Sudheer Nair, CEO, Eresource Infotech

Eresource Infotech provides end-to-end solutions that leverage technology-enabling customers to grow their business. The company serves clients in India and abroad. In the past eight years, Eresource has created a strong space in the field of ERP and grown to be an exclusive web-based ERP solution company for the Indian market. Besides India, the company serves markets in the Middle East, mainly the UAE. Some 40 per cent of the company’s revenue is from the manufacturing industry, 30 per cent from the process industry, 12 per cent from the logistics space, 8 per cent from the trading and distribution and ten per cent from the infrastructure industry. Sudheer Nair, CEO of Eresource Infotech, shares few marketing insights with Indian Cement Review.

Tell us about the growth path of your company and your long- term goals.

Eresource Products focuses on Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), with its Web-based solution. We offer more than 20 industry-specific ERP solutions and each solution comes with three different editions, namely Eresource ERP Light, Eresource ERP Pro and Eresource Enterprise. Our business model is a collaboration of our industry- specific products across three different models: on-the-premises and on-the-Cloud and the SAAS model. All industry- specific ERP offered by the company are available out of the box for customers and addresses the unique core processes of a number of industries.

SAAS ERP will grow for the small and mid-market. I predict SAAS integrated modules will grow tremendously for all ERPs and companies of all sizes. Industry- specific ERP as SAAS and Cloud will capture the market in 2013. SAAS and Cloud, in my opinion, will be the two big growth drivers and new trends for this industry.

Initially, we were concentrating mainly on the manufacturing sector on SMB segment. The success of our system has opened the gates of opportunities for many other verticals such as pharmaceutical, construction, cement industry, oil and gas, trading and distribution industry and the food processing industry, etc. Our aim is to help every type of industry in the SMB segment deploy an effective ERP system that will cater to their needs within their limited budget. Our goal isn’t to make more money. Instead, we simply want to make a great product that we will be proud of implementing and our customers will be proud of recommending to their stakeholders. This company is all about growth and it is just a matter of time that we become the top player in the ERP space.

Today we have about 150 staff and our target is to build a force of about 10,000 employees in the next ten years.

What attracts companies to your products?

Quality product, intelligent marketing, dedicated employees and sheer hard work – all these elements contribute equally to the success of our company. You know, there are many other ERP products in the market and directly competing with the large players in the market won’t be sensible. We are focused on the niche area of the small- scale process industry sector, which was deprived of this stunning technology due to the cost factor. Our web-based ERP solution takes care of their business plans with backend software. This method has turned out to be a huge relief for small and medium- sized businesses in India and Eresource ERP has been accepted by most of the companies in this sector for their business operations. I think this is the most influencing factor for companies to adopt Eresource ERP.

What is the consumer insight that drives your campaigns?

Our software should address all the needs of an enterprise within the social context of the country in which the enterprise operates. Many imported ERP software systems must incorporate India- specific features before implementation as per the specifications of its client. Many times, the huge cost associated with ERP scares away industries from implementing the ERP solution, depriving themselves of the benefits the system can offer. To overcome this precarious scenario, we introduced an affordable ERP, keeping in mind the Indian industries, specially the small and medium scale enterprises. I think these are the few parameters that drive our campaigns.

What is the thought process behind the preparation of your media plan?

No matter how big a brand is, even the biggest of the biggest brand needs a media plan for promoting the product. Our idea behind the preparation of a media plan is to let our potential customers know about Eresource ERP and how it is has helped our customers excel.

What are the challenges that you foresee in the market and how have you factored them into your marketing strategy?

Business is always a challenge, especially when you are dealing with a complex Indian ERP market. Comparatively, the Indian IT market is a slow-paced one. However, the Indian market is also a very firm market. A successfully established product can find an easy way provided the product maintains its quality and reliability. We don’t underestimate any challenges and counter them all in an effective manner with our own way of functioning and marketing.

Other than price and specifications, which other factors influence buying decisions?

Price is not the only factor that plays a role in the buying decision. The product offers reduced costs, ease of deployment, ease of developing customized reports, reduced employee time in manually generating reports and greater flexibility in viewing data from the ERP system, some of the benefits promised by Eresource ERP. Most importantly, the familiar interface of Eresource ERP solution cuts down the cost of training end-users. Eresource ERP generates reports as per Indian conditions for all kinds of Statutory Records. These are some of the factors that have persuaded Indian companies to implement Eresource ERP.

Do you see celebrity endorsement as an effective channel for branding?

It will surely add value but this is not the right time for us to have a celebrity endorse our product.

What are your current marketing plans / initiatives for promoting your products?

Currently, we have about 80-90 channel partners wherein eight are about affiliate partners while the rest are referral partners. These partners work purely on the sales aspect of the business while the affiliate partners are engaged more.But the entire implementation and post deployment activities and responsibilities are on us. Also, we are going to come out with the new version of our solutions called ExV2. The company is looking at appointing partners in each geographic region with more than one in certain locations and in total, about 30 channel partners. This will allow us to scale up.

How do you view innovation?

The company that innovates, wins. Innovation is important for organisational growth and will help gain a competitive advantage. In this ever-growing, ever-changing, emerging marketplace, innovation is the only key which can sustain the growth of the corporation in the long run. We engage ourselves in various innovative activities, ranging from process re-engineering, product improvement, and brand building initiatives to ensure customer satisfaction.