Today there may be scores of health aggregator platforms in the market but Gurugram-based Plunes Technologies is confident of not only standing out but also making it really big in the over-crowded market. For a company that entered the market only few years ago, this exuberant confidence may appear little unreal to many. But Plunes believes that it has all the credentials to beat the competition and emerge victorious.
Among its other USPs, Plunes considers its ability to offer cross-section and holistic solutions under one platform will eventually help to edge out the competition. It is one of the few health aggregator platforms that does so. From booking of appointments with best doctors, finding curated& cost-effective solutions to wide-range of medical problems to being the first platform with cross functional integration for your electronic medical records.
Not to mention Plunes’ artificial intelligence driven solution also helps to find curated professionals & prices for medical procedures and diagnostics instantly.
In an exclusive interview with Techpluto, Plunes’ founder & CEO Mr. Chander Verma talks about the future plans of his company, including how it plans to use $120,000 that it raised through the recent angel funding round.
Q) Given that today there are already several consultation and health aggregator platforms, what are the USPs that Plunes is counting on to stand out among all its competitors?
A) PLUNES is a utility network. An AI-driven platform helps in offering curated, validated, cost effective and instant solutions to any healthcare problems. We only partner with curated professionals. Through an AI-based model we not only help users but also enable professionals to join the platform at no cost. AI automates appointments and acts like a personal assistant to professionals. We have conceptualized PLOCKER, the first AI-driven platform facilitating cross functional integration for electronic medical records. We not only help users to find curated professionals and prices for medical procedures but our technology-based work model can also help professionals to reduce the cost of operating clinics by upto 40% per annum.
Q) Looking back since its initial days, today how would you like to describe Plunes journey?
A) Our ride has been bumpy like all start-ups. I stumbled upon the idea of PLUNES after having an appalling experience with some other platforms. I also realized in due course that there is a serious gap in services offered by other healthcare platforms. They are mainly focused only on online consultations and appointments which constitute only 5% of medical expenses. Medical procedures and diagnostics account for 95% of the expenditure. In order to plug this gap, we developed a platform that provides assistance across the spectrum of healthcare delivery services.
Q) Plunes recently raised angel funding of $120,000. How does company plans to use the latest capital infusion?
A) We are very focused in terms of market strategy. The raised funds will be utilized to penetrate the Delhi and NCR market. This is a huge market as more than Rs.50 crore is spent on various medical procedures in Delhi and more than 7 lakh people undergo various diagnostics tests in Delhi on a daily basis. Our market penetration strategy is focused on leveraging this vast potential as our services fall into this segment exclusively.
Q) Plunes plans to achieve gross merchandise value (GMV) of Rs.5 crore per month by April 2020. How does company intends to go by to achieve this ambitious target?
A) As already mentioned, we are penetrating Delhi NCR in our early expansion stages. At a later stage, we plan to make inroads in the top 3 other metros of the country as well which offer a huge business opportunity. In short, we are in plans to expand to other cities as well.
Q) Can you please shed some light on your revenue model?
A) Plunes is a utility network. We do not charge anything for registrations or for any services to professionals, unlike other platforms. However, we charge a small amount in the successful completion of a transaction.
Q) When does Plunes plans to set the ball rolling for expanding into tier 2 and tier 3 cities?
A) By mid-2021, we plan to expand to tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
Q) Any long term plans to venture into international markets?
A) We are very positive on south-east Asia and Middle East, present a robust business potential, especially the Middle East. Given the right opportunity and support, we would be more than excited to expand into these markets. However, it would be too early to comment on any consolidation plans.
Q) What are some of the key challenges that today India’s health aggregator industry is facing?
A ) Reach and scale is an issue. As Healthcare is location- centric, focusing solely on telemedicine will not solve the problem. So to achieve scale, innovation in service delivery is the need of the hour.A diversified work strategy and not solely focusing on telemedicine will help in brand outreach and market penetration.
Q) Health being one of the basic necessities of human life, what role can platforms like Plunes play in improving healthcare condition especially in an overpopulated country like India?
A) Plunes is a platform which not only helps in securing online appointments and consultations but also curates professionals and pricing for medical procedures and diagnostics. We have PLOCKER, the 1st cross-functional integrated cloud for EMRs. In brief, we focus on curated solutions for healthcare issues.
Q) Where do you see Plunes next five years from now?
A) We will be available in all of the metro cities, tier 1, 2, and tier 3 cities as well in next five years.