400 companies are these young people’s customers

Official News is the first online content distribution service in Iran which helps companies to get access to more than 2 thousand domestic and 70 thousand international media.

In a world where we’re surrounded by formal and informal news channels in social networks, getting access to an inclusive source is a desire for everyone.

Tell us about the formation of “Official News” from idea to implementation.

As a journalist, I had difficulty in accessing reliable news in Iran. I had seen how online news release services works and how they help in access to reliable content sources.

On the other hand, I was interested in public relations. Therefore, the idea of developing a news site came to my mind.

• Why did you name it “Official News”?

Because contents in this site are directly released from companies. Also, “Official News” gauranties the nature of its source.

• After selecting idea and brand, how did you implement it?

Our idea won the gold medal in Sharif Entrepreneurship and Business Development Festival in December 2013.

After that we implement the idea. In October 2014, the original plan was ready and we entered Avatech entrepreneurship accelerator. Then after 6 months, we opened an independent company.

• After all the ups and downs, where were the peak points in your work?

We could offer service to more than 400 Iranian companies and organizations in less than 9 months.

Also, our company and product was approved by Presidential Deputy for Science and Technology and we became known as a knowledge-based company.

• What are the problems and barriers you’ve faced?

Unfortunately, companies were unfamiliar with the importance of content production newsworthy. Another problem was that this business was innovative. It was hard to introduce ourselves in market.

• How could you defeat these problems?

We used learning strategy in order to introduce our work and its results to the market. We distributed more than 300 tutorials and holding several training events to train senior managers, particularly managers of public relations helped a lot.

• Did you face any problem in team making?

Our biggest problem was team making. It is difficult to gather eager ones together who love to face challenges and then unite them to achieve a single goal.

In a startup we should change employee’s minds and lead them towards growth and entrepreneurship, and this is a hard task due to financial challenges.

• How many people work in your company?

Currently, 14 people are working in official news section and 4 people in technical team and the rest of them are experts in the fields of media and public relations.

• What is your plan for the future of Official News?

We intend to improve our services, help our country’s media to be transparent, quick and reliable and contribute to business development in Iran.

In an international context, we want to develop international news distribution sector of our domestic companies in order to improve the position of Iranian brands in the world.