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Tag: Vishal Patel

  • Gareth Bale backs Virat Kohli’s social network startup Sport Convo

    Gareth Bale backs Virat Kohli’s social network startup Sport Convo

    MUMBAI: Virat Kohli smartly took the social media route to announce that Real Madrid star Walesman Gerath Bale has joined him to back the social network startup Sport Convo.

     

    Kohli tweeted, “I’ve just had an interesting convo.” This led to a flurry of messages from fans asking what was he talking about. And speculation was rife as to whom he had spoken to.

     

    After the buzz touched new heights, Kohli revealed to his fans (known as Viratians) the interesting conversation he had was in relation to someone special joining him in backing his business venture Sport Convo. He however did not reveal the name. Instead, he gave his fans a clue and interestingly attached a picture of a heart.

     

    Speculations were drawn that Anushka Sharma or the likes of Sachin Tendulkar might have joined him to back the social network startup Sport Convo. Then the Delhite started giving clues for his fans to guess. Clues were only accessible to fans who were signed into the platform. This initiative got many people to sign  

     

    After signing one could hear a voice saying, “Namaste it’s a pleasure to be backing Sport Convo. Looking forward to having a convo with you all soon,” in a foreign accent.

     

    That put an end to speculations surrounding Sharma and Tendulkar. AB Devilliers, Kevin Pieterson, Roger Federer, Cristiano Ronaldo were all among the names that were being thrown around on social media.

     

    One didn’t need to wait long for Kohli to reveal who it was. And to most fans it came as a real surprise. In fact, it was Real Madrid star Bale. It all makes sense now as his famous celebration is the heart.

     

    “Quite an interesting story really, I have been a fan of cricket for ages and started following Virat Kohli, we got talking over social and he mentioned this idea called Sport Convo that he was starting, he sent me more detail on it and I instantly really liked it,” said Bale.

     

    “Sport Convo was particularly attractive to me as my belief is sport benefits greatly from social media.It provides fans with the opportunity to showcase their opinions and passion for the game. Also allowing me to communicate with my fans quickly and efficiently, which is important as a professional cricketer I am always on the go. Sport Convo stood out for me and delivers all of this and beyond and that’s why I opted to back this business venture,” said Kohli.

     

    He further added, “As you may know I’m a Real Madrid fan and it’s good to be working with Gareth Bale now on Sport Convo. There is a lot of mutual respect between us and I’m glad to have him onboard.”

     

    Sport Convo CEO and co-founder Vishal Patel said, “Everyone involved in the business are sports fans. We have built and will continue to build a platform where sports fans can consume sport content and interact with content and fellow fans in a highly unique way. And we hope to become a place where all sports fans come to consume all things sport. We as a startup are extremely lucky to have two amazing backers. I can reveal at this stage we are now also in discussions with other personalities, both within the sport and in other industries… so watch this space.”

     

    On Facebook, Kohli put up a competition for two lucky winners to win an autographed cap from both Bale and himself. The winner will be announced within the Sport Convo platform on 29 December, 2015.

  • Virat Kohli’s Sport Convo aims to be star-backed platform; eyes more partnerships

    Virat Kohli’s Sport Convo aims to be star-backed platform; eyes more partnerships

    MUMBAI: Whether it’s a professional sport or a business venture, the competitive spirit is one thing that’s common to both. The breed of sportspersons turning entrepreneurs is growing formidably and one such player who is becoming a force to reckon with is Virat Kohli – because for this dapper current Indian test captain, scoring centuries at a brisk rate is just not enough!

    Kohli’s Sport Convo, a multiplatform sports social media hub where fans can connect and “convo” about sport, has gathered momentum amongst fans. Kohli stepped into the venture early when it was still in its concept stage and today he couldn’t be happier.

    In an exclusive interaction with Indiantelevision.com, Kohli, who dons the dual hats of a player and an entrepreneur, says, “I am looking forward to the launch in the next month. The guys have been really hard at work to create a product that we can all be proud of. I am looking forward to supporting this business and see it grow.”

    With a vision to make Sport Convo the premier place where sport fans consume sports, Sport Convo managing director and founder Vishal Patel is upbeat about the venture and its progress so far.

    What’s more, the company is also in advanced talks with a few sports stars to invest in the venture. Patel says, “We have been approached by a number of major sports stars across the sport to potentially join Virat Kohli in investing in Sport Convo. We are in advanced discussions with a couple of stars and will make a formal announcement once things are finalised. We believe we will attract a minimum of three other major global personalities to back Sport Convo in the way Virat has. We look forward to making some major announcements soon.” 

    The layout of the site indicates that Sport Convo will not be limited to cricket and hence there is a wide possibility of more stars from across the sports fraternity wearing Sport Convo merchandises and promoting the venture. When queried as to whether the company was planning to rope in more stars, Patel says, “We are a multiple sport platform. We are a star backed platform rather than a star led platform. We want our functionality, content and unique ways of creating content to be at the fore of the product. However, should sport stars want to the join the platform they would be welcomed.”

    Speaking of Kohli’s role in the business, Patel says, “We have worked with him and his team from the early stages of product development. He is a shareholder of the business and an ambassador of the brand. His presence has played a vital role in giving us real exposure and it has been brilliant for us so far.”

    Kholi has been spotted sporting Sport Convo caps and T-shirts on his various public appearances, which helps in the brand’s publicity and exposure.

    “He even wore our T-shirt in Dwayne Bravo’s music video Chalo Chalo, which was a great surprise to us. So to have someone like Virat enthused and motivated to see his investment succeed is excellent for a startup business like us,” Patel says.

    Additionally, Gareth Bale and Alex Hales have also been seen wearing our snapbacks, which are now available to buy at www.convostore.com.

    It was the growth of technology and the spurt of multiple online platforms that triggered Patel to come up with a venture like Sport Convo, where fans can have conversation on various sporting moments. “I have always been passionate about the tech industry and I also am a huge fan of sports. I wanted to combine both my passions to create a hub for sport where fans like me can consume sport in a unique way, and that’s how Sport Convo came into existence,” Patel informs. 

    The yet to launch platform has already roped in 24.7K followers on Twitter and has 5000+ likes on Facebook. “Considering the fact that we have not yet formally launched our platform, we are truly humbled with the kind of social media following that we have received. As of now, we have a more than 30K social media followers, which also includes some sports stars. Some notable sports stars, who have started following us organically are Real Madrid’s most expensive soccer star Gareth Bale as well as England and Essex cricketer Ravi Bopara,” Patel informs.

    Sport Convo’s Beta version, which was launched sometime back, now has more than 15K pre-registered users. Expressing delight, Patel says, “We are glad to say that we had over 15K pre-registrants and another 6K evincing interest in our merchandise.”

    Sport Convo’s Android and iOS apps are slated to launch by end September. “At that point the network will be open to everybody where they can register on the site or download the app. From September to the end of October, we will have a number of updates of functionality that we hope will excite users,” adds Patel.

    At the outset, majority of the marketing strategies will reverberate around social media. “We are in discussions with a number of third party companies including major broadcasters and telecom companies for partnerships. Since our global headquarters are in London, we will be setting up a office in India to handle marketing efforts for the region. We have not hired a marketing agency in India,” informs Patel. 

    Sport Convo will have multiple revenue generating features within the app. Additionally, the venture will also be open to traditional means of advertisement. “Unlike many tech companies, we are endeavoring to build a brand and eventually launch a lifestyle fashion brand backed by social network. This would prove to be a highly unique revenue model for a tech business like us,” says Patel.

    While merchandising will be a major source of revenue, it will not be the only source. Patel says, “Merchandising will be one of the revenue sources but we will not be fully dependent on it. We are implementing some highly unique features, which we believe will provide a strong revenue stream.”

  • Virat Kohli gets into overdrive with social media venture Sport Convo

    Virat Kohli gets into overdrive with social media venture Sport Convo

    MUMBAI: Cricketers today are also proving to be smart businessmen, whether it’s the Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni or the cricket sensation Virat Kohli.
     
    When he’s not busy hitting boundaries and sixes on field, he’s busy eyeing business ventures that catch his fancy. Kohli, who invested in the social media start-up Sport Convo last year, is of the opinion that sport benefits greatly from social media, which is one of the reasons why he invested in the London-based company. What’s more, Sport Convo, which aims to bridge the gap between sports stars and fans, has got off to a good start.

    The ICC World Cup 2015 and the on-going Indian Premier League (IPL) raked in numerous impressions on social media platforms  like Twitter and Facebook, where fans discussed various important moments that changed the course of the game. With social media proliferation, niche websites such as Social Convo, catering to specific fields are likely to crop up sooner rather than later.
     
    The Indian cricketer, who has more than 30 million fans on social media platforms, will be using his fan base to promote the venture. Catering to a niche, the sport-specific social media – Sport Convo’s website promises exciting gifts for fans who register in the initial stages. Additionally, Kohli also tweeted that one lucky fan will receive a bat signed by him.



    Kohli was quoted in media reports as saying, “Sport Convo was particularly attractive to me as my belief is sport benefits greatly from social media. It provides fans with the opportunity to showcase their opinion and passion for the game. It also allows me to communicate with my fans quickly and efficiently, which is important because as a professional cricketer, I am always on the go. Sport Convo stood out for me and delivers all of this and beyond and that’s why I opted to back this business venture.”
     
    The website also has a ‘Shop’ link, signifying that Sport Convo will not just be limited to conversation but will also venture into the merchandising business. Currently the website only features one product – a ‘Convo’ branded cap, which can be purchased anytime soon. Kohli has been spotted wearing a similar cap on numerous occasions.
     
    Apart from Kohli, the venture has also roped in England hard-hitting batsman Alex Hales, who would be endorsing the brand. Hales will be sporting the Sport Convo’s logo on his bat.
     
    Sports Convo is also looking at roping in more sports stars on board and the conversation will not be restricted to cricket.

    So far the company, founded by Vishal Patel, Amrit Johal, Praveen Reddy and Jasneel Nagi, is a sports star driven social media platform, which will also have an e-store for fans to buy products promoted by their sports heroes.
     

    Observers believe that the merchandising business which the site has flagged off might well explode into a lucrative one. However, they doubt whether enough fans will get on to the social media platform to chat and connect with each other because of the growth and growth of Facebook. Another social media platform in the US fanbase.com recently announced that it would shut because it had not managed to crack a business model to monetise on the 15 million sports lovers who were logging on every month.

    A sports journo however begs to differ. “Fanbase.com was founded by two young entrepreneurs with investors. They did not have any sports person backing them online to drive conversation. SportConvo however has Virat with his feet firmly entrenched in the venture. And he is driving it through his social following, posting videos, tweets and doling out give aways. I can only see it being a winner all the way in every way.”

    It now remains to be seen if the briskly scoring Kohli succeeds to drive enough fans to Sports Convo and turn it into a resounding success.

     

     

     

     

  • Cannes Diary: Adlabs lounge gives indies a leg up

    Cannes Diary: Adlabs lounge gives indies a leg up

    CANNES: The Adlabs Indpendent Producers Lounge is proving to be a hit of sorts. Located in the basement of the Palais des Festivals, it has been a busy spot with almost anyone interested in Indian films dropping in over there from whichever country in the world.

    The booth, manned by AdLabs Films boss Sunir Khetrapal, has Aditya Bhattacharrya steering it most of the time. Other individuals using it quite frequently include: Grey Cells Entertainment’s copromoter Rashmi, Ruchi Narain, Amit Khanna, Sudhir Mishra.

    The stand is also being used to promote the Filmkraft new production Krishh. In a big way.
    Dharma disappointed, Johar pushes hard

    The team Dharma Productions distribution team of Vishal Patel and Cherian expressed disappointment at the way the market has been proceeding. “There have been very few footfalls,” says Cherian. “We expect an improvement by tomorrow.”

    The big title being promoted at the stand is Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna.

    Karan Johar spent many a hour at the stand today. The Johar box office magic may rub off on Dharma’s Cannes performance as well.
    Indian unity shows up at Cannes

    What is amazing about this Cannes festival is how the independents have been propping up each other. The Adlabs stand has brochures and promotional materials from almost every Indian film maker in the Palais. Handmade Films’ Sunil Doshi who has a stand in a prime location in the Palais des Festivals basement even lent a hand to the indies by stocking their promotional literature at his stand. A pat in the back for the indie Indians. In fact, a bash for the indies was planned for the evening at the Irish Quays pub.