As the name suggests, Alphabet Factory is a expert content authoring and production company on emerging technologies. Targeting the Universities, SMEs, eLearning driven companies and anyone who is in need of expert content and subject matter expert guidance, alphabet factory is a single place to serve you with the best of all content matter.
The team is committed to provide you the perfect mixture of words and context which strike right through your head and the message is understood with virtue. Again, the power of 3Ws is used by the high end profound team to articulate the correct balance of content and context every time. In a short span of time, they have come a long way and touched the boundaries of almost all types of industries, be it, B2B, B2C and C2C segments. In the past 2.5 years of business, they have authored content for some great industry giants also. Based out in Delhi, they cater to clients all across the nation. Not only India they have crossed international borders also to deliver their services to various countries like USA, UK, Netherlands, Japan, Singapore etc.
They believe in “Service with Purpose”. They are strong supporters of academic system improvements in the Indian education eco-system, reason being that the traditional text booking methods are not compatible with the updated and ever evolving dynamics of the world like science and technology, teaching methods, etc. Since the skill set we all know is weak as they are not able to meet the bar, Alphabet factory is all geared up to provide complete stack solution to Academia (Universities). The entire content is authored and delivered by industry best practitioners who have had hands-on expertise on the product itself.
Having had a rough start like most incubators in our country, they have had a fair share of struggle but the passionate team didn’t give up on the purpose. Silently and gradually, they evolved with their perseverance to become one of the most trusted brand for authoring and content production that it is today.
Let’s hear the story of their journey by the founder and chief product officer, Mrs. Aparna Chugh, in the exclusive interview below.
1.What is the Name of Your Venture? Any specific reason for this name?
ANSWER: Alphabet Factory. As the name depicts, it’s a factory made of alphabets. Anything and everything you need in expert content, we make it. We Wanted to be a high-end, SME driven content authoring and production company on the block. I decided to use my ‘Power of Wisdom’ for good.
2.Who is your target Audience/clients?
Answer: Anyone who is in need of quality content, anyone who wanted a content written and driven by an subject matter expert is our target audience ???? In this era of waning attention-spans, Alphabet factory knows that ‘Content is King’. Our primary goal, you ask? To reinvent content for the millennial age, in words so articulate and striking, that your vision is understood by all. We cater to Academia, B2B, B2C and C2C segments. In the past 2.5 years of business we have authored content to many market giants like Xebia, Quint, Tech Mahindra, UPES (Just to name few).
3.Where is your venture based (city, state, country) & What are your geographical target areas?
Answer: We are based out of Delhi and cater PAN India and our presence, especially in authoring and delivering emerging technologies is pretty strong. We have clients across all metro and smart cities in India, The U.K, The USA, Canada, The Netherlands, Singapore and Japan
4.What problems does your venture resolve? What are your products or services?
Answer: “Service with Purpose” is what we preach and what we breathe. The Indian education eco-system needs a change when it comes to Skilling. The students who are joining the colleges after the secondary board (atleast) should be trained on the exact market requirements. For example the IT sector is updated with emerging technologies like DevOps, iOT, Bigdata, Ai, Machine learning, Block Chain etc and our traditional courses taught are not completely meeting the standards what markets and companies need today. This is just one sector which I mentioned, and this is applicable for every education sector today in India.
Our venture Alphabet Factory, is an expert content production factory. We give a full stack solution to Academia (Universities) from choosing a specialization course, creating a syllabus around it, authoring the year/semester wise curriculum, train-the-trainers, assessments, Labs, and delivering the final books to learners through a Learning management system Our entire content is authored and delivered by industry best practitioners who had hands-on expertise on the product itself. Alphabet factory takes care of the technicalities and totality of the entire product for you. And all this is just within most affordable and competitive price tags.
It is this combination of professionalism and proficiency that makes it the trusted brand that it is today.
5.Share the idea or story behind the venture. How did it came to an existence? What motivated you to start your own venture?
Answer: It wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine in the Alphabet factory, behind its success lies the struggle of a dedicated and gutsy team. Like most startups, in its first stages, we are completely bootstrapped. Conceptualised and formed in a time where academia education was vintage and was with boring old titles. Alphabet factory was like ‘The Dark Knight’ of this system, silently overlooking yellow-ridden Gotham city, garnering experience and crusading for change, with little hope of immediate returns.
Recognising the fact that in this information-overload world, most learners have forgotten the correct usage of delivering and detailing essence of education system, I decided to use my ‘power of wisdom’ for good. Thus, was born Alphabet factory, a Delhi-based content-authoring and delivery platform that is a fitting tribute to all authoring and eLearning companies of the past and present.
6.Who are your biggest competitors and how do you differentiate yourself from them?
ANSWERS: Biggest competitors: Pearson, Info-pro, Pulse are a few. Differentiation lies in the work we do. We are different because we always go out of our way to do things differently. It makes a difference. Always
7.How did you identify your co-founder? Tell us some thing about your co-founder/s
Answer: Having the right partner at the helm tends to make for better balance and a more robust skill set. The truth is that we all have limitations. No matter how adroit or proficient you are in a particular area, there’s always somewhere lacking. But a key partner can help round things off and elevate you.
When starting Alphabet Factory, I knew I couldn’t successfully found it by myself. That’s why I brought Kalyan on as my partner, and it’s worked out perfectly. He complements what I bring to the table and adds his own expertise to create an amazing alliance.
8.How did you hire your first team members? What skills Do you want in your employees/team?
Answer: First team member was hired for his intent of authoring quality content and describing things beyond words. Also, in other case, I was looking for someone who was extremely analytical for managing accounts and display project dashboards. That’s why Shashank was so appealing. He’s a legitimate writer, digital marketeer and good manager, which made him a perfect fit.
We look for intent, collaboration and design thinking. Creativity is something we vouch for. Also, somebody who is ready to take the jump when on an edge. This is how a start-up is.
9.What expansion plans are you looking for the next 2 years, next 5 years?
Answer: Expansion plans include setting up sales funnels at developing countries like Niger, Rwanda, Benin, Ethiopia, Latin America and few from south asia pacific. I see a lot a potential in these quick and developing countries. I hope you also agree with me, when I say ‘It is about exponential growth now given the demand in the market.
So, next 2 years I see Pan India, Ethiopia as a settled market for us and in 5 we would go look at ourselves as a go-to agency for all emerging technologies content partner globally.
10.Where do you want to see yourself in next 10 years?
Answer: I see myself taking Alphabet factory to an international arena where we are recognised not just for service but the work that we do. We would want to be realised as not just a company or a brand but as a venture that does “Service with Purpose” and match every emotion beyond business as well.
11.What are your goals over the next 1, 3, 6 and 12 months?
Answer: This is interesting. Goal for the next 6 months include massive expansion pan India. We are looking to setup base in 4 major locations in India and that holds all our energy right now. Ofcourse introducing services to new players, we had a huge pipeline and being discussed internally.
12.Have you raised any funding? Or have any plans for the funding?
Answer: Anti-marketing and so on we are anti-funding. This is a bootstrapped and self-funded venture and it should remain that way for some time. On this junction we are exploring good business partnerships globally.
13.What were the problems you faced during the starting days and how did you resolve them?
Answer: Being boot-strapped is taxing when you do not really want to spend on marketing. But that did not really affect us. We made the distinction of recognising the relationship between expert content and delivery. It understood that in a largely visual web, people will only stop to read content that is intriguing, simple and brief. Initially, we relied singularly on word-of-mouth to serve our marketing arm. Operating out of a co-working space harbouring the offices of companies both local and national charmed the corporate world, demonstrating the true value of content marketing to CEOS and Chancellors around them. By cashing in on the cooperative character of the workspace, Alphabet factory actually found a string of clients with absolutely no external marketing.
14.What was the most challenging part of your journey till now? How did you overcome those challenges?
Answer: Challenging part has been the industry where we have to make the content authored in the right manner. The per course cost approach has to be overlooked now with so much research and emphasis going into each piece of content authored. Otherwise, it has been a great journey and has taught me immensely both as a person and as an entrepreneur. Everyday is a challenge and we learn amazing things that power us to the next day. So, yes the journey has been amazing and an interesting one.
15.Are you married, single or in a relationship?
Answer: Yes, am married and am also in a relationship with my start-up ????
16.What are your hobbies? What do you do in your non-work time?
Answer: I love to read books. Apart from putting thoughts to reality that are there in my head. I do product thinking and creative introspection. That is what keeps me going. And, of course cooking.
17.Whats your favorite food & holiday destination?
Answer: Favourite food would be anything veg. Prefer mom made meal. Rest is all place specific. Holiday destination is Europe.
18.Whom do you consider your idol or biggest motivator?
Answer: People around me motivate me. Their working style and habit. I get motivated seeing people working effectively. Rest: This is my story. I am the hero!
19.What do you feel is the major difference between entrepreneurs and those who work for someone else?
Answer: It is the thought process and the intent of doing something unimaginable for yourself. That is what differentiates an entrepreneur and an employee. I understood this, luckily, through may past job experiences with top industry gurus and champs. It is all about taking that jump from the edge into the ocean called an entrepreneur.
20.If you had the chance to start your career over again, what would you do differently?
Answer: I would still be doing what I am right now. All my intent is for Alphabet Factory. It is for taking it to a newer height.
21.How has being an entrepreneur affected your family & Social life?
Answer: Honestly, it has affected it for good. I make time for family as weekends are dedicated to them. Running a start-up means long hours of dedicated, creative and exhaustive working. I do plan for family and friends so I keep drawing my motivation from them from time to time. I believe in networking and I feel any business is dependent on it. I am networker hence, socially active.
22.Anything, you would like to say to our readers or upcoming entrepreneurs?
Answer: Yes, first of all I appreciate people who have spent time in reading my story. Secondly, for upcoming entrepreneurs, I would suggest keep the fire burning. Most people lose on their entrepreneurial journey. When you have taken a leap into this world make sure you do justice to the role. Being an entrepreneur is not easy. YOU will always have thoughts of going back into your corporate life and make easy bucks sitting on a chair for years. Here, it is about impulse and being driven by what you always wanted. When you are choosing this make sure you choose this for life.
23.Tell us something about your education & family background.
Answer: I am an undergraduate in computer applications from CCS University, Meerut and a master’s in business management. My better half is an industry expert on air-conditioning and a sales evangelist. My father is an entrepreneur with his own factory in meerut and then there is Mommy and Mother-in law, both my inspiration and of course Annu and Amit, my siblings.
24.What is your USP which makes it unique & different from other start-ups in similar domains.
Answer: The USP and core is emerging content that is as much about the visual, if not more, than the written. This combined with the phrase, ‘Revolutionary game changers” probably encapsulates the vision of Alphabet Factory, which is why the company invests greatly in right content and right delivery. That’s the USP and that’s the difference.
25. What do you think is the biggest threat to the success of small businesses & Start-ups today?
Answer: The threat is internal rather than external. At times, I see entrepreneurs losing path and do not aim for the right goal in this journey. The ability to keep changing with times and technology is a something every entrepreneur should look forward to. Another important aspect is the ability to scale your business in the right way. It is of utmost importance.
26. Do you consider yourself successful and by what means do you measure success?
Answer: Yes, I am successful and looking forward to the next steps. Defining or measuring success to me is all about the present. Alphabet factory has achieved in the span of one year, what many companies don’t achieve in the breadth of a lifetime. From an agency that once focused purely on textual content, it has grown and learnt the ropes of the visual world, mastering the domains authoring, process, and best practices. “Rearranging Words Into Ideas”
27.Please share complete name, address, phone number, email id & website of Your Business & Contact Person
Company name: Alphabet Factory Inc.
Brand: Alphabet Factory
Address: Registered: C 15, C Block, Sector 65, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201301.
Phone number: +91 9871044855, +91 98716 07888
E-mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Website: www.alphabetfactory.in
Contact Person and Founder: Aparna Chugh
