"Kartindo.com is a self-publishing and distribution platform for ebook authors, offering affordable and fast publishing services. It enables people to publish their novel, story, research or article as an e-book and Android app."
Hi Dushyant, and welcome to InspiredStartups.com! Firstly, tell us a bit about yourself and how you ended up becoming an entrepreneur.
I come from India where entrepreneurship is natural and I got this passion from my father, who is an entrepreneur too.
I did my engineering in India and then went to England for higher studies at Leeds and then Cambridge. Between Leeds and Cambridge I was fortunate enough to experiment my fate in the entrepreneurship field.
What are the key challenges your business faces on starting up and how do you hope to overcome them?
Kartindo.com began with a series of challenges such as identifying opportunity, due-diligence, and validating the concept.
At present, forming a team with complementary skill set is our priority and also preparing to launch our own ebookstore soon.
What makes Kartindo disruptive?
Digital publishing can often be an uphill battle, especially in India, with new authors facing difficulties in publishing their work and making it available to a global readership. I, Dushyant Sethiya, a graduate of Leeds and Cambridge University, am aiming to make it easier for Indian authors through, Kartindo.com, which i co-founded with my brother, Pallav Sethiya, a computer science engineer.
Social media plays a role in Kartindo's e-book distribution. Have you any tips on how to run a successful social media campaign?
Social media is sea of opportunities where one can never know what works or not until you experiment it strategically. I have used Klout and Buffer quite beneficially in post scheduling and content curation. Another thing is timing of the post and medium. At what time your customer are active and on which platform. The last thing is to create an editorial calendar and I would recommend a book to read ‘the art of social media’ by Guy Kawasaki.
Kartindo's own Twitter page provides links to useful entrepreneurial resources. Could you share your favorite resources (online or offline) with our readers?
If you cannot make content on regular basis then go for content curation and that’s what I am implementing in my social media strategy.
I like to read a lot on entrepreneurship and some of the books are: The E-myth revisited, The lean startup, Business model canvas and The wisdom of teams. I love to watch shark tank, Dragon’s Den and the apprentice TV shows.
You wrote a book called "Microfinance: A Helping Hand ". Could you highlight any takeaways from the book that might be beneficial to startups?
Small efforts can help you overcome big troubles in your life such as in the book, women operate self-help group to cultivate saving habits which in turn help them to overcome poverty and improve their livelihood.
In the same way, an entrepreneur has a potential to not only change his life but of others too. This is a special gift which can create change in the society.
What has your experience with raising capital been like? Can you share some tips with other startups?
I am not that fortunate enough to raise funds but soon in the future and then I will share some tips on it.
Have you any experience with pitching your idea, and if so, what techniques proved successful and unsuccessful?
Pitching is about storytelling and sales. How well can you explain your project in a memorable way is an art of pitching.
Practice is the best defense against failure. So practice your pitch thoroughly and passionately before entering into Dragon’s Den.
You also founded Citispotter which boasts a community of over 13,000 members on Facebook. Have you any advice on how to grow an online community like that?
Citispotter is a citizen journalism platform to share news. Currently the ‘Citispotter’ Facebook group has more than 24,000 members and which are increasing daily. We grew organically via just word of mouth and planning to launch our website soon. (Please register for our beta testing invitations on http://citispotter.com/)
Be persistent and persuasive in your effort and discuss your idea with more and more people.
If you have raised your voice for a right cause or have identified the real problem then people will support you.
Finally, what does the future hold for Kartindo?
We see Kartindo as a digital marketplace for eBooks. It is only been two months since we have launched Kartindo.com and we are getting good customer queries which is helping us to understand our customer base better.
Where can we find you online?
I am available on twitter: @dushyantsethiya or email: ceo@kartindo.com
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Mark is a current journalism student in DCU and has covered a range of topics across print and radio. Having taken a class on entrepreneurship, he found startups were the most exciting thing happening in Ireland and developed a keen interest in them. Apart from technology, Mark has a love for biographies and Woody Allen films. You can contact him on Twitter or LinkedIn.