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MenuFor the supply in a two-sided marketplace, is it initially more valuable to have a couple of high-profile people, or a lot of standard-level people?
For example, at the beginning of Clarity, would it have been better to have a couple "celebrity" experts (Mark Cuban) or 10 non-celebrity experts.
Answers
Good question.
There is no absolute correct answer, as both options have their pros and cons. At the end of the day, you need to bring in as many users, on both sides (experts and people using their services) in order to create traction and gain revenues.
So, if the "Celebrities" are willing to endorse and advertise your platform, then it is better focusing on them, but in most cases, they won't do so, therefore, it would probably be better, and easier, focusing on getting regular (but quality) experts. Also, take into account that "celebrities" usually have less availability and are more expensive, which will affect the level of service that you offer your users.
Good luck
I've successfully helped over 350 entrepreneurs, startups and businesses, and I would be happy to help you. After scheduling a call, please send me some background information so that I can prepare in advance - thus giving you maximum value for your money. Take a look at the great reviews I’ve received: https://clarity.fm/assafben-david
I think this is not a good idea to have a couple of high-profile people for your 2 sided marketplaces advertisement. Because celebrities generally have less availability and are greater high-priced, with a purpose to have an effect on the level of service that you provide your customers. I think you have to think about the marketing strategy. You should understand how to attract both buyers and sellers.
The good idea is, you have to choose the right professionals, it will save you a lot of time and money. Expert SEO and SMM professionals will promote your website effectively. Another way of growing marketplace popularity is a high-quality website, that is, the fast work and interesting design and, of course, it is the absence of gross bugs including.
I've successfully helped over 150 entrepreneurs, startups, and businesses to create and run marketplaces, and I would be happy to help you. Please send me more information before scheduling a call - so I can give you maximum value for your money. Take a look at the great reviews I’ve received: https://clarity.fm/ripul.chhabra
When building a platform out a platform, the most important aspect initially is to be able to create core interactions among the initial users. These core interactions make the platform valuable, and vastly increases your chances of developing viral growth loops, as opposed to word-of-mouth effects.
To help you distinguish the difference between viral growth and word of mouth, here is a thinking.
Word of mouth will happen when somebody hears that Mark Cuban is on Clarity and she will tell her friends to check Clarity out; it is newsworthy. You will get sign ups out of curiosity, but those new sign ups will still need to interact within the platform to create value.
Viral growth will happen when users get more benefits by having their own social connections on the platform, and therefore they will invite their friends to join. For example, if Mark Cuban was on Clarity and Clarity was offering a "group chat", a single Clarity user might decide to invite her entire startup to join Clarity, so that each can connect to the group chat with their own accounts and ask questions to Mark. This positive network effects differentiate viral growth from other traditional marketing effects, and viral growth relies heavily on the existence of core interactions in the platform.
Finally, here are tiers of value your producers would create early in a marketplace
Most valuable scenario: You have high-profile producers and they interact. I.e. Mark Cuban is on Clarity and he takes calls and answers questions.
More valuable scenario: You have producers (high-profile or low-profile, doesn't matter as long as they can produce value) and they interact.
Less valuable scenario: You have high-profile producers but they don't interact. In this case, more producers would continue to sign up to become associated with Mark Cuban, hence you get some viral growth. You would rely on your low-profile producers interacting.
Least valuable scenario: You have low-profile producers but they don't interact. This would signal the future demise of the platform unless you step-change the core interaction volume in the marketplace.
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Holding funds in a 2-sided marketplace?
Check out https://www.balancedpayments.com/ They are made for marketplaces. Airbnb CEO among others invested in them and they have some of the best pricing/payout fees. Also some good info on http://www.collaborativeconsumption.com/2013/10/08/online-marketplaces-are-hard/ One of Balanced Payments co-founders is writing this blog series on marketplaces.MA
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How to attract users to both sides of a double-sided marketplace (legal Q & A)?
You could try a "widget" on the lawyer's site which facilitates getting generic questions answered for free. The idea being that in each practice area, there might be a handful of questions that they get asked frequently, and would commit to answering one-time. It could be used to qualify the web visitor (always a good thing) while satisfying the visitor by providing them an answer. Of course, the challenge here is that most lawyers might only be comfortable providing such watered-down generic advice, that the answers themselves wouldn't be very useful. But this way, you could provide value to lawyers somewhat comfortable with online discourse, while building up content. With enough lawyers and content, you could then expand the service to build towards your larger vision. But as John has mentioned, many entrepreneurs have and are actively trying to win with this type of idea and have often struggled. CaseText is a recent YC grad that is doing some interesting work in this area. Happy to talk through your product implementation.TW
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When creating a marketplace, does it make more sense to focus on stimulating demand first or supply?
Focus on the more difficult side of the marketplace. For instance, if you think it'll be easier to get suppliers, then focus first on getting buyers - always be working on your toughest problem (aka your biggest risk). You'll find some great blogging on Marketplace and Platform topics here http://platformed.info (read the ebook too!)CM
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How to solve a chicken and egg problems for a marketplace like Uber? What is the best way to acquire demand side?
The best way to solve chicken and egg problems for marketplaces is to prove market need on each side independently first with a low-cost MVP-type test. Once you've proven the market on both sides with metrics it is much easier to leg in supply and demand with a strategic or enough funding to match a market on a local or niche level to ensure liquidity. For a deeper analysis, here is a post on medium that I wrote... http://bit.ly/1k2vYbY Also, feel free to schedule a call with me if you'd like to dig deeper.DK
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