What is a Platform Builder?
Definition
A Platform Builder creates an online space that connects two or more distinct user groups to exchange value, services, content, or goods. As such, a platform builder serves as an intermediary, owning and managing the infrastructure where these interactions take place.
Examples:
- Marketplaces (Exchange Platforms), which connect buyers and sellers for goods or services (e.g., Amazon, Airbnb).
• Beginner Strategy: Focus on a niche or “vertical” marketplace. Research distinct areas where buyers and sellers need to find each other. For example, you could focus on a dedicated marketplace for vintage typewriters or eco-friendly building materials.
- Content and Community Platforms, which connect content creators with an audience, or users with one another based on shared interests.
• Beginner Strategy: Focus on a micro-community or membership site, for example, a hub for “AI Song Creators” to collaborate and learn. Your own research will determine precisely where there is a fragmented community that needs to come under a single umbrella.
- Software/Tool Platforms, which provide a foundation for users to build businesses or interact with their own customers (e.g., Shopify, HubSpot).
• Beginner Strategy: Unlike a standard software tool (which helps just one user do a particular task), a platform tool connects many users. For example, rather than just a photo-editing app, you might build a platform where photographers can edit and license their photos directly to agencies. Think along these lines.
Skills for Beginners
• Market Spotting: This means your ability to identify underserved niches, where two groups need to connect or transact.
• Technical Familiarity: Understanding the basics of platform architecture, specifically No-Code or Low-Code tools (e.g., Sharetribe for marketplaces, Bubble for apps, or Circle for communities).
• Growth Strategy: Understanding how to attract both sides of your platform (e.g., buyers and sellers) at the same time. That is, attracting both supply (sellers/creators) and demand (buyers/users) so that the space grows and become increasingly attractive to users.
Monetization Potential
• Subscription/Membership Fees: Where you charge users a recurring fee for access to the platform or premium features.
• Transaction Fees: This involves taking a percentage or fixed fee from the value exchanged (e.g., this could be 5% of every sale).
• Advertising/Sponsorships: Basically, this involves selling visibility to third-party businesses so that they can promote their products or services, once the platform has gained a significant number of users.
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