After having covered Google, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Pinterest individually, this time we are comparing them.
Learn about the similarities and differences that make them the platforms that they are today.
And moreover, learn to build your own platform business model!
Business Model Canvas
The Business Model Canvas is a very popular tool among innovators devised by Alexander Osterwalder. I am using it to explain some of the most interesting company in-depth profiles as well as some fundamental business models.
Google Business Model Canvas
Facebook is social media. Google is Search!
Last time, I said Facebook has proven the theory of platform business models right (it states that exponential growth would be possible due to the indirect network effects). Google has proven it even more (and a few years prior to Facebook).
Have you wondered how today’s world (ok, let’s say the internet) would look like without Google? The early homepages for millions of internet users were portal (or tabloid)-type pages, where search was only one of the features often buried among a lot of clutter. Other prominent pages also adopted the portal-style design (here Yahoo 1994, and 1997), or just look at the current AOL.com.
When Google emerged, their pages looked very bare. They focussed only on one value proposition: search results and reduced all search and transaction costs involved (it is said that this was due to the fact that they did not know enough about webpage design but seems it was to their advantage).
Business Model Canvas Facebook: how to become a giant?
Bringing the world closer together (and sometimes too close)
Facebook is social media!
They are dominating this category so much, that the CEOs of Twitter, Pinterest and Snapchat are calling themselves something different. I have pointed this out in the linked articles.
Facebook is one of a few platform businesses that have proven the theory of platform business models right. The theory always stated – or should we say assumed – that explosive growth would be possible due to the indirect network effects.
Insights into: Strategy – Business Model – Financials – Economics
Twitter Business Model Canvas
Twitter was one of the early platforms that came to scale and had a large impact on how social media has shaped up. It is reaching many areas of life. Their role in the political arena has been the most important element among all.
It has played a role in organising political positions and groups and – likely – amplified some political movements. It was purported to play a big role in political movements in the Middle East in the early 2010s. But it came full circle back to its originating country and may have given one particularly active user on the platform the last few votes to become president of the most powerful country. His predecessor was and is still very active on Twitter as well (and has the most followers of all users).
Snapchat Business Model Canvas
Deep rooted needs …
The way Snapchat grew is opposite to the way other social media platforms attracted users. They decided that a defining feature of their app is to let the content disappear after 24 hours.
A surprising move when you consider that one of the key value propositions of Facebook, Instagram and other platforms is to keep your photos and organise them as albums.
And they hit home with this in a number of ways.
First and foremost, it resembles real-life and communication: moments are temporary and they go by. All they leave behind may be a trace in our memories that will fade later or – in most cases – sooner.
And this attracted not those vulgar moments that many predicted it would. MySpace, who had more daily traffic than Google in their early days went under due to the negative effects of frivolous content, harassment and other forms of negative interactions. A similar fate was predicted for Snapchat.
But it never happened!
The disappearing feature, in fact, emphasised spontaneity and “living in the moment”. It further negated the need to “keeping up with the Joneses” ….