6 November, 2001: IndiaMART.com has launched Indian Trade Portal (http://trade.IndiaMART.com/), adding yet another platform to India’s leading online B2B marketplace, to enhance matchmaking and business interaction between Indian and global businesses online. The online platform enables businesses to search their global or domestic counterparts and interact with them through ETOs (Electronic Trade Offers) in a highly cost effective manner. The system allows a business user to register and post a sell/buy/business offer online free of charge to be viewed and responded by more than five lakh global business users that visit IndiaMART.com every month.
“ETOs are popularly being used across the world for matchmaking between buyers and sellers, and will prove particularly beneficial for a large number of Indian SMEs seeking global trade opportunities,” comments Dinesh Agarwal, Founder & CEO- IndiaMART.com. IndianTradePortal.com aims at opening new business opportunities for Indian businesses hit by the current global economic recession. In addition to the various paid and free online service IndiaMART offers in form of B2B directories, catalogs, auctions, discussion boards etc. IndianTradePortal will further provide an inexpensive yet highly effective mode of business promotion.
The company recently declared a 92% rise in profits in its half-yarly financial results as compared to the same period last year. “The global recession has affected our clients engaged in international trade, who are now looking up to us to provide them with newer business opportunities. We are delighted to see that their trust in IndiaMART has further increased in the rough times. We shall continue to offer innovative online business promotion services and solutions for their business benefit”, says Agarwal.
Benefits to users:
Any business interested in B2B trade globally or locally can register at http://trade.IndiaMART.com/ and post its buy/sell/business offer online. This offer will be displayed under appropriate categories at the trade portal and will be promoted online using online promotion techniques and IndiaMART’s network of online marketplaces. The portal enables registered users to maintain their offers/responses by logging on from anywhere in the world. They may even opt to receive trade alerts related to their chosen categories right into their e-mail boxes.
Indian Trade portal has been well integrated with other offerings of IndiaMART.com, including business directories, online auctions, industry portals and discussion boards to leverage on their popularity among global businesses. With the result, the portal already displays over 12,000 offers it has received in its testing phase. “It will serve both our existing clients as well as businesses that are not yet ready to invest into their online presence and still benefit from IndiaMART’s global reach in the B2B trade segment”, adds Dinesh.
In addition, the site also has a comprehensive Trade Guide that offers quick reference to the EXIM policies applicable in India, Budget 2001-02, Investment In India, Industrial Policies and Trade Organisations operating in India.
Revenue strategy:
While posting and responding to offers online is free of charge, the company wishes to earn revenues by way of featured offers, subscription for receiving pre-select categories of buy/sell/trade offers right into one’s e-mailbox, and online advertising, which is increasingly becoming and important revenue source for IndiaMART owing to its high penetration in the global B2B segment.