How the web2.0 website is successful Flickr case analysis

Why study this case?

from the industry's point of view, Flickr's sale to Yahoo is no big deal, at least in terms of venture capital. The deal is said to be worth 2000 to 30 million dollars, but the company's huge influence in the Web2.0 field cannot be measured by its valuation.

I am still interested in how to value it and whether Flickr can be a huge and successful industry. In the absence of marketing, Flickr gathered a large number of loyal users in a short time, a place most entrepreneurs are interested in understanding.

interviewer: There are a lot of articles on blogosphere to explore the reasons for Flickr's success, and I've linked some references at the end of the article. The bulk of the article came from a public discussion and a subsequent interview with Caterina Fake of combinator and I in this year's April 28. I also chatted with Yahoo executives about the motives behind the Flickr takeover.

Success Factors

Flickr focuses on developing features of the product.

Flickr may not have a regular product plan, but they know very well that it is important to put limited resources in the development of product features, which is beneficial to the development of their number of users. The widget (Features), which has become one of the Web2.0 flags, such as the introduction/export of blogs, the Flickr album code embedded in other websites, has developed very early. Because of this, almost 80% of new users know Flickr by browsing other Flickr users ' blogs. At the same time, Flickr has been rewarded for providing additional functionality, such as extended storage, to entice users to more actively invite their own friends in.

emphasizes that users have a good user experience the first time they go to Flickr

The first time I was on Flickr was a friend of mine who sent me a link to a photo. I soon became interested in Flickr because unlike other mainstream photo-sharing sites, I didn't need to sign up to see my friends ' photos. This is just one aspect of the many details that Flickr has done to turn visitors into their users, as well as the simplicity of the user interface with no compelling ads. But even with the product and user interface, Flickr emphasizes the intimacy of the first user. Caterina mentions how the Flickr team's staff is constantly improving FLIKCR's community forums every second to make people feel better. This may sound exaggerated, and you can tell the truth by yourself. However, Flickr does spend a great deal of effort on developing and supporting communities.

Flickr makes it easy to find and get high-quality photos.

when Flickr was launched, there were two types of photo-sharing services on the market: one focused on how to print photos efficiently (Shutterfly,ofoto) and the other was focusing on the shared photo field (Fotolog,buzznet,webshots). Flickr is competing with the second service. What really struck me was that Flickr was able to find a quality picture quickly--a good photo that matched a theme would be presented at the top of the page.

What do these features really contribute to the Web site in the discussion of all the discussion tags (tagging) and the Open API? Open APIs and tagging are a handy thing for professional, semi professional, and photographic enthusiasts, but the average user doesn't.

The Flickr team established these professional and semi professional photographers as core users of the initial community. In order to develop the community, they work hard. Meeting the needs of these users in turn, these users also upload high-quality images, thus benefiting the community as a whole. Flickr, unlike those with an interest-oriented web site (Fotolog or buzznet), insists that it is actually a company that needs to be profitable. I think that Flickr as a company gives users, especially those core users, more confidence in the Web services.

Rapid Development Cycle

Flickr operates almost explicitly according to the software development theory of "early release, diligent release". Caterina says Flickr rarely does traditional software reliability testing, instead they are more likely to release the product quickly and listen to the market. Flickr has the ability to meet the needs of those who are not technology users, because users don't have to wait too long to see their recommendations being used. At the best of times, Flickr can publish a new version every half hour.

Start Policy

we've discussed how Flickr focuses on developing features to expand the user base. I think Flickr also benefits from the need for the mass market to respond to photo services such as blogs and social networks-a testament to the success of Photobucket and ImageShack. Flickr has made a very smart decision to make this demand functional. Obviously, they are in tune with the trend, rather than creating the trend.

Flickr is also a beneficiary of public relations, even if they are not deliberately doing it themselves. Flickr did not hire a PR firm because it wanted to attract public attention, but only to find a company to help deal with public requests after the initial publicity-related publicity.

Result Analysis

Flickr was acquired by Yahoo in March 2005, when Flickr was just standing on the edge of the balance point for cash flow. According to Alexa statistics, Flickr traffic is now more than 10 times times the acquisition, so the company is able to further expand its core user base, extended to a broader range.

So what is the purpose of Yahoo's acquisition of Flickr? Flickr is assigned to Yahoo's search department, which means Yahoo aims to integrate Flickr's photo service into regular image searches. Interestingly, the acquisition was not first proposed by Yahoo Photos Group, so what gains, yields, and profits are not the main reasons for this acquisition. In addition, Flickr has developed a powerful tag (tagging) system platform that can be used for other Yahoo products. Third, Yahoo is very interested in getting the best people on Flickr, absorbing their ideas and applying them to the entire company. The final reason is that after the acquisition, Yahoo can have a network community. The rapid development of Flickr and the public effects that Flickr has been advocating are very effective, and Flickr's users are naturally not the key factors to consider in the acquisition. So, crucially, Flickr's acquisition should be considered a technology and talent acquisition.

I didn't get a chance to ask Caterina why he decided to sell Flickr to Yahoo rather than venture capital. The valuations of early 2005 companies are not as hot as they are now, so Flickr may choose VC if it is today. Maybe we can hear Caterina's answer in the following reply (or someone else on the Flickr team).

Original Author: Nisan Gabbay

translation: Lalaice

original link: Flickr case Study still about tech for exit

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