circle . left . deadend . right

Auto drivers have an amazing sense of direction and they tend to know every nook and corner of their areas. Hence they can serve as a huge in-formation base.

I have conceptualized a ser-vice that exploits this informa-tion base.

People can use this service for:

Instant directions•Informationontrafficjams•andgeneraltrafficlevelsspecifictoaplace.Information on places un-•listed online or in directo-ries.Interesting recommenda-•tions of places to be visited in Bangalore

FINAL CONCEPT

Theprojectstartedwithaninitial brief of designing a net-work using auto drivers as an information base. This was an attempt to enhance the liveli-hood of auto drivers around the city.

SCENARIO

“I am at Lavelle road. I thought there was a straight road to Richmond hotel. But there is a one way now. Can you tel me the shortest possible way to the hotel now. “

“I am in Yelahanka New Town. IneedtogettoWhitefield.Canyou tel me the shortest bus route“

FINAL SCENARIORajeshwarihasjustgotoverwithher meeting at Thipasandra, an area two hours away from her hostel in Yelahanka. Its 9:00 pm, Rajeshwariandtwoofherfriendshave to go back to the hostel . But before that they need to eat something. Being completely unfamiliar with the place and the local language, they try to look for decent and affordable places toeatbuttheycannotfindone.They walk for another half an hourbeforetheyfinallyfindaplace to eat. Once the dinner is over they spend some 50 bucks ontheautotoreachMajesticbusstand because they do not know which bus to take. After reach-ingmajestictheytakea284Dtocome to Yelahanka. By the time they reach Yelahanka it is already 11:30. All three of them are com-pletelyexhaustedandjustcrashon the bed.

DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE

It is a dial- up service •Caller gets instant re-•sponseThe main hub connects •the caller to the auto driver of the respective area. The information may or •may not be given directly by the auto driver, de-pending on the kind of information.The system needs to have •GPS device installed in the cell phone of each auto driver so that the hub can trace where the auto is.

ECONOMIC STUDY

The auto drivers can earn points on every call they get. At the end of the month all points could be accumulated and con-verted into their salary.

The money can come from the businesses that these auto drivers recommend.

It can be funded by the busi-nesses these auto drivers ad-vertise for.

There can be a monthly mem-bership where people can pay a membership fee.

PROBABLE STAKEHOLDERS

radio stations - for them it is •advertising and another ser-vice to provide.existing information based •services-justdial,yahoo,yulop etc. auto owners - more business•telecom companies - mon-•etary gain and advertisingbusinesses being recom-•mended - more businesscustomer membership - pay •a membership and avail this facility any time of the day

ECONOMICMODELOFAUTODRIVERS

The information was gathered from the drivers of Yelahanka.

Most of the drivers hire the au-tos on per day basis.150 - rent200-gas50 - oil

If there is any repair work, then the amount being spent on the repair decides whether the auto guy pays it or the owner. Only if the cost exceeds 100 does the owner pay for the repair.

Income per day depends on area of work and also the kind of customers. Also income var-ies everyday. To generalize, they take around Rs. 100 back home everyday.

This would be an additional source of income for the auto drivers, not on alternative one. They can continue earning form their existing profession and work on this as an add on ser-vice with less efforts.

RESEARCH

MODELSERVICESJust DialJustDiallocalsearchdestina-tion. This unique local search service is available on: Phone-A24/7operatorassistedsearch on a single national num-ber 69999999Internet-www.justdial.comWireless - search by SMS on short code 53999wap.justdial.comPrint-b2bandb2cyellowpages

Just dial is funded by the busi-nesses that they recommend to the callers. Basically they adver-tise about certain businesses, eatingjoints,storesetcandinturn get paid by these people to recommend their business.

ChaupaatiChaupaati - phone pe deal - is Mumbai’sphoneclassifieds.Youcancall922-222-1947orsearchonlinetofindbestdealson computers, mobiles, elec-tronics, home appliances, furni-ture, automobiles, real estate, services and pretty much any-thing that the people of Mumbai have to offer. After the search, you can directly contact the advertisersandfulfillthedealoffline.Thereisnochargeforusingtheservicetofinddeals.

SURVEYA survey was conducted in the city where people were asked whether they would want a ser-vice like this to exist.

Out of 100 people that were questioned83gaveapositiveresponse.

Chaupaati’s mission is to aggre-gate information of unorganized markets and connect Indian masses to it. Chaupaati is funded by successful entrepreneurs and private investors who believe that we have the opportunity to im-prove a billion lives

Yulop Provides Location Based ServicesacrossallmajorMetrocities in India. Yulop provides a platform for all location based services with its vast content base and also helps the con-sumer locate and explore things on the move with use of Web and mobile platform.

Mr. Gopal says“Itwilldefinitelybemoreconvenient”

Mr.Rajusays“I was born and brought up Bangalore and I don’t need any-one to tell me about my city.“

Ms. Anika says“It would be amazing to know wherewouldIfindtrafficandwhich is the shortcut I should take, before leaving the house.”

Mr.Dassays“Iamherejustforsixmonths,andsomethinglikethatcandefi-nitely help me stay in Bangalore comfortably.”

Ms Balan“I have my friends all over Ban-galore. I trust them more than auto drivers“

Ms. Shikha says“If such a service starts I thank you from now“

Mr. Ravi says“I don’t think it will work in a place like Bangalore. There are too many ony-ways“

Naveen Sarwagi(CEO, Maruti Suzuki dealer-ship, Bangalore)

Economic viability of the •projectMore ideas on how to •enhance the livelihood of auto driversReaction of auto manufac-•turersGeneral feedback on the •brief

Nikunj SanghiFeedback on initial brief•Regular discussion•Whom to approach •How to make a business •modelRequirements of the con-•cept on the whole

Shaqib Anna What all information can •auto drivers giveWould a model like this work•Economic model of auto •driversHow to approach auto •drivers

GUIDANCE

Kashyap DeorahHow to make a business •planLoop holes in initial brief•How do existing services •workCommercial viability•Requirements of the con-•cept on the whole

Sridhar GundaiahThe technical aspect•Commercial viability•Probable stakeholders•Feedback on research•Howtodirectiontheproject•and take it furtherRequirements of the concept •on the whole

1.AsmyfirstexperimentIputup posters at different places in the city, publicizing about my service. This was an attempt to see whether a service like this is asked for.

I chose places like hotel lob-bies, buses, hostels to put up the posters. The response was negative.

2.Anotherideawastoputaloudspeaker in an auto. The auto driver would go around yelahanka, giving out random information about different things in yelahanka. This was thought about in order to see the re-sponse of people and to give an opportunity to small businesses in yelahanka , to advertise their services.

3.All kinds of people use autos in Bangalore. So, autos can be a very good platform to advertise. I thought of printing maps of the city and putting them in the auto. The maps could advertise about the printers who printed the map. Similarly I thought a mineral water company can leave their sample bottles in the autos, to publicize their company.

EXPERIMENTS

4.Imadeanattempttonarrowdownthisprojecttoafewautodrivers in Yelahanka. Three drivers went on distributing pamphlets about a service like this. On distributing 50 pam-phlets they got 6 calls in two days. The enquiries were about bus numbers, ATM , school ad-dress etc.

5.Asapilotprojecttherewasno actual transaction of money. But the pamphlets used for publicity were printed free of cost as those auto drivers were advertising for the printers.

To look beyond the obvious and identify the potential in something that already has a defined func-tion.

How to approach different kinds of people and to choose your words before communicating your idea in different ways to different people.

Lookingattheprojectatmicroandmacro levels simultaneously. Nar-rowing down your focus keeping the bigger picture in mind.

Identifying stake holders and drawing out both visible and invis-ible interdependancies between them.

Looking at all possible options to gather information and compiling all available information in a way thatfitstheprojectbrief.

Taking inputs from people of dif-ferent fieldsandputting them to-gethertomakeaprojectthatsuitsall kinds of people affected by it.

To make a business proposal and assess its economic viability.

To being able to recognise the strengths and weaknesses of the concept.

PERSONAL LEARNING

To revisit the concept time and again and keep a track of how the initial brief is being modified.

In one of my feedback ses-sions, Ramesh said, “its like selling water“. I had to design the bottle.Selling something that you can get for free.

To streamline yourself. To de-cide what should be done a what time.

I realized its easier to work when there is a deadline on your head.

Theprojectletmestepintotheactualscenarioandwasdefi-nitely an amazing experience. There is a lot that i am taking foward from this course.

Project by Gauri Sanghi