Report of the Meeting held on 21st Nov. 2003 on "Internet Marketing for Entrepreneurs".

The World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce, India (WZCCI) Mumbai Chapter held a meeting on the 21st of November 2003, at 'Green Room', Garware Club, Mumbai. Titled, "Internet Marketing for Entrepreneurs". The meeting was meant to be a brief introduction to the marketing opportunities on the Internet for Entrepreneurs. The meeting also demonstrated the power of the website http://www.wzccindia.on-lyne.com , encouraging all the WZCC members to network for a better tomorrow. The message was very clear, that the static website days are over and in today's competitive world we need to have a changing, vibrant and interactive website. Thereby the paradigm shift is from the 'Push' strategy (Radio, television, print) to a 'Pull' strategy (Internet). As a result there was total enthusiastic interaction between the members and the panel of experts.

The meeting was brought to a vibrant entrée by Mr. Dara Acidwala, who was the Master of Ceremonies for the day. Mr. Kersi Limathwalla, the President of the Mumbai Chapter had a word of praise for the initiative taken by the members and the speakers who made this event a reality. He specially applauded Mr. Jiten Goradia (the speaker for the day) for having taken keen interest in our WZCCI, and to have even arranged for a dry run of the days proceedings earlier during the week, and thanked Mr. Yazdi Tantra for having planned and arranged this seminar for the members. The WZCCI President also made the observation that just like this meeting saw the light of day due to the members' initiative, it was the members who should take this chamber to new heights.

Mr. Jiten Goradia took the members into the realms of the digital world. Starting from the days of steam engines, Mr. Goradia took the audience on a journey of evolution of technology and innovation and the role played by the digital world in bringing information to the common man. It surprised many, that between 1999 & 2002 the total amount of all information published in the world doubled (equaled the amount published in all 4000 years of recorded history), all because of the power of the digital revolution. The Internet must be seen as the single most important revolution of our times.

As Mr. Goradia rightly explained, the Internet could be used as a tool for:

• Spreading information
• Communication
• Distribution of Knowledge and goods
• Transaction of business (Business to business and Business to Consumer)

He went on to discuss the Internet Marketing Techniques, followed by a lucid exposition of how the Internet Marketing Strategies could be used effectively by small and large organizations alike. Issues related to Market Positioning, Customer Relationship Management and Research on the Internet were highlighted.

Mr. Behram Mirza then introduced the audience to the website of the WZCCI (http://www.wzccindia.on-lyne.com). The website, hosted by ON-LYNE has a host of features and resources for members to create their identity, to interact and have an internet presence. From 'searching' for members with required expertise, to creating 'Classified Advertisements' to participating on 'Interactive Forums' and 'Chat Sessions', the website has been created from the start to befit a professional organization like the WZCCI. The Four I's - Identity, Interaction, Information and Innovation were explained in detail, in the context of our existing website and members were enthused to participate in the various fora for the development and growth of WZCCI.

This was followed by the audience firing away a plethora of questions to the speakers and organizers. Ranging from how to advertise one's website on the internet to keeping away from dubious individuals on the internet, the panel fielded a wide array of questions from the enthusiastic audience. In fact, the evening was so delightful, informative and interactive, that Mr. Lakdawala (a visiting chairman from the WZCC U.S. chapter) praised the Mumbai chapter for their efforts and enthusiasm, wishing that they could replicate the same enthusiasm in their chapter in the U.S.A.

Mr. Minoo Shroff - President of WZCCI, in his brief interaction, revealed that the WZCCI website was a forum for interaction and invaluable for the members. In this age of speedy communication and interaction, the net was a necessity, and members could ignore it at their own peril. He hoped that this enthusiasm would continue in the members and the Mumbai chapter. Mr. Minoo Shroff also mentioned about other chapters, like Dubai were also very enthusiastic and concerned about the overall growth of business relationships across continents.

While summing up, Mr. Kersi Limathwalla mentioned about the forthcoming Dubai Visit, sometime in April 2004, when a trade delegation would be visiting Dubai for exploring business opportunities, for mutual benefit. He also informed the audience about the visit of Mr. Rohinton Rivetna, the World President of WZCC, to India in the second half of December 2003.

The members interacted and exchanged views at the dinner that followed after the meeting. Opening of more WZCCI chapters were discussed on the side, and many enthusiastic guests registered as Members. WZCCI are now embarked to raise membership, now over 300 to reach the next milestone of over 1000 membership registrations. All Zarathushtis can open the WZCCI website and register live online.