Do Not Just Dial

Stage For You - Articles/Opinions/Critiques

Wednesday, 22 February 2012 01:09

Written by Renu Ubale; Edited by Arpita Bhagat

Heard of Just Dial? Off-course you have. Wait, do you think you know it?

Read the following, to be sure, just in case!

Company Background

Just Dial is a leading local search engine providing users of its “Just Dial” search service with information and user reviews from its database of local businesses, products and services across India. Starting with just Rs 50k, VSS Mani the founder of the company has built a business with an annual turnover of Rs 100 crore and a valuation in excess of Rs 500 crore. Just Dial’s revenue comes from conducting campaigns for paid advertisers. Its business model involves charging local businesses a fee for listing which can be between Rs. 3,000 to a few lakhs. It provides both B2C (Business to Consumer) and B2B (Business to Business) listings of small and medium business advertisers.

The Modus Operandi

Just Dial targets Small & Medium investors by luring innocent customers in lieu of advertising services that assure them of business leads.

For instance, Miss. A starts Cookery classes ‘XYZ’, just dial offers their advertising services for a sum of 3000INR for a period of 3 months. Just Dial also assures the unsuspecting customer Miss. A; that she can renew the subscription after 3 months if only she is satisfied with their service. There is a contract to the same which says that payment shall only be accepted by cheque & it is surprisingly silent on the following, even If the Miss. A is not satisfied with the services, Just Dial continues to deduct money by means of ECS every month till the time Miss. A realizes that she is been conned.

Such cases are going unnoticed & unreported, however many consumer forums are flooded with cases against Just Dial for engaging in a business filled with deception & fraud. Many customers also allege that the leads they receive are fake and are not ‘serious’ buyers and most of them are from areas that they don’t to cater to.

Not only Just Dial, but many other tele-calling/ advertising services have followed suit & engage in such fraudulent & dubious practices to cash on unsuspecting customers.

Quoting VVS Mani (the founder), “I come from a middle class family, where, if there is no (other) family income, you could set back to zero and sometimes even minus”.

The middle class, as everyone knows, forms a major chunk of our population. There are some who try their hand at small & medium business enterprises since low risk is one of the advantages associated with it. Not all are well versed with the content of the contract. In fact, very few are educated enough to grasp the implications of the same. There are hordes of small & medium enterprises in a highly competitive market. People try to outdo each other at every front possible. It is believed that the success of the business is directly proportional to the promotion that the company engages in and the number of customers that one can attract.

And Just Dial promises just that, plus it also has a high visibility in India. Cashing on the same, Just Dial has engaged in numerous cases that only talk of cheat, lies & deceit stripping people off their regular source of Income.

Is it a feasible option for a small time investor to lose all his hard earned savings for recovering his ‘rightfully’ owned money by battling it out in a court of law because of a company’s high-handedness and unethical morals? When the founder himself comes from a middle class upbringing, isn’t it hypocritical on his part to con the middle class?

Take a minute to ponder; it’s not as simple or as meagre as it might sound. We are talking about thousands of innocent people losing their hard earned money.

Note: The opinion of the author expressed herein is his/her personal views based on their experience and research, and do not necessarily state or reflect those of The Unknown Pen. The Unknown Pen does not make any representation as to the accuracy, completeness, correctness, suitability, or validity of any information of this article and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, misinformation or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from it.

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