Breaking customer mindsets about small local brands is tough

How did the idea of starting an anti-virus company occur to you?

Before Quick Heal, I was servicing computers and had annual maintenance
contracts with some small customers. My brother, Sanjay, was pursuing his
Masters in Technology and while using, my system faced some virus attacks. He
wrote software code and that resolved the problem. Over time, I started
distributing this code to my customers and then they started asking for more
advanced versions. That is when, we decided to patent our solutions and form a
company to sell anti-virus (AV) solutions.

What are the challenges in creating and selling a homegrown AV solution?

We face lot of competition from multinational companies (MNC) who are
renowned brands and have strong money power. Since it's our initial stage and we
are a local brand from Pune, we are unable to scale our operations at a faster
pace like these MNCs. Also, customers still prefer going to MNC brands when it
comes to security as they find them more robust. Customers

are not willing to try local applications unless they are highly recommended.
Breaking this mindset is tough.

A lot of Indian companies that came out with AV solutions, shut down. What
do you think is the reason behind this?

Like I mentioned, competing with MNC players is not easy for any small local
brand. Besides, many of the local players shut shop because the complexity of
the virus attacks has intensified.

Keeping this scenario in mind, any AV company needs to have a wide research
set-up and huge technical manpower that can come out with solutions as and when
a need arises. This is not possible for every company, as they might not have
the financial wherewithal. This is why companies like Red Alert or Smart Dog
could not sustain in the Indian market beyond the initial phase.

Kailash Katkar CEO, Quick Heal Technologies

How is Quick Heal ensuring that it is not caught in a similar trap?

We have been conce­ntrating on making our entire processes as automated as
possible. This is to combat the manpower attrition problem faced by the
industry, especially at the R&D end. Besides, when we plan some expansion of our
operations, we keep the future in mind, so that we can be flexible and
adaptable.

Our biggest USP is our service. We have service centers in over 17 cities and
at places where we don't have our own presence, we have educated our dealers to
give the first level of service. In addition, we have a helpline number and
e-mail support also.

All the MNCs have a top-down approach while we have a bottom-up one. We have
a network of over 70 partners and we provide them with sales and technical
training every quarter, which

also results in increased partner loyalty.

Do you plan to move from regional distribution model to national
distribution model?

No. We are currently happy with our regional distribution network. Most
national distributors ( NDs) are logistic partners, while our products need a
little technical push as well. Also, since we are not very well known, we have
to create ground level pull for our products which is possible only if we engage
with partners directly that will not be possible with a ND set-up.

Why have you limited your offering to AV solutions only?

Coming out with newer solutions takes time. Besides, our competitors already
have their proven products in the enterprise security solutions space; to combat
them, we have to come out with products with better features, which takes time
in R&D.

We also have to work on improving the pull for our brand. We would like to
consolidate the home and SOHO clientele base before we start focusing
aggressively on the SMB segment. Apart from that, we have noted that most
enterprises want full hardware and software security solution and in such cases,
companies like Symantec win hands down.

Are you planning on OEM agreements?

Most desktop and laptop manufacturers have global agreements with security
vendors. We did try to have an OEM agreement with local hardware vendors, but
they wanted the product at OEM price. At that price, we would not be able to
offer the level of support we are currently giving. In case of post-sales
problem, we would not be able to service the customer who would then believe
that Quick Heal's product was not good. We did not want to fall into that trap
and therefore, prefer going to customers directly.

At the same time, we have tied up with Microsoft India. Customers using
genuine Microsoft Windows OS, can go to their official website and download
Quick Heal at just Rs 250, which is almost 85 percent discounted price. This is
a win-win situation for both Microsoft and us as it is rewarding its genuine
customers at the same time helping us reaching out to a wider client base.

Is piracy a cause for concern for you?

Not really. Most customers have realized that they can't take chances with
their data security and that a pirated software version will not protect their
system against the latest attacks.

Vinita Bhatia

vinitavs@cybermedia.co.in