Zoho, a global technology company, launched Vikra, a seller app on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) network, and Zoho IoT, a user-friendly and scalable low-code platform enabling businesses to build and deploy custom IoT solutions.
The announcement of the launches was made during the Zoholics India, the company’s annual user conference.
“Zoho is experiencing significant growth of 31 percent in India as businesses are increasingly seeking value from their software solutions. Larger organisations are also aiming to reduce inefficiencies, making India our second-largest market,” said Sridhar Vembu, CEO and Co-founder, Zoho Corp. He added that Zoho is focused on enhancing its platform through innovation and launching new products like Vikra and Zoho IoT, while also integrating AI capabilities across the tech stack.
Vikra looks to reduce the significant gap in the use of technology, and challenges in operating on marketplace platforms amongst the users of ONDC. Businesses using the app can get onboarded to the ONDC network easily, set up stores, create product catalogs, and start selling quickly through popular buyer apps like Paytm, Ola, and Snapdeal.
Speedy fulfillment
The app helps sellers get instant order notifications on WhatsApp and SMS for speedy fulfillment, said the company. Additionally, the sellers can self-deliver or deliver via partners like Delhivery on the ONDC network locally and nationally. Vikra also offers personalised support for onboarding, cataloging, managing operations, reconciling payment settlements from the ONDC network, and resolving customer disputes.
Vikra is built on Zoho’s finance and operations platform allowing businesses to manage their finances, handle taxes, streamline their inventory operations, and build an e-commerce store.
On the other hand, Zoho IoT seamlessly collects and manages IoT device data in real-time, offering businesses insights and streamlined operational analysis. The platform’s AI capabilities transform data into actionable insights, predict system outages, identify anomalies or forecast trends, optimise operations, and enhance customer experiences.
Furthermore, Vembu discussed the company’s global expansion plans, stating, “We have over 18 data centers. By the end of this decade, we will likely have a presence in almost every country in the world.”
He also addressed Zoho’s semiconductor Odisha plant plans, stating, “It’s too early to discuss details because the application is still pending. The government is involved as they will fund part of the capital investment, and they are eager to establish semiconductor plants here. However, the government needs to conduct a thorough evaluation first. This includes reviewing the technology being brought in, who is licensing it, and its overall viability. All of these factors require careful consideration.”