One of the things, we increasingly think about is how everyone in the consumer tech space is trying to build the first layer of interaction, for example: lead gen in transactional services/ chat interfaces in messaging. And any such business regardless of what space you look at is A) Filled with binary outcomes — one large winner and then a distant second (at best), B) Incredibly difficult to win in and C) Very high on capital requirement with a long gestation period.
As a result, ShareChat is in our opinion, one of those truly unique ideas because of its derivative model.
If there was no chat (WhatsApp) — would there be any Share Chat? Essentially, answering the frequently ignored but all important question — now that ‘x’ exists, what is the ‘y’ that people will need next?
In the case of Share Chat that answer was content for chat! Share Chats use case is truly unique and honestly would never have occurred to someone like me.
For many people, WhatsApp is a source of entertainment. They spend all day texting people about god knows what and as a result need a repository of content — jokes and other forwards to send out.
As is the case with many businesses, the lines in use cases get blurry. Just like Twitter is for social networking and also a source of news & media, so Share Chat is not just for entertainment related content but also fast becoming a source of news.
So while looking at the space it occupies and understanding its market share — it’s important to look at its relative position in both of these spaces — recreational content and news.
In terms of attrition too, Share Chat fares much better than many incumbents.
Attrition rates are extremely telling indicators of product market fit. So to a certain extent Share Chat’s relatively low attrition implies a relatively high degree of user satisfaction (its NPS is 0.67).
Equally noteworthy is NDTV India’s attrition rate and therefore its implications on audience satisfaction.
Amongst the many apps that we’ve covered over the past few months; Share Chat’s user base is also the most frugal in terms of monthly spends and value of handsets.
Keep in mind that it’s entirely possible that these numbers don’t take into account all of a user’s spends since many people continue to earn and spend money in cash.
The cost of handsets, however, is more telling, since even users who earn a significant portion of their incomes in cash tend to buy higher end smartphones as a status symbol.
Thanks for your time,
Ashish
- Team KG
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You can reach me on ashish@kalagato.com
