(by Anupam Saxena and Nikhil Pahwa) Online and telephone business listings company Just Dial, is gearing up to launch an online and phone based price quote service called Quick Quotes. Users will be able to call JustDial and request prices for products (for example, handsets) and the location they would like to buy it from, or search a product catalog on the web. Vendor information would be sent to them via SMS and/or email. The QuickQuotes will be launched at http://quickquotes.in, which is currently behind password, but there is a info page hidden here. According to our sources, product data collection is in progress, and it will initially be launched in Mumbai. For JustDial, this is an extension of their lead generation activities, wherein users call them for business directory information. By adding products to their mix,they increase the granularity of their services for both customers and vendors. The operational difference here is that the JustDial call center will call the vendor for updated quotes (in case there is a revision), and so there might be a 4-5 minute lag. While not much information is available about the service, except that it's going to be launched soon and that it would be offered free to end-users, Just Dial could probably offer this service to merchants at a premium; it's unlikely that they will charge commission on purchases that materialise via Quick Quotes, because tracking becomes difficult. For merchants it would obviously mean more business leads. It would also have to…
