Martin Macmillan's presentation to the European Parliament on the need for Business Management and Marketing training to improve competitiveness of SME businesses operating in the digital single market.

1. OPPORTUNITIES FOR SME’S IN THE APP ECONOMY
MARTIN MACMILLAN

2. 2
PROBLEM. PLATFORMS ONLY
PAY OUT REVENUE UP TO 60+
DAYS AFTER YOU’VE EARNED IT.
LAUNCH
You’re earning money from day 1
This is your money
trapped in the payment system
Platforms release
your cash…
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015

3. 3
TYPICAL LAUNCH SCENARIO
LAUNCH
Fail to get
credit with
ad networks
Can’t reinvest
to acquire
more users
Get paid by
platforms
DOWNLOADS REVENUE
Revenue/Downloads
Jan 2015 Feb 2015 Mar 2015 Apr 2015 May 2015 Jun 2015 Jul 2015
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015

4. eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015

5. 55
Reinvest directly
into advertising
Acquire more users
more quickly
Draw down earnings
on a daily basis
A NEW WAY…
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015

6. 6
CHALLENGES FACING APP DEVELOPERS
Funding
Raising venture/angel money for
your app
BUT - developers getting smart -
greater evidence of
bootstrapping
Discoverability
Structural issues with app stores
One size fits all approach
BUT it’s changing…
User Acquisition
User acquisition remains opaque and
expensive
BUT - no longer the preserve of the
big guys - becoming more accessible
to smaller devs
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015

7. 7
SKILLS
•Developers are moving from being “just developers” into fully fledged
businesses
•Requires a blend of technical/commercial skills rather than just coding
•Greater propensity for developers to help each other succeed, eg
Finnish gaming studios
•Ecosystem support is crucial. Tax breaks also help!
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015

8. 8
DIGITAL
Traditional SME - eg Restaurant
Access to capital
Ambition/Reach
Motivations
End game
App Business
Venture/Angel financing
Destiny
Lack of tools eg invoice financing
Emerging M&A market
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015
VS
SME COMPARISON
PHYSICAL

9. 9
GROWTH IN THE LONG TAIL
eSkills - European Parliament - 14 October 2015
•c. 70,000 developers making more than $10k/year across iOS and
Google Play
•L-Shaped revenue curve is flattening out
•More opportunities for developers in the long tail
•User acquisition becoming better understood

10. MILLIONAIRE’S INDEX
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11. THANK YOU
martin@pollen.vc
@martinmacmillan