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Authors: Tom Taulli
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Platform
For technology companies, developing a platform that becomes a global standard is the equivalent of finding the Holy Grail. In the early days of Microsoft’s history, Bill Gates (who actually was the first person to come up with the concept of platform ) was approached by IBM, who wanted him to help them with their personal computer (PC) project. Gates realized that if he could develop an operating system that could run on almost any IBM-compatible computer, Microsoft stood a good chance of owning the rights to the world’s standard-issue operating system. In response, Gates created MS-DOS, and, as he had predicted, the operating system was wildly successful and became the operating system that was bundled for use on all PCs. In fact, the concept of developing a standard-issue platform was so lucrative for Gates and Microsoft that he applied it to Windows and the Office Suite. As a result, even though other players have competed fiercely against these product lines, Microsoft still has huge market shares in the computing and software spaces—even after several decades. Not many tech companies can claim the same.
Like Gates, Zuckerberg realized the importance of developing something bigger than a single-focused software program or web site, which is why he created Facebook with the end goal of turning it into a platform or even a utility. In essence, Zuckerberg wanted Facebook to be the core for all of itsusers’ social activities. To turn this goal into a reality, Zuckerberg took some crucial steps. One was to allow third parties to create apps on Facebook, a decision that set the stage for the current Facebook ecosystem and led to the creation of megacompanies like Zynga. Another important step Zuckerberg took was to develop Facebook Connect, which makes it possible for other web sites to register new users via Facebook’s social login.
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3 David Streitfeld, “Funny or Die: Groupon’s Fate Hinges on Words,” The New York Times, May 28, 2011, www.nytimes.com/2011/05/29/business/29groupon.html?pagewanted=all .
If you think your company has a platform opportunity, you need to take some important steps. It is critical that you devote an immense amount of resources to providing support services, which entails more than just giving developers access to code and modules. You need to create a developers’ program that has clear-cut terms, training programs, and frequent updates. You should also hold ongoing conferences and meetings to encourage new developer members to join your platform.
Creating a platform involves a lot of work, so make sure you’re ready to anticipate the potential questions and the possible problems that developers may encounter when using your utility before you launch your platform. If your company is in its early stages, think about waiting to create and launch a platform until your user base has reached critical mass and can grab the attention of potential developers. Consider that Facebook waited 3 years before launching its own program; and even with the wait, the platform still had many glitches in its early days.
Reactive Product Design
When a company introduces a new feature or product to ward off the threat of encroachment from a rival, it is engaging in reactive product design. However, fighting rivals on a feature-by-feature basis can harm the long-term prospects of your company. As discussed earlier in this chapter, adding new features just for the sake of keeping up with the Joneses is likely to create confusion and undue complexity for your users. It can also cause you to veer away from your company’s mission.
Even the best companies, Facebook included, can be found guilty of reactive product design and, generally speaking, it does not work out for them. For example, when the check-in service Foursquare became popular, Facebook launched its Places feature, but the service was a flop and was discontinued in short order. Then, in April 2011, Facebook launched
For technology companies, developing a platform that becomes a global standard is the equivalent of finding the Holy Grail. In the early days of Microsoft’s history, Bill Gates (who actually was the first person to come up with the concept of platform ) was approached by IBM, who wanted him to help them with their personal computer (PC) project. Gates realized that if he could develop an operating system that could run on almost any IBM-compatible computer, Microsoft stood a good chance of owning the rights to the world’s standard-issue operating system. In response, Gates created MS-DOS, and, as he had predicted, the operating system was wildly successful and became the operating system that was bundled for use on all PCs. In fact, the concept of developing a standard-issue platform was so lucrative for Gates and Microsoft that he applied it to Windows and the Office Suite. As a result, even though other players have competed fiercely against these product lines, Microsoft still has huge market shares in the computing and software spaces—even after several decades. Not many tech companies can claim the same.
Like Gates, Zuckerberg realized the importance of developing something bigger than a single-focused software program or web site, which is why he created Facebook with the end goal of turning it into a platform or even a utility. In essence, Zuckerberg wanted Facebook to be the core for all of itsusers’ social activities. To turn this goal into a reality, Zuckerberg took some crucial steps. One was to allow third parties to create apps on Facebook, a decision that set the stage for the current Facebook ecosystem and led to the creation of megacompanies like Zynga. Another important step Zuckerberg took was to develop Facebook Connect, which makes it possible for other web sites to register new users via Facebook’s social login.
__________
3 David Streitfeld, “Funny or Die: Groupon’s Fate Hinges on Words,” The New York Times, May 28, 2011, www.nytimes.com/2011/05/29/business/29groupon.html?pagewanted=all .
If you think your company has a platform opportunity, you need to take some important steps. It is critical that you devote an immense amount of resources to providing support services, which entails more than just giving developers access to code and modules. You need to create a developers’ program that has clear-cut terms, training programs, and frequent updates. You should also hold ongoing conferences and meetings to encourage new developer members to join your platform.
Creating a platform involves a lot of work, so make sure you’re ready to anticipate the potential questions and the possible problems that developers may encounter when using your utility before you launch your platform. If your company is in its early stages, think about waiting to create and launch a platform until your user base has reached critical mass and can grab the attention of potential developers. Consider that Facebook waited 3 years before launching its own program; and even with the wait, the platform still had many glitches in its early days.
Reactive Product Design
When a company introduces a new feature or product to ward off the threat of encroachment from a rival, it is engaging in reactive product design. However, fighting rivals on a feature-by-feature basis can harm the long-term prospects of your company. As discussed earlier in this chapter, adding new features just for the sake of keeping up with the Joneses is likely to create confusion and undue complexity for your users. It can also cause you to veer away from your company’s mission.
Even the best companies, Facebook included, can be found guilty of reactive product design and, generally speaking, it does not work out for them. For example, when the check-in service Foursquare became popular, Facebook launched its Places feature, but the service was a flop and was discontinued in short order. Then, in April 2011, Facebook launched
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