A fashion technology graduate, Hariom Seth was always intrigued by new and emerging technologies. “Initially when I was looking for a job, there was none that could offer the satisfaction of working on new tech products. So, I decided to start up on my own. Ever since, I have worked on multiple tech ideas which led me to start TaggLabs, a tech-based marketing agency.” says Hariom.
TaggLabs first came into existence in 2011 with the idea of using radio frequency identification (RFID) tools to help retailers sell on social media. Realising that the idea might not work due to the sudden smartphone boom, the TaggLabs founder reinvented the startup in 2018 to become a marketing technology company specialising in offering virtual event solutions. Hariom says, “People are consuming online content including live-streaming of events at a very large scale. And, there were no professional solutions available to organise such events. Most organisations were trying DIY solutions for important virtual events. That is the gap we tried to fill in by offering end-end online event organising solutions.”
Growth amid the pandemic
While TaggLabs introduced this product line in 2018, the business picked up at an unprecedented pace after the pandemic. As the world went under lockdown, the need for virtual event organisers became important more than ever. From Rs 50 lakh to Rs 6 crore annually, the revenue of TaggLabs witnessed immense growth having worked with brands from across sectors such as Uber, ICICI bank, Flipkart, BMW, Honda Cars, to name a few. “Recently we executed a successful online launch of the new Honda Amaze. Also, we are helping brands broadcast the current India-England Test series on OTT platforms,” shares Hariom.
He adds, “We share a great relationship with ICICI bank wherein we work with them every week to help them organise sales conferences, analysts meetup, training etc.”
As a bootstrapped company and one of the early movers in this segment, the journey of TaggLabs is riddled with challenges. “Initially we struggled to manage the cash flow. Each talent that we would hire required a different set of skills to suit our unique business needs. So, we had to provide extensive training for all the new employees. Over the years, with experience in the domain, we have managed to overcome these challenges,” says Hariom.
In a span of four years, the Gurugram-based company scaled its operations and went from a small team of eight to 50 members. “Right now, we are focussed on adding new tech solutions to add to the effectiveness of the work that we do,” he adds.
Local is the new global
Hariom believes Indian tech companies are famed for their high-quality work at a global level. “We are an Indian company and we want to be vocal about that in the global tech marketplace. That is the primary reason why we went for a .in domain for our website. Also, it helps us reach our Indian client base conveniently,” he shares.
He adds, “As a B2B company, we may not have a direct conversion rate through our website but it is imperative for identity purposes. Having a clean and presentable virtual presence works well for us in telling our potential customers in terms of who we are and what we do.”
The National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) is providing businesses across sectors to get the website registered with a .in or .bharat domain. It helps businesses reach the local audience and has a cost advantage over a .com domain. It is perfect for companies looking to start the online journey. A .in domain can be availed in 22 languages with the help of NIXI.
The market has reacted positively to the services offered by TaggLabs. Hariom says, “We came into the mainstream at a time when companies were clueless about how to go about virtual events. Amidst all the uncertainty, we were able to give a sense of possibility to our customers.”
As a vision for the future, Hariom shares, “I want the virtual events to be as immersive and as engaging as the on-ground events. Virtual events happening as of today somewhere lack the warmth and energy of physical events. I aim to enable tech-solutions to be able to organise virtual events with a vibe of the physical world.”
In terms of global expansion, TaggLabs is already working with the global counterparts of its Indian clients and is hopeful of scaling further very soon.
The ‘Shaping India Inc’s Online Growth’ series chronicles the journeys of startups and SMEs in India and how creating an online presence on the .in or .Bharat domain powered their success stories.
