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Lateral Sparks, the weekly quiz from YourStory, tests your domain knowledge, business acumen, and lateral thinking skills (see the previous edition here). In this 107th edition of the quiz, we present issues tackled by real-life entrepreneurs in their startup journeys.

What would you do if you were in their shoes? At the end of the quiz, you will find out what the entrepreneurs and innovators themselves actually did. Would you do things differently?

Check out YourStory’s Book Review section as well, with takeaways from over 355 titles on creativity and entrepreneurship, and our weekend PhotoSparks section on creativity in the arts.

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Q1: The content explosion

The online content explosion makes it tough for creators and marketers to keep users engaged and interested. The constant consumer desire for novelty is driving creators to continually up their game. How can AI help here?

Q2: Digital business

Though ecommerce pioneers have benefited tremendously from digital transformation, many small and medium businesses (SMBs) are lagging. Several providers can provide logistics support, but more can be done in terms of an online presence. What is a good opportunity here?

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Q3: Startup ecosystems

Central and state governments play an important role in the startup ecosystem via good infrastructure, ease of doing business, and favourable policies. What else can state governments do to boost their entrepreneurial foundations?

Q4: Customer acquisition and beyond

‘Acquisitionists’ believe the key to entrepreneurial success is to constantly bring in new customers. However, ‘build it and they will come’ is not a sufficient mantra for success. There is more to customer engagement than acquisition. What else must founders do?

Q5: Business and heritage

Traditional perfumes have been part of the heritage of many societies for centuries, for example, attars or ittars in India. However, their business faded with the advent of Western perfume brands. What’s the entrepreneurial opportunity here in sustainably reviving heritage products?

Answers!

Congratulations on having come this far! But there’s more to come – answers to these five questions (below), as well as links to articles with more details on the entrepreneurs’ solutions. Happy reading, happy learning – and happy creating!

A1: The content explosion

The only way to make content stand out is through the application of generative AI (GenAI) for personalised content creation, according to Vasu Kothamasu, Leader of Engineering and General Manager of India at Contentstack, a content management platform. AI adoption has rapidly increased in the area of content creation and customisation.

“Companies can create content that connects with the target audience by training the AI tools to resonate with the brand voice,” he adds. Read more here about generative tools such as DALL E, Midjourney, Synthesia, Kapwing, Chat GPT and Bard, and how such innovations can help with storytelling and exploration.

A2: Digital business

Ruby Jain, Founder of Vyaparify, provides physical stores with handholding in the process of online transformation. She develops mini-websites leveraging AI for traditional businesses and merchants to enhance their online visibility and discoverability on Google search.

This enhances their digital identity and extends their legacy to the age of the internet. Vyaparify has worked with around 2,000 MSMEs in Indore, Ujjain, Bhopal, and Pune. Read more here about its subscription fee model, and Jain’s inspiring journey form 20 years in the banking sector to a digital enabler.

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A3: Startup ecosystems

iStart Rajasthan is a flagship initiative by the Rajasthan government to boost the state’s startups, promote innovation, and create jobs. It recently held a series of workshops and mixer events in collaboration with LetsVenture in Jaipur.

Such government initiatives have helped in specific entrepreneurial steps like creating an investor-worthy pitch deck and developing narratives for successful fundraising. Read more here about how Rajasthan helps bring traditional firms into modern entrepreneurship, creates platforms for capacity building, and promotes its startups at leading industry events like TechSparks.

A4: Customer acquisition and beyond

To grow a business, it is important to focus on existing customers–keeping them happy and turning them into high-value customers. “If acquisition is queen, then retention is king,” explains Nitya Shah, Lead at WebEngage Startup Program.

“Retention leads to greater customer satisfaction, brand loyalty, and customer lifetime value (CLV), ultimately contributing to a higher return on investment (RoI) for the business,” she adds. Read more here about how loyal and satisfied customers have higher chances of recommending products or services to others.

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A5: Business and heritage

Brother-sister duo Krati and Varun Tandon, residents of Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh, launched Boond in 2021 to preserve and promote India’s unique cultural heritage in the world of perfumes. Its fastest-selling attar is Maati, the fragrance of the first rain on dry ground or petrichor.

Other popular products are Satparni, a fragrance distilled from the Saptaparni tree. Read more here about its inspiring journey, and how it infuses a personal touch in its products with sustainable packaging and event hand-written notes.

YourStory has also published the pocketbook ‘Proverbs and Quotes for Entrepreneurs: A World of Inspiration for Startups’ as a creative and motivational guide for innovators (downloadable as apps here: Apple, Android).