Official site of Dr. Joni Salminen

Platform metrics: Some ideas

Published by Joni on August 11, 2018

I was chatting with Lauri [1] about platform research. I claimed that the research has not that many implications for real-world companies apart from the basic constructs of network effects, two-sidedness, tipping, marquee users, strategies such as envelopment, and of course many challenges, including chicken-and-egg problems, monetization dilemma, and remora’s curse (see my dissertation on startup dilemmas for more insights…

My website go hacked — here’s what I learned

Published by Joni on August 9, 2018

My friend Vignesh alerted me earlier this week that my site has been hacked and is forwarding to some malware site. At first, I called GoDaddy to ask for help. That was useless. It turns out their tech support consists of sales reps trying to sell you shit — no help for cleaning the site. They could it for me…

Myynti on resurssien tuhlausta – ajatuksia myynnin hyödyllisyydestä isossa kuvassa

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

Kansantaloudessa käytetään merkittävä määrä resursseja myyntiin, joka ei tuota tuloksia tai ole tarpeellista. Myynti on tarpeellista silloin, kun asiakkaalla on tarve, jonka hän joko tiedostaa tai ei tiedosta. Kummassakin tapauksessa myyjästä on asiakkaalle hyötyä — myyjä toimii informaation välittäjänä ja tehostaa näin markkinoiden toimintaa. Logiikka on sama kuin informatiivisen mainonnan teoriassa. Mutta silloin kuin myydään tuotetta, joka ei ole tarpeellinen…

Digital analytics maturity model

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

Digital analytics maturity model: Concepts — here, focus on is on buzzwords and realization that “we should do something”. Tools — here, focus is on tools, i.e. “Let’s use this shiny new technology and it will solve all our problems.” Value — here, we finally focus on what matters: how will the tools and technologies serve and integrate with our…

Problem of continuous value in SaaS business

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

A major challenge for many SaaS businesses is to provide continuous value, so that the users are compelled to continue using the service. There’s a risk of opportunism if the user can achieve his goals with one-time use; he then either uses the free trial version, or only subscribes for one month. For example, some SEO tools enable data download,…

Identifying opportunities that Google and Facebook can’t handle

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

It’s almost impossible to beat Facebook’s or Google’s algorithms in ad optimization, because they have access to individual-level data whereas the advertiser only gets aggregates, and even their supply is limited. But, there are two opportunities I see which Google and Facebook don’t handle: 1. Use of CRM data Especially purchase history (=lifetime value), product margins (=profitability), and other customer…

Grassblade model of startup acquisition

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

Grassblade model of startup acquisition = an incumbent is waiting until an upstart rival exceeds a KPI threshold x (e.g., 1 million users). Observations: ‘x’ needs to be defined so that it is big enough to prove the momentum, yet small enough to give a decent valuation — let the startup grow long enough, it can a serious competitor the…

Edelläkävijän kirous

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

Edelläkävijän kirous = edelläkävijä missaa bisnesmahdollisuuksia, koska kuvittelee että “se on jo tehty”. Ratkaisut tähän: 1. täydellinen ajoitus on mahdotonta: luovu sellaisen odottamisesta 2. mikään ongelma ei ole ratkaistu, ennen kuin kilpailijasi on ns. household brand (eikä sittenkään ole mahdotonta disruptoida, kuten Facebook => MySpace ja Google => Yahoo osoittavat) Aallolla ratsastaja tekee parhaimmat tuotot, ja aaltoon pääsee mukaan vähän…

Idea: Verkkokaupan showroom

Published by Joni on October 21, 2017

= kerää verkkokauppojen tuotteita fyysiseen tilaan. “Myymälän rooli nähdään nyt ‘’entertainment hubina’’ ja sillä tulee olemaan tärkeä rooli asiakaskokemuksen luojana – ei niinkään ostospaikkana.” On mahdollista tehdä tavaratalo, jossa tuotteita voi kokeilla ja katsoa, mutta ne tilataan netin kautta. Näin ei tarvitse olla paikallista varastoa. Haasteena on, että asiakas voi haluta tuotteen heti matkaansa.

Managing business development of an ad platform

Published by Joni on July 20, 2017

Here’s a great example of a business development program of an ad platform: Google provides similar service through its AdWords Partner program. Facebook and Google are offering the free 1-on-1 help for one simple reason: It improves the quality of ads. Because of this, two positive effects take place: a) the users are happier. As two-sided markets, FB and Google need…

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