World Diabetes Day - Did you check your blood sugar today?

The "age factor" compels you to do a few things, one such in my case is the urge to shed that extra fat and stay fit. So, i've been at it for a couple of months, but have always had a problem measuring my efforts towards that end.



Last week, Namit, Varun, Himanshu - founders of LifeMojo, one of MVP's portfolio sent me a test link to their B2C platform - www.lifemojo.com. Here you can not only assess your current body and lifestyle "health", but also plan and track your diet and exercise schedule. These guys are in a pre-release mode and will open to users shortly... i'll update my blog when they release, its a great tool to try out, if you are health conscious, a health freak or just concerned about over-weight. I know that they are also going to add tracking tools for preventive healthcare, such as diabetes and blood pressure.

Anyways, the best thing i liked about these guys is that even if they are in pre-release phase, fixing bugs and all that - When i logged onto www.lifemojo.com this morning - i was totally impressed. I saw a little note on World Diabetes Day on the homepage. When i logged in it also showed me a little reminder about getting my blood sugar tested... So, lo and behold - i promptly got to the hospital near my house in the morning and gave my blood sample to get my sugar levels tested! This, i have been procastinating for a while, though my doctor had suggested i get it tested, considering the family history of blood sugar there exits.

Thankyou LifeMojo!

Reliance Communications, Don't call me anymore!

I do not answer the call if its from 30333232 anymore. But its strange to see how these guys have been repeatedly calling me.

I bought a reliance netconnect connection three weeks back and a day later as promised my connection got activated. The same day i got a Welcome call from one of the agents who asked me a bunch of questions for verification. Thanks were said at both ends and i was a happy customer. Until...

The next day i got another call, Welcome Call Sir! (please, i hate it when people don't bother to figure out if its a man or a woman they are talking to. My voice is not that masculine, nor do i have a Punjabi Sikh name to make things more confusing!) I answered patiently and told the caller that a welcome call has been done, this is a second call. Thanks were said.

From then on, i've got 30 calls in all, on a daily basis from Reliance, some i have answered, explained to them that i've got a welcome call already, please make note. Some i have simply not answered.

Meanwhile, i've already got my usage bill and i still continue to get welcome calls :)

Reliance Communications - I would've loved to see this dedication and efficiency in your data service and complaint resolution.

PS: I've got a welcome call, please make note and don't call me anymmore!

Valentine's day FRAUD by Cafe Coffee Day

Today, on Valentine's day, when tradition talks of spreading love and expressing your love... Cafe Coffee Day has managed to pull off a FRAUD!

My classmate from University came by visiting me, she lives in another country and is visiting India briefly. She dropped by at office and we decided to go to the nearby Cafe Coffee Day or CCD as its commonly known as!

The Valentine flavor was seen all around and at CCD, with red balloons and young couples mostly in Red and Black, the women holding presents or flowers.... the spirit was in the air!

When we sat to order, i was a little disappointed as they were NOT serving the regular menu, so there was no usual Masala Chai Black for me. A little unhappy, i continued to choose what my friend had ordered for - 'Go Nut Cappuccino'. As the guy was walking away with the order, we noticed that there was "no price attached to the menu", we joked about CCD's strategy to make extra bucks on V-Day and asked the guy how much the cappuccino costs, he did a mental calculation and said Rs. 51/-. We were pleased, thats not a rip off after all!

The order came and our expectations got crushed further, the Go Nut was all about one simple cappuccino and CCD's own Masala Peanut, which they call ' Go Nut'. Bummer! Yet we were going with the spirit... catching up on matters of a few years that had grayed on us. After a couple of hits by the floor supervisor at CCD we decided we'll make way for the young love birds who had flocked around waiting for their chance to taste the sweetness of caffeine...

When it was Bill Time, i was given a bill of Rs. 75 first, which in between conversation i handed a Rs. 500 note... so when change came back, i was charged an amount of Rs. 190/-

It happens such that Go Not, has nuts that's separate and charged Rs. 36 for 2 (all the time we thought it was complementary and it sucked!) Cappuccino was Rs. 75 for one. (Omygod!) When asked for a clarification, i was told that the person who took my order was not aware of the costs. Even after random excuses and million illogical statements, my question was not answered - "I want a compensation." Finally, after a serious argument and pointing out that CCD was doing a fraud with its customers, i got charged Rs. 51/-per cup of coffee.

The point is not about money here, it is about setting consumer expectations. It is about ensuring product knowledge and awareness to the last line in your business.

It is also about acknowledging the fact that consumer's are intelligent, running a business, but in a fair manner. I have no qualms about CCD making a quick buck on V-day, but my problem is in the fact that they opted not to inform the customers about the prices up front, still worse, gave wrong information.

What's your fraud experience? Let know. Also, i will be interested in knowing, if you guys can come up with intelligent fraud ways of making a quick buck... let the ideas roll!