In India there are many startups are coming up with unique Idea. Young generation is more interested in entrepreneurship instead of going to the job path and why not, Certainly they start their carrier with CEO… looks great!

SearchMyCampus is introduced by four young and energetic guys Peyush, Vidha, Neha and Vidhi. I had discussion with Vidha about their venture, would like to share with you all…

Tell us something about SearchMyCampus?

SearchMyCampus.com is an online classifieds portal or as we like to call it, an online campus notice board for students.

Right now, everyone uses the noticeboard to put up advertisements about events happening around college, about stuff they want to sell, stuff they want to buy, services they offer, services they need etc.

We have put all of that and more, online on one website. So if a second year student wants to sell his first year books, he can simply post an advertisement on the website, and a first year student who needs these books can see this ad and contact him to buy them. Similarly, if a student wants to initiate a carpool, she can post an ad describing her starting point, route and destination and other students from his campus can see this and contact her in case they are interested in joining.

Students can use it for all their needs including accommodation, books, car pools, roommates, tutors, jobs, campus events etc.

SearchMyCampus team profile? Are you hiring?

Peyush Bansal - Program Management

At 23, Peyush is a graduate from McGill University, Canada. The idea was inspired by his experiences at college looking for basic things like accommodation and books. Peyush has had experience in working with product development at his job in Microsoft in USA. He is extremely passionate about his work, and has been involved in every part of this product ranging from conceptualization to development and design to marketing.

Vidha Jain - Operations

Vidha, 22 is a graduate in Accounting and Sociology from the University of Manchester, UK. She has been helping out with bringing this website and its benefits to the attention of students in India.

Neha Bansal - Finance and Accounting

An all India 10th rank chartered accountant from the Indian Institute of Chartered Accountants, Neha,26 keeps a tight control on our finances and keeps us from going bankrupt. She is a B (Com.) graduate from the University of Delhi and has had extensive experience working with accounts and finance at InMacs, India. Neha has also been involved in the conceptualization and definition of this product from the very beginning, and plays an important role in managing the team along with handling the finances.

Yes, we have a number of positions open on the SearchMyCampus.com team. Our primary requirement at present is for a software developer, web designer and a project manager. We are also looking for online marketing experts and content writers. You can read more about our openings at http://searchmycampus.com/campus.php?view=career&dc=1&cityid=87 or e-mail me at vidhaj@searchmycampus.com for more details.

In India there are a sequence of social networking websites, how SearchMyCampus stands out?

SearchMyCampus.com is not a social networking website. It is a platform where students can advertise their needs for various services or merchandise, and get in touch with other students or service to meet these needs. Your interaction with other students or service providers is limited to contacting them to respond to their advertisement i.e. buy or sell what they offering or need. We don’t want it to be a ‘cool’ or ‘fun’ site. We want it to hold utility for them.

How many colleges are enrolled till now? Share your experience of convincing them to be enrolled.

Colleges don’t have to enroll with us. We are an independent service. Students decide if they want their college to be on our site so they can start using their campus noticeboard. We have included some of the bigger colleges already, and if a student from a college which is not listed logs on to our site, they can ‘request’ their college. We wait till 3-4 students request a campus before we add that college to our existing list so that they are sufficient number of users to make the concept work.

Did you get any funding? I think Google adsence is the only medium of revenue…am I right?

No, we are not externally funded. Besides Google Adsense, we also have paid banner advertisements on our website which form another revenue stream.

Your suggestion for young entrepreneurs?

What we’ve learnt so far is that a venture like this takes time to become successful. You need a lot of time and patience to make it work. Everything’s a learning experience.

Thanks Vidha. Wish you good luck to SearchMyCampus Team!

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