Changing how the world works
Brands often want to influence and change the world around them – sometimes within the bounds of authenticity, and sometimes not.
Tech is no different, but when it comes to platform brands, it’s perhaps more true than other segments. Platform brands are often the youthful upstarts and yesterday’s unicorns with high regard for their market contempt and trouble making. They’re often the ones making up the new rules, and zigging when others zag.
A strong belief system or manifesto aligned with their carefully carved niche is super critical to success. There’s little room for the meek and mild here.
New economics of platforms brings new entrants
Platform plays have disrupted many established markets and industries – Uber in taxis, AirBnB in hospitality/travel, Doordash in fast-food – to name just a few. Most markets have received some challenge to norms and business models from a platform-upstart that’s looking to shake-up the status quo and entrenched commercial agendas.
To do it, they (largely) use existing technology to create unique IP to introduce a new route-to-market. But they also come at it with an ecosystem mentality, looking to introduce value to actors that are critical for the platform to be a success. These are often fellow disruptors looking sideways at a market and thinking, ‘We could do with some of that action’.
In fact, six of the ten most valuable companies in the world today are platform businesses: Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook, Tencent, and Alibaba. They all allow ‘vendors’ to use their platform to monetise their wares. And they’re doing well out of it!
Now, the winners are not necessarily ‘the tech pioneers’ – they’re often ‘the pioneers with tech’.
But while the platform-model is loved by shareholders and business leaders alike, these brands are faced with some unique pressures. Notwithstanding existing businesses undergoing ‘platform-reincarnation’ and looking to benefit from recurring revenues and sticky services themselves.
Platforms need an engaging core
More than many other tech businesses, platform co.’s need a rock-solid raison d’être for others to exist. They often provide an alt. route to market that still needs to compete with old world models as well as subsequent waves of disrupters.
The kernel of their original business plan needs to surface for ecosystem ‘contributors’ to believe in their vision and collaborate/co-create to the underlying business intent. These participants – together with the end-buyer – need to believe in the operating model as much as they do the character of the marketing. There ain’t no hiding here!
What should the platform marketer look for?
To achieve the relationship above, platform marketers should ensure:
- The business purpose is very clear and sustainable for ecosystem participants – even more so if a market is experiencing various disrupters with similar models.
- The purpose is translated into persona-based messages/journeys at key touch points.
- The value of the model is seen/projected to carry substantial value to contributors (i.e. lean/efficient route to market) and end-buyers (i.e. ease of selection/provision).
- The brand purpose (i.e. what the brand believes in) must co-exist neatly with the business purpose (i.e. the reason for invention).
- Bullets 1 and 2 must sense and respond to changing plays of new entrants.
Addressing these issues head-on will get you well into the success zone.
Long live the tech-centric business
This new breed of tech-centric business, or the enlightened leadership team of a ‘platform-reincarnation’ play, are generally in-tune with the needs of the end user. They understand the self-empowered and open business mindset and how that’s good for the market – and their prosperity.
As such they’re generally less infatuated with ‘tech-spec marketing’ than the tech pioneers of yesterday. But they still need to enact the bullets above to make sure their play engages and endures.
The Rubicon Agency has significant experience in platforms play – whether the original platform disruptors or the re-incarnators.
Check out our experience in platforms.
