1. Bangalore

Bangalore’s (or Bengaluru’s) ten-fold growth in nippy time can be traced back to the IT boom over the past few years. Bangalore’s main activity is information technology and information technology-enabled services. Being the leading contributor to India’s IT industry, it has been dubbed the Silicon Valley of India.

Home too many software majors, like Infosys and Wipro, Bangalore accounted for 33 per cent of India’s Rs 144,214 crore ($32 billion) IT exports in 2006-07.

A recent study also revealed that the rupee millionaire club in Karnataka’s capital is the largest in India.

Bangalore also boasts of having the largest number of households with an annual income of Rs 10 lakh (Rs 1 million) or more. Needless to say, the city owes it all to the IT boom. Little wonder then that Bangalore is the number 1 IT desitnation in India.

2. Hyderabad

Like Bangalore, Hyderabad too has witnessed an IT boom in recent times, with software exports exceeding $1 billion in 2004. Of late, the city has seen huge investments in digital infrastructure. It is the second most attractive IT destination in India.

On February 19, 2008, the Indian government cleared seven projects, estimated to fetch about $7 billion over 10 years to Fab City, a silicon chip manufacturing facility, in the city.

The capital of Andhra Pradesh has also made considerable progress in the field of bio-technology through initiatives like Genome Valley and Nanotechnology Park.

3. Chennai

Chennai is the country’s third-largest exporter of information technology and information-technology-enabled services, next only to Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Experts say that the city has the potential to beat Bangalore and Hyderabad in terms of infrastructure and thus gain the position of the most attractive IT destination. Today, it is the third most preferred IT spot in India.

The software companies having their development centres in the city, are well positioned to tap the growing healthcare market for IT products and the emerging opportunity in life sciences.

Companies like Tata Consultancy Services, Cognizant Technology Solutions and Covansys earn the lion’s share of their income from what they offer to the US healthcare market.

The capital of Tamil Nadu is often looked upon as the most reasonable and reliable outsourcing destination for IT and healthcare solutions.

Maharashtra, with its many cities doing excellently on the IT front, has two big IT destinations, Pune and Mumbai. The state is the 4th most attractive IT spot in India.

4. Pune

Once a sleepy town, nestling in Western Ghats, Pune (or the ‘Queen of the Deccan’) may soon become the number one destination for IT investments in India, considering the pace at which it is growing and attracting companies.

According to a recent report, Pune has the highest PC penetration among households. Several IT majors like Wipro, Infosys, Satyam, Tata Consultancy Services, Kanbay, Veritas, Cognizant, PCS and Mahindra British Telecom have development arms in the city.

IT parks like Rajiv Gandhi IT Park at Hinjewadi, Magarpatta Cybercity, MIDC Software Technology Park at Talawade, Marisoft IT Park at Kalyani Nagar are seats of technology that the city can boast of.

4. Mumbai

The Maharashtra government has done a fantastic job in building the IT Corridor connecting International Infotech Park, Millenium Business Park and the Santacruz Electronic Export Processing Zone. A number of IT companies have set up offices here.

The most important advantage that brings software enterprises to SEEPZ is the hi-tech 64 KB line, that enables these companies to communicate and video conference over satellite to any of the offshore sites, or branches around the world.

Mumbai, apart from being the financial capital of the country, is also a booming IT centre.

5. Kolkata

West Bengal is targeting to become one of the top three IT states by 2010, contributing 15-20 per cent of the country’s total IT revenue. A number of IT majors are today doing significant business in the state’s capital, Kolkata.

Announcing the results of a survey report on the state’s IT and ITeS sector in Kolkata recently, Indian Chamber of Commerce president Harsh K Jha said, “Between 2002-05, West Bengal has been recognised as the fastest growing IT destination in the country with more than double the national average growth rate.”

“The ICC carried out the survey by gathering feedback from prominent IT companies operating in the state, including TCS, Cognizant, IBM, Wipro, on issues like infrastructure, investment scenario and future business prospects,” he said.

According to the survey, 80.6 per cent of the respondents affirmed that the state was a competitive destination for IT and ITeS companies to set shop.

However, he warned that majority of the companies felt that IT and ITeS remained a ‘public utility service’ only on paper, with a resounding 74.19 per cent opining that the sector in the state could not operate on 24×7x365 model, as it was being frequently disrupted by strikes and bandhs.

You have heard of desktops and laptops, but now two engineering students in Kerala have come up with a virtual computer that can be accessed from anywhere in the world. All it needs is an internet connection.

K Ansar and PP Ismail, final year computer science students at an engineering college in Vatakara, have set up www.bloxtr.com, the prototype of a virtual computer in which you can store all your important documents, favorite music, colorful pictures and even videos.

“The idea is that no one needs to carry a laptop or pen drive around. You can upload any files to the website and access it from any corner of the world. What you need is just an interface to access the internet,” Ansar told IANS.
Ansar and Ismail are fans of Richard Stallman, the free software guru, and they are also keen on popularising the competency of open source software.

Ismail said bloxtr is just a project and doesn’t yet have the speed and features of professional applications. They are hoping for investment by corporate firms for the further development of their prototype.
According to the students, people are largely ignorant about the opportunities that open source software provides. They stumbled upon the idea of a virtual computer while mining the internet.

“We’d like to popularise the concept of the virtual computer. As far as we know such a facility does not exist. Google has Google Docs to store and edit documents or spreadsheets, while websites like ibackup.com provide the facility of creating backup data.

“The open source platform for creating a virtual computer is available on the internet. Open source platforms are available free for any kind of project,” said Ansar.

We want to make bloxtr more elaborate so that one can install software of one’s choice on the virtual computer,” he said.
“We are trying to convert this into a mobile application. When 3G services become operational in the country we think the virtual computer will really be an attractive proposition,” Ismail said.

Ismail and Ansar, along with three other classmates, have already won a project from a local software company on behalf of a Gulf-based airline to develop a system to make flight schedule information available on mobile phones.

They are also planning a project to network educational institutions. “This is a long-term project, under which we plan to provide a website from where information on students from the networked institutions can be retrieved,” said Ismail.

“If a parent wants to ascertain the score of his child he can access it directly from his home. For employers who are on the lookout for talent, this database could be a good source. We are also planning a virtual classroom. Eighty per cent of the work on this is complete,” he added.

How do you build a cost-effective Internet marketing strategy? Given that the Internet is such a young advertising medium, it’s possible to take many wrong steps, and it’s also possible to innovate and drastically change how the industry looks at marketing consumers online. Observe the development of web platforms
 

With a defined cocktail of creative innovation, savvy budgeting, and flexibility, you can survive and grow even in a tempestuous online atmosphere.
 

Test Different Online Marketing Methods 

One philosophy suggests that small business website owners should avoid “diving in.” Don’t spend lots of your advertising capital upfront, explore a host of ad ideas. Statistically, you’re simply not going to achieve your maximum ad potential right off the bat.
 

By trying out diverse kinds of campaigns, different online ad schemes, and even different website aesthetics, you’ll have statistics to light your way for future development. Better measurements give way to more precise financials.
 

Don’t worry about conquering your entire demographic slice with your limited ad budget. Focus on consumers who will convert to sales. There are numerous ways for an online ad campaign to be successful.
 

If the funds you spend on advertising fuels enough customer purchases to pay for your ads and then some, you have “succeeded.” On the other hand, if you create a brand awareness that rearranges to your “real world” stores and generates an ROI there, you have succeeded as well, even if your online site doesn’t turn a hefty profit.
 

Define Your Online Goals
 

Set your goals before you start spending money or getting third parties involved. Do you want simply to add your brick and mortar brand awareness? Do you need to sell wares to clear your inventory for an upcoming season?
 

Do you need to gain a foothold in a competitive, time-sensitive industry? Your goal should inform your strategy. Don’t get caught up in the excitement over the new bells and whistles available to internet advertisers, figure out what you want from the Net, and then work backwards to draft strategies to make that “want” come about.
 

Practice Patience
 

Finally, realize that making a long-term cost-effective Internet marketing strategy can take time. Rome wasn’t built in a day. Even if the Internet is a “fast” advertising medium, there is a learning curve involved. Don’t shut down your operations or switch “advertising modes” too quickly, simply give your techniques some time to work.