, IGTV, Dailymotion, Telegram and WhatsApp are among the popular social media platforms. Though, these platforms help to promote business at a large scale in India, the entrepreneurs must understand and put themselves in the customer’s shoes to design the social media campaigns with content that is relevant to the target audience, useful for the users by providing some value and generates interests within them to join the club of your loyal customers.

The post How to Use Social Media to Promote Your Business? appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

How Do Businesses Pay Taxes?

Aakash Sharma — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 07:35:04 +0000

Choosing what kind of business to start, how each company pays income tax, and the ups and downs of each play an essential role in an entrepreneurs’ journey. Each process is different, and the type of business tax can significantly impact your business’s tax return.

Here we explore how different company types in India pay income tax.

Flow-through (Mobile) Entity Taxation

Some companies transfer their profits and losses to the owners. The owners pay income taxes based on their share of the taxable income. These are known as flow-through (mobile) taxes. Small businesses and start-ups are often considered flow-through business units. Big companies do not fall in this category.

Sole Proprietor Business Income Tax

Sole Proprietor is the simplest form of doing business in India. If you are self-employed, you are the sole owner of your business unless you are registered under another business unit. In India, sole proprietorships are not taxed as separate legal entities. However, the business income of a sole proprietorship is deducted from the total income from personal expenses, tax deductions and other related income (if applicable).

‘‘

Higher taxes harm lowering tax returns, and over time, these taxes slow the accumulation of capital needed to grow the business.

Private Limited Company Tax Rate

In finance budget taxation of a Private Limited Company, tax is divided into two categories:

As Turnover above 400 Cr, and
As Turnover below 400 Cr

The income tax rate on private limited companies stands at 25% for midsize companies. The tax rates for this type are the lowest in India, at 15% for manufacturing companies and 22% for companies other than manufacturing.

Partnership Business Tax

A partnership is an outcome of two or more individual taxpayers coming together for business purposes and sharing the profits and losses of the business. In India, the registration of a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) is the preferred form for entrepreneurs as the association brings together the interests of companies and partners in one organisation.

A profit tax of 30% is levied on associates and LLPs. If the subsidiary’s income is higher than one crore rupees in a financial year, a 10% extra tax also needs to be paid. Capital gains resulting from the disposition of assets by a company are taxed following Section 112 of the Income Tax Act.

Corporation Income Tax

Under the Income Tax Act, domestic and foreign companies must pay corporate tax in India. While a domestic business is taxed on its universal assets, a foreign corporation is only taxed on the income made within India, i.e. is being gathered or received in India.

A corporation is an independent taxpayer and pays income tax at the corporate tax rate. The owners of the company are shareholders and receive income in the form of profit. The shareholders pay tax on this income equal to the gain. Companies pay taxes on their most considerable income, while shareholders pay taxes on recurring profits.

Filing Tax Return – Forms and Requirements

Deadline for filing tax returns

Companies, including foreign companies, must file their tax returns before October 30 of each year. Even if the company is registered for the same tax year, it must file a tax return by October 31. For the 2019-2020 fiscal year (AY 2020-21), the deadline was extended to November 30, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tax return forms to be registered by the company.

ITR 6: All the companies except organisations claiming reduction under section 11 need to file their return using Form ITR 6.

ITR 7: All the companies listed under section 8 of the companies act, 2013, must file their return using Form ITR 7.

Tax Audit Income tax

In tax audits under the Income Tax Act, businesses must verify their accounts and submit the auditor’s statement along with the tax return to the IT department. This check is called a Tax Audit. The certification company must submit this tax audit report before September 30 of each year.

In a nutshell, what should you go ahead with?

In India, entrepreneurs majorly prefer to go with either the Private Limited Company or LLP business format for their companies due to various associated benefits, including tax aids. These models are popular among start-ups because of their multiple features, like issuing shares to potential investors and sharing risk, to name a few.

But, the final decision lies with you, and you should take the call in direct consultation from industry experts for the best results.

The post How Do Businesses Pay Taxes? appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

Can an IRS Officer be a Businessman at the Same Time?

Aakash Sharma — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 06:35:08 +0000

Many people wonder what life is like in civil services. While millions of people dream of entering various Indian civil services like IAS, IPS, IRS and others, some are not happy with life in the system when they get to it. Because of this dissatisfaction, they often turn to the life of business, start-ups and companies.

Let’s see what motivates and allows an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer to enter the business world. And can they do it without any difficulties?

‘‘

Private companies and corporate start-ups open to having IRS officers on-board have great packages for those with experience in government.

Can an IRS officer be a businessman?

The Indian Revenue Services, often abbreviated to IRS, is a Group A federal government service under the Government of India. Government regulations prohibit IRS officials from personally engaging in direct business acts while serving as bureaucrats.

However, retired IRS employees are allowed to do business. The Code of Conduct prohibits IRS officers from doing any other full-time work while on active duty. There should be no dispute of interest, even for part-time appointments that an officer might have. Besides, any side-vocation of an IRS officer should be non-remunerative.

Why might an IRS officer quit her or his job as a government employee?

The prospect of earning more by vocations like business start-ups, consulting for multinational corporations or the Indian divisions of global accounting firms is attractive. India being a developing economy, the business opportunities and the wealth associated in the country are a large growing behemoth. And everyone wants a part of it.

Talented and experienced people such as IRS officers have great market value in multinationals and start-ups with substantial growth prospects. Consulting roles in these areas generate a much higher income for IRS officers than their public work with the government.

The power and positioning that comes with government posts might be absent in private employment, but higher wages adequately compensate for this. Private companies find government employees’ skills and experience unmatched, as no professional in any other segment is exposed to the experience a government employee faces.

Conditions under which IRS officers can run their business

There are certain conditions under which an incumbent IRS officer can do business, key of which are:

Retired IRS officers can participate directly in any gainful activity.

Active IRS officers can resign to run their business.

IRS officers can use their legal money to make legal investments and buy stock.

Alternative Business Routes

IRS employees can also ask family and friends to work as mentors and start a business for them while sharing their ideas. However, the government should be aware of this effort. IRS officers can engage in certain activities and occupations as long as they are paid only for charitable purposes.

A plurality of rules prohibiting IRS employees from doing personal business is meant to avoid the possibility of a conflict of interest, as IRS employees are primarily designated with the development and implementation of government policies.

The post Can an IRS Officer be a Businessman at the Same Time? appeared first on Dutch Uncles.

How Easy Is It to Start a Business in the USA?

Anju Nambiar — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 02:35:06 +0000

There are a total of 190 economies in the world. The World Bank releases annual ratings for these world economies each year about the ease of doing business within the country. The Ease of Doing Business index measures a country’s environment in the context of running business operations successfully. If an economy is ranked between 1-20, it’s considered as highly ranked and the Ease with which start-up owners can open their business in these economies is very high.

Is it easy to start a business in the USA?

To answer the question whether it is easy to start a business in the USA, the answer is yes! It is very easy to start just like most other countries. You can register your company as one of different types of corporations in the US. You can also deem yourself as the CEO and create a high quality branding exercise for your start-up. You can also easily setup an amazing web presence including website, app, a couple hundred social profiles and high-definition graphics. You could also easily spend a lot of money on web hosting and domain.

The naked truth is that setting up a business in the US is easy if you have capital. Next comes the tricky part – finding paying customers. As with any country, finding paying customers is the hardest part of setting up a business in the US. Running the business in a way that attracts paying customers is all up to you. Doing the sales, marketing, and ensuring the success of your business depends on you. No amount of capital can do it for you.

‘‘

The World Bank has ranked US at number 6 on its ‘Doing Business’ ranking scale which is a really high rating.

Ease of Doing Business in the US

The World Bank has ranked the USA at number 6 on its ‘Doing Business’ ranking scale which is a really high rating. It has also been awarded a ‘Doing Business’ score of 86.0 which means that for businesses within the country, the regulations are very friendly and simple.

The ‘starting a business’ ranking for the US is 55, as assigned by the World Bank. The ‘dealing with customer permits’ rank is 24. The ‘getting electricity’ rank is 64 which is very poor. The hardest thing for a business to do in the US is to get electricity. The ‘registering property’ rank is 39. The ‘getting credit’ rank for the US is 4 which is an amazing number.

If you have minority investors, the ease with which you can protect them is ranked at 36. As a new business in the US, paying taxes is ranked at 25 which is also fairly easy. Trading of goods and services across borders in the US is ranked at 39. When it comes to enforcing business contracts, US is ranked is 17 which is a pretty good number. When it comes to resolving insolvency for businesses that are unable to pay their bills, the US is ranked at 2 which is excellent and the highest rank for the country.

What’s in it for me?

Getting the paperwork done for your start-up is easy in the USA. If you are delegating this task to paid firms, then your task is even more simplified. Setting up a small business takes an average of just about 4 days. There is a lot of support for small businesses within the country.

The US is a region classified in the ‘OECD high income’ category and the GDP is $20.5 Trillion. It contributes to a quarter of the global economic activity. However, there is great discrepancy in laws from one state to another which can make things complicated for any business. It may also lead to compliance troubles. On the other hand, the legal system for businesses is fair, transparent, and stable.

Entrepreneurship forms the backbone of the US economy. There is a lot of support for small businesses within the country. Business owners are free to decide the nature and workings of their company. The Investment policy in the country is open and doesn’t discriminate against foreigners. As a start-up owner, you can access start-up resource ecosystems, and you can even avail soft-landing programs.

The post How Easy Is It to Start a Business in the USA? appeared first on Dutch Uncles.