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Tag: Khoros

  • Drivex shifts gears with Vivekanand Kini to steer tech-driven growth

    Drivex shifts gears with Vivekanand Kini to steer tech-driven growth

    MUMBAI: Drivex is revving up its digital engine, and at the helm of this acceleration is Vivekanand Kini, appointed as senior vice president for technology & product. With 18 plus years of experience in technology and product engineering, including 8 years in leadership roles, Kini joins as the pre-owned two-wheeler disruptor doubles down on its tech-first strategy.

    From cloud-native architectures and microservices to scaling B2B and B2C SaaS platforms, Kini’s career spans leadership roles at Acko, Ivy Mobility, Khoros, and Opentext, with earlier stints at Oracle. At Acko, he spearheaded transformational initiatives that reshaped engineering operations expertise now set to drive Drivex’s ambition of building a robust digital backbone for India’s fragmented pre-owned two-wheeler market.

    “Mobility is being reshaped through technology, and Drivex is at the forefront of this transformation,” said Kini, adding that his focus will be on building scalable platforms to deliver seamless customer journeys from discovery and financing to after-sales.

    Welcoming him aboard, Padma Shri Narain Karthikeyan director Drivex said: “Technology powers every touchpoint at Drivex from smarter vehicle evaluations and strict quality checks to complete transparency on every two-wheeler parameter. Vivekanand’s expertise in scaling platforms and leading high-performing teams will help us strengthen our digital backbone and redefine the pre-owned mobility category.”

    The timing is critical. Drivex is in rapid expansion mode, opening new stores across Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, while also scaling Drivex Direct, its C2C platform that offers consumers greater choice and convenience. With ambitions of deeper market penetration, Kini’s appointment signals Drivex’s determination to transform customer experience through tech innovation.

    As the pre-owned two-wheeler space shifts into higher gear, Drivex is banking on Kini to keep its engine running smooth, fast, and future-ready.

     

  • Talkwalker & Khoros release social media trends 2023 report

    Talkwalker & Khoros release social media trends 2023 report

    Mumbai: The leading consumer intelligence and deep listening company, Talkwalker, and a digital-first customer engagement software and services company, Khoros, have released their annual social media trends report titled “From insights to action: how to disrupt a disruptive consumer.” The report highlights the social media trends that matter most for brands, marketers, and PR professionals to watch in the coming year. The report follows the announcement of the companies’ strategic partnership to seamlessly deliver deep listening and social media management through a unified experience.

    According to the report, the customer experience will become even more social in the future. It highlights that 75 per cent of consumers say the pandemic has driven long-term changes in their behaviours and preferences, including a bigger focus on urgency. Brands must prioritise customer experience by providing support, information, or solutions as fast as possible. In 2023, expect more brands to leverage social media as dedicated support channels, enabling a fast, efficient response no matter which platform consumers use to get in touch.

    The report expects that social commerce will rise and fall. It reveals that large increases in post-pandemic digital growth and rising costs of living are driving increased demand for affordability. Soon, consumers will be more willing to explore new shopping channels such as social. However, some countries are more ready to adopt social commerce than others. In India, from FY 20–25, social commerce is expected to grow at a 55–60 per cent CAGR, taking the current market size from $1.5-2 billion to $16–20 billion.

    The report leveraged Talkwalker’s social listening and AI-enabled analytics capabilities to uncover the 10 most impactful social media trends to expect in 2023 and demonstrates how consumers are driving these trends.

    The insights behind each trend are further supported with industry-specific social engagement actions marketers can take from Khoros’s Strategic Services team. This report also features contributions from industry experts such as Smita Murarka from Duroflex, Samit Malkani from Google, and Aurnob Godinho from Bombay Shaving Company.

    Further, the report also predicts that brands will place an emphasis on communities rather than personas. It stated that 66 per cent of branded communities say that their community has led to increased loyalty. Brands will focus on gaining deeper knowledge of their consumer ecosystems to understand who is driving and sharing brand-focused conversations. Influencers, employee advocates, and consumers will be engaged within brand communities to generate authentic connections and consumer-led content.

    “We all know the digital ecosphere has disrupted how marketers engage with consumers,” said Talkwalker chief marketing officer David Low.

    He added, “In this new environment, marketers must focus on forging symbiotic relationships through a better understanding of online conversations and taking quicker action. It’s this new understanding that will help brands create meaningful experiences and become closer to their consumers.”

    Khoros chief marketing officer Dillon Nugent stated, “As marketers, we know the value of data and the importance of listening to our customers. But we need to be more action-oriented and use those insights more effectively. Consumers’ comfort level with doing things online—shopping, researching, socialising—is not slowing down as the world opens up. They also care more about their communities—global, local, IRL, and online. Marketers need to tap into these trends and behaviours more deeply to personalise customers’ experiences and create more impactful strategies that empower your brand to stay connected to customers and grow your presence in the market.”