GrowthObservation 0012 min read
4
Revenue is evidence, not an explanation.
A rising line proves something happened. It says nothing about why, whether it was worth it, or whether it will happen again.
Marketplaces
A marketplace's economics live on both sides of the transaction.
Market context
Market context
Marketplaces balance buyers and sellers, subsidies and take rates, liquidity and quality. Growth on one side can hide weakening economics on the other.
Commercial pressures
- 01Incentives that buy liquidity rather than building it.
- 02Take-rate pressure from larger sellers.
- 03Buyer acquisition costs rising as organic demand plateaus.
Customer economics questions
The questions leadership should be able to answer.
Q1
What is contribution per transaction after incentives on both sides?
Q2
Which cohorts of buyers and sellers become self-sustaining?
Q3
Where is the take rate leaving value, or losing supply?
Relevant capabilities
Where the work usually starts.
- 01Customer EconomicsUnderstand the quality and economics of the customers generating growth.Explore capability
Customer · Contribution · Repeat
- 03Revenue & PricingImprove revenue quality and capture more of the value being created.Explore capability
Transaction · Contribution
- 06Growth IntelligenceGive leadership the intelligence required to make better commercial decisions.Explore capability
The full chain
Illustrative commercial problem
Illustrative · Not a client example
Liquidity that disappeared with the subsidy
Illustrative pattern. A marketplace grows transactions through buyer discounts and seller incentives. When incentives are reduced, a large share of activity stops, showing how much growth was rented rather than earned.
Also in Consumer & Retail
Intelligence
Related thinking.
Customer EconomicsObservation 0022 min read
−14.6%
Growth is not the same thing as value.
A business can get bigger and weaker at the same time. The gap shows up first in the customers, not in the P&L.
Customer EconomicsObservation 0042 min read
1.2 : 1
The ratio that reads 3 to 1, and isn't.
An LTV:CAC ratio is only as good as the churn behind it. Replace assumed churn with observed churn and the green light can turn red.
A TCB engagement
10–15
Business days
Customer Economics Sprint
One commercial diagnosis and a clear 90-day path forward: the constraint identified, the economics diagnosed, the opportunity benchmarked and the intervention prioritized.
Bring the constraint.We'll give it direction.
Start with the commercial problem you're trying to solve. We'll identify the constraint, diagnose the economics, and determine whether there is a useful next step.
- 01Identify the constraint
- 02Diagnose the economics
- 03Recommend the right intervention
- 04Define the next move