COVID-19 Pandemic – Revolutionizing & Accelerating the Rise of the Digital Economy

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj tells us how Bit Quest Sdn Bhd is a global digital marketing agency that is revolutionizing the digital economy. 

First of all, how are you and your family doing in these COVID-19 times? 

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: We are doing good, thanks for asking. It’s a completely new environment at home and work, and we are learning to cope with this new setup.

Tell us about you, your career, how you founded Bit Quest Sdn Bhd.

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: I started my career working with an event software startup in India, spearheading marketing and sales. After quitting my day job in 2010, I started my own entrepreneurial journey with Fourdy Digital, a web design and branding agency, working and consulting clients of various sizes and from different industries.

In 2013, I expanded Fourdy to Malaysia, and we are currently servicing clients from the Asia Pacific region. Under my leadership, the company has managed to crack major clients in India and Malaysia.

In 2017, I jointly founded Bit Quest Sdn Bhd, a global digital marketing agency. This company has been granted the prestigious “MSC Malaysia Status Company,” a Special Economic Zone and high-technology business district in Malaysia. BitQuest has recently won the award for Best Online Advertising Technology Solutions Malaysia 2020.

How does Bit Quest Sdn Bhd innovate? 

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: Prioritizing innovation today is more important than ever and is the key to unlocking success in the new normal world. The recent pandemic has revolutionized nearly every aspect of work culture – how companies interact with their customers (physical meetings converted to zoom calls), how customers choose and purchase products and services (from physical purchase to buying online). Our mantra of innovation has always been digitization. Only those who best adapt to a changing environment and move towards digitization will survive!

How does the coronavirus pandemic affect your business finances?

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: Thankfully, we are coming from an industry that has not been majorly impacted by the pandemic. However, initially in March 2020, we had a lot of retainer projects that went on hold, but we did not lose hope. I think our clients had then started to realize that this pandemic is here to stay, and we have to live with it. They did believe in us, and with our expertise in the online marketing domain, clients managed to sail through the pandemic. Honestly speaking, by September 2020, our revenue was the highest in the last 3 years. Where other industries and organizations were still undergoing pay cuts, we had not only paid the salaries in full but also granted bonuses. 

Did you have to make difficult choices regarding human resources, and what are the lessons learned?

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: No, as I said, we had no issues in terms of human resources; on the contrary, we hired a lot of people during the pandemic.

How did your customer relationship management evolve? Do you use any specific tools to be efficient?

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: Our client management process had always been seamlessly managed through a CRM. We use tools like Freshdesk and Basecamp to manage client responses and feedback. We didn’t have to change much during the pandemic as we have a well-established system.

Did you benefit from any government grants, and did that help keep your business afloat?

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: Unfortunately, no. There weren’t any sanctioned grants that I know of from the Government, probably because there are other industries that did suffer a lot during the pandemic and required grants, unlike ours, where we were blessed and self-sufficient to fight the battle ahead.

Your final thoughts?

Shikha Kedia Bharadwaj: We wish the world recovers from the economic stress and emotional stress that the pandemic has caused. My heart goes out to all the victims of the virus and their loved ones. It is important to stay positive and be appreciative of what we have amid this pandemic crisis. We at BitQuest will take all necessary measures to ensure our team stays healthy. Let’s Fight Against COVID-19 Together!

Your website?

www.bitquest.net 

www.shikhakedia.com