Official Blog of GTM360 Marketing Solutions
I described ticketing problems with Pune Metro in my previous posts titled Pune Metro First Impressions and Pune Metro Second Impressions. I experienced another ticketing snafu on my third trip. I bought a return ticket from Ruby Hall Clinic to Vanaz (the two terminuses of the Aqua Line). I got off at Vanaz Station and … Read more
PayTM is the first digital payment product I’ve used at scale in India. When RBI enforced the two factor authentication mandate for online payments, bill payments became a major PITA. By requiring users to fill credit card number, expiration date, and half a dozen fields, Reg 2FA caused tremendous friction. After they received the OTP, … Read more
According to the popular narrative, branding is needed only in B2C. That’s not true. Branding plays an equally important role for B2B products and services. For the purpose of this blog post, we will use the following definition of branding: Branding “Branding” is endowing products and services with the power of a brand. Where a … Read more
The Indian capital markets recently moved from T+2 to T+1 settlement. For the uninitiated, under T+2 regime, you got two days to deliver stock that you sold and the buyer got two days to pay you for the stock she bought. Under T+1 regime, both you and the buyer get only one day. Many self-styled … Read more
In Five Pricing Paradoxes, we covered many pricing paradoxes and speculated on why they happen. In this post, we will examine if and how they need to be fixed. Is There A Problem? While there’s a logic to pricing paradoxes, we cannot expect the Average Customer to accept them. As a result, they will complain about … Read more
According to common wisdom, middleman adds a margin, so his price will be higher than the original manufacturer’s price. Why do D2C brands price their products higher on their own website and make them cheaper on marketplaces like Amazon? I always assumed buying from their website is cheaper, given they save on commissions. What's the … Read more
Season’s Greetings & Best Wishes for a Happy New Year! Welcome back to GTM360 Blog. We published 49 posts last year. The Top 10 posts in 2023 were: #10. Unpacking “Embedded Finance” From Consumer POV #9. Calling BS On The Meme “Banks Privatize Profits And Socialize Losses” #8. Revisiting Recurring Payments On The First Anniversary Of RBI Emandate #7. Shortselling … Read more
In Will ChatGPT Kill Coders?, we examined many demand suppressors that threatened to kill coders’ jobs. We also alluded to DEMAND STIMULANTS, which work as counterweights by boosting demand for coders. In this post, we will do a deep dive into Demand Stimulants. Comprising new computing paradigms and markets, demand stimulants not only arrest the … Read more
Central Bank Digital Currency is digital cash. Like paper currency notes, it’s issued by the central bank and does not bear interest. Also, like paper currency notes, it’s legal tender. At its inception, CBDC was supposed to be based on the blockchain. We don’t hear much about that facet of it nowadays. At least 130 … Read more
Since times immemorial, merchants have complained that banks charge exorbitant fees for processing credit card payments. Called Merchant Discount Rate (MDR), this fee is around 2% of the transaction value, as described in my blog post titled Credit Card Primer – Interchange, MDR & Surcharge. In this post, I will shatter the myth that MDR … Read more