From 0 to 20 million, the 3-year growth path of Get APP

1. Get the PMF of the app

PMF, or product-market fit, refers to whether a product can meet the user needs of a given market.

1. Get the target users of the APP

Some basic user portraits of the APP are as follows:

• The proportion of males is greater than that of females
• The age group of 31-35 years old is the largest, followed by the age group of 25-30 years old, then 24 years old and below, 36-40 years old, and finally 41 years old and above
• Most consumers have medium and high spending power
• Most of them are white-collar workers with high work pressure and strong desire to improve themselves and get promoted in the workplace

Data source: Analysys Qianfan

To summarize, the target users of the Get APP are mainly middle-class white-collar workers born in the 1980s and 1990s. They have the desire to learn actively due to anxiety, the ability to learn independently, and the financial strength to pay.

2. Meet the unmet needs of APP users

I think the user needs of the Dedao APP or the entire knowledge payment industry mainly include the following three points:

First and most fundamentally, in the Internet age of information explosion, people's anxiety and thirst for knowledge have reached an unprecedented level . This pain point needs to be solved urgently.

Second, people need highly specialized, systematic and selected content to learn from, which places higher demands on content creators and producers.

Third, in the era of mobile Internet, people’s free time, including study time, has become fragmented, and users hope to acquire high-quality knowledge in fragmented time.

3. Get the value proposition of the app

The official positioning of the university is: a new type of general education university dedicated to truly independent education, cross-border cognition and lifelong learning, building a world-leading general education university.

If I use the growth hacker’s value proposition paradigm, I think it can be expressed like this:

The Get APP is a knowledge service platform that provides paid content and services. It is specially developed for lifelong learners, mainly white-collar middle-class people, who are facing the current situation of knowledge anxiety and worries in the era of information explosion. Unlike other paid knowledge products, it is able to provide high-level general education content through strict quality control, enabling users to acquire knowledge efficiently in fragmented time.

4. Verify whether the APP has reached PMF

To verify whether any product has achieved PMF, it is necessary to observe key indicators based on business goals.

For a platform like Duoduo, which positions itself as a provider of content services, learning services, and knowledge services to paying high-end users, course sales are obviously not their key indicator.

The actual learning behavior of users is their North Star indicator, so we should focus on indicators such as the number of new users and active users of the APP.

According to the data disclosed by CEO Tuo Buhua at the weekly meeting on July 31, the number of users of Duoduo has exceeded 21.1 million. At the same time, based on the latest data from the third-party iResearch Qianfan analysis agency, the average number of monthly active users of the APP in the past year is over 2 million.

So I think that the GetAPP has reached PMF, and these two latest data can provide strong evidence.

2. Analyze APP using AARRR model

1. Product background introduction

1.1 Industry Status and Development

Get, Zhihu Live, Himalaya, Fan Deng Reading Club, Chaos... The knowledge payment industry has been developing in full swing in the past 2-3 years, and many products have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain.

A research report released by Huaxing Capital in 2017 pointed out:

• The group that pays for knowledge has a high degree of overlap with the three groups of people: highly educated people, white-collar workers, and book buyers. The estimated population base is about 150 million, and according to dynamics, it may reach 200 million people by 2020.
• The knowledge payment industry is expected to have a potential revenue scale of 32 billion in 2020, and the corresponding platform profit potential is nearly 5 billion. Calculating this new industry at a 30x valuation, it is expected to support a market value of 150 billion.
• Duode and Zhihu are currently the two leading players in the field of knowledge payment. They represent the industry heights of PGC and UGC respectively, and have opened a small gap in a large unknown market.

From the above three points, it can be seen that the overall knowledge payment industry is still in an incremental stage and there is still a lot of room for growth. At the same time, Duoduo is currently the leader in the field of knowledge-based paid PGC, but the competitive landscape of the entire industry has not yet been finalized, and competition will intensify in the future.

1.2 Product Life Cycle

The product life cycle can be divided into the introduction phase, growth phase, maturity phase and decline phase. I think the current Get APP has entered the growth stage.

The following analysis is based on the download volume indicators of the iOS system provided by ASO100.

The Duode APP was launched on the App Store in November 2015, and officially started to be downloaded on August 1, 2016, with an average daily download volume of less than 10,000. This stage is still in the cold start stage, that is, the introduction period . The focus of the entire team is to use MVP to verify PMF and run through product logic and business model.

On January 2, 2017, there was a significant growth peak, with 65,306 downloads in a single day. Since then, the average daily download volume has remained above 10,000.

Looking at the data from the past year, the growth curve in the first half of 2018 was relatively steep, with the highest value reaching 88,394, while the growth curve in the second half of the year tended to be flat. During this stage, the team shifted its focus to marketing and promotion, and user acquisition, which also marked the beginning of the product's growth stage .

2. Product Usage Path

I used a simple mind map to sort out the functions and user usage paths of the APP to assist in the analysis of the entire AARRR growth model.

3. AARRR model analysis

First of all, it is important to be clear that growth runs through the entire life cycle of a product and is also the goal of the entire team . The growth strategy needs to be implemented by every position, every person, every task, and every strategy.

3.1 User Acquisition

3.1.1 Overview

For the Dedao APP, which is in its growth stage, acquiring users is the first step to achieve growth.

There are many ways to acquire users for the APP, mainly the following:

• Loyal fans of Luoji Siwei’s early public accounts or video content
• Using Luo Yonghao’s personal influence in the Internet circle, he asked Internet giants to endorse him (e.g. Jack Ma recommended “Li Xiang’s Knowledge Insider”)
• Use variety shows to promote (the power of knowledge)
• Recommended by Apple App Store (3 times in total)
• Course lecturers (KOLs) have their own influence
• Time Friends New Year's Eve Speech IP
• Cooperate with Xiaomi speakers
• Users recommend their friends to learn

3.1.2 Growth Hacker Analysis

In this regard, I think acquiring customers through the IP of the Time Friends New Year's Eve Speech is a relatively good growth hacking method.

The "Friends of Time" New Year's Eve Speech is an annual New Year's Eve speech product created by Lao Luo since New Year's Day 2015. It has been going on for 3 years. The venue for this year's New Year's Eve speech was chosen in Shenzhen. It is said that the tickets were sold out on Tmall as early as Double 11. You can see how popular it is!

Based on the download statistics of ASO100 iOS system from 2016/12/01 to the present, there were obvious growth peaks on New Year's Day in 2017 and 2018.

The historical peak marked out occurred on January 2, 2018, with nearly 90,000 downloads in a single day. In the regular meeting on January 9, the management team of Duoduo also revealed that Duoduo had 1.2 million new users within a week or so after the speech.

The growth strategy used by the team is to put the speech audio into the APP. Within a week, the audio was played more than 5 million times, considering that the total number of APP users at that time was only 14 million. This saves costs, and more importantly, acquires more accurate target users.

This year's New Year's Eve speech has entered the countdown days. According to the progress announcement of the Get APP: this year they will broadcast live simultaneously within the APP. I believe that after New Year's Day 2019, the number of downloads of the Duoduo APP will reach a new growth peak.

3.2 User Activation

3.2.1 Overview

For Get, activating users not only means purchasing courses, but more importantly, it means that users engage in real learning behavior. Some of the user activation methods they use include but are not limited to:

1. New members will be given a knowledge gift pack, which includes coupons for the entire venue and gift packs of various subjects for users to choose from;
2. Coupon giveaway during the event;
3. 0.1 yuan for 7-day trial of audiobook VIP;
4. Push (course updates, live broadcasts, announcements, etc.);
5. All courses are free to try for 5 lessons;
6. Beginner's guide.

3.2.2 Growth Hacker Analysis

In this link, I think all courses without exception can offer 5 free trial lessons. This operation strategy is a relatively excellent growth hacking method.

This strategy first considers reducing the user's decision-making cost . Users can try the course before deciding to purchase. Users can judge whether it is a course they like and need. Only if they agree with the course content can they achieve payment conversion. This fully reflects the user-centric principle of growth hacking.

Second, why are there 5 classes instead of 3 or 1? I think the reason behind this setting is: 5 classes usually take about 1 hour. If users have already invested one hour in it, based on the principle of consistency, people are more willing to continue investing, thereby increasing paid conversions .

3.3 User Retention

3.3.1 Overview

Retention reflects user stickiness, that is, whether users are willing to return to the app again and whether they are willing to purchase other courses or e-books again. The means to achieve this goal include but are not limited to:

1. Live broadcast (including the live broadcast of the regular meeting every Tuesday);
2. Free columns "Logical Thinking" and "Li Xiang Knowledge Insider";
3. Study plan;
4. Know the city-state.

3.3.2 Growth Hacker Analysis

In this regard, I think using the knowledge city-state operational strategy is a relatively good growth hacking method.

The Knowledge City is located in the note menu and contains the notes of many outstanding students. The logic behind this feature setting is:

• Learning is a matter of both input and output. Input forces you to output, which in turn forces you to input. This is the only way to achieve the greatest growth. Notes are a great way to output.
• At the same time, learning also requires the exchange of ideas with peers to generate sparks of wisdom.

Knowledge City displays excellent notes publicly, allowing ordinary users to understand the thinking and cognition of outstanding students, and establish links by following to see all the notes of the people they follow.

The gene obtained is of PGC type, and I saw some shadows of UGC-like communities in the knowledge city-state. Improve retention by strengthening connections between users.

3.4 Obtaining Income

3.4.1 Overview

The main sources of income include the following:

1. Course sales: currently 102 courses are offered in 6 colleges. The course prices are mainly 199 yuan, 99 yuan, and 19.9 yuan;
2. e-book income;
3. Income from sales of physical items such as peripherals, books, and gifts;
4. e-gift cards;
5. Audiobook VIP, annual fee is 365 yuan.

3.4.2 Growth Hacker Analysis

In this regard, I think Tingshu VIP is a relatively excellent growth hacking method.

This strategy is also a popular way of playing on the current Internet. Xiaohongshu Black Card, NetEase Kaola Black Card, Ele.me Membership Card, etc. all have similar ideas: seize the user's desire for bargains and let the user enjoy first before paying .

The platform provides users with 3 options: annual card, monthly card, and 7-day trial. First, users are induced to try the app for 7 days at a nearly free price of 0.1 yuan. Then, we mainly promote annual passes and add a tag like “only 1 yuan a day” to imply to users that this is a very cost-effective service and encourage them to consume.

3.5 Self-propagation

3.5.1 Overview

User self-propagation is a very powerful way of growth.

Except for the note content in the Get APP, which cannot be shared to the site, other modules have basically added the function of sharing to WeChat/Weibo, making full use of the strategy of old customers bringing new customers to carry out word-of-mouth marketing and customer acquisition.

1. Audiobook VIP has 6 trial cards, which can be given to 6 friends to experience 15 days of VIP privileges;
2. Each section of the course can be shared, and there are only 20 sharing slots per section;
3. The course landing page (including the launch page and syllabus) can be shared;
4. The e-book landing page (including details and table of contents) can be shared;
5. Get a homepage to share;
6. Medals, student ID cards, graduation certificates and other personal honor certificates can be shared.

3.5.2 Growth Hacker Analysis

In this session, I think the sharing of the content of each course by students is a relatively excellent growth hacking method.

The user map for this feature is:

1. During the learning process, the user who has purchased the course believes that the content of this chapter is helpful to his friends, so he clicks "Ask friends to read" in the bottom menu and chooses to share it with WeChat friends or friends circle.

1. Click on the sharing link, there are two key messages on the page: "xx pays you to study"; there are only 20 places available, so claim them quickly. The value of sharing is conveyed to the person being shared with: first, it is a gift that the sharer has paid an economic cost for, rather than being free; second, the number of places for sharing is limited. This will allow the person being shared to cherish the opportunity more.

2. After clicking on the "Grab and Read" button which is similar to a red envelope, the person being shared with can see who is the first person to grab the spot. At the same time, there is a link to purchase the course at the bottom of the page, which can guide the person being shared to download and use the APP. A gamification-based operation approach is used here, similar to the gameplay of grabbing red envelopes, which can stimulate people's motivation and interest in reading.

4. AARRR Weaknesses and Suggestions

4.1 Weak links

Through the above analysis of the entire AARRR growth model of the Get APP and related data, I believe that the current retention link is a relatively weak link . There are two main reasons:

1. Learning is inherently anti-human, lonely and difficult. It is not easy to persist in learning.

2. All apps are competing for users’ fragmented time, and their competitors include not only Himalaya and Zhihu, but also Tik Tok, Honor of Kings, Toutiao, etc.

4.2 Recommendations

My suggestions are also based on the reasons I mentioned above:

1. Enhance the attributes of PUGC and UGC within the entire APP. Without lowering the platform's tone, we can support some knowledgeable KOLs among amateurs to liven up the community atmosphere , enhance the connection between users within the APP, and create a high-quality knowledge community to enhance user stickiness and improve retention.

The current knowledge city-state module is a good start in this direction, and it is worth continuously expanding and enriching the content to meet the learning and social needs of users.

1. Increase the methods and techniques of gamification operations to enhance the overall fun and playability of the APP , constantly create surprises and excitement for users, and stimulate repeated use.

The current medal system is a good attempt in this regard. Currently it is divided into two major categories: upgrade medals and special achievement medals. From the perspective of user experience, I think this module can still be optimized:

• The upgrade medals only show the medals that have been obtained, while the entire upgrade path and the medals that have not been obtained are hidden too deeply, and do not give users a clear goal.
• It is recommended to display the medals that have been obtained and the medals that have not been obtained separately, which is more intuitive and clear.
• There are too few types. It is recommended to enrich the content and enhance the fun.

I think Keep has done a relatively good job in this area and is worth learning from.

3. HOOK model analysis to obtain APP retention strategy

1. Trigger

It is better to combine the internal and external triggers of the APP. Internal triggers, in particular, firmly grasp users’ emotional pain points and habits to acquire customers.

2. Behavior

According to the behavioral formula: B=MAT, action=motivation+ability+trigger . That is, after being triggered, users still need certain motivations and corresponding abilities to take action.

2.1 Motivation

According to Dr. Fogg's summary of the three major motivations of human behavior:

• Pursue happiness and avoid pain
• Pursue hope, avoid fear
• Seeking recognition and avoiding rejection

I think the Get APP first takes advantage of people's motivation to "pursue hope and avoid fear" . People hope to get rid of the cognitive anxiety of the Internet age through lifelong learning and pursue better development in their careers and lives.

Secondly, people can gain happiness from a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction in the process of persistent learning.

Also, when you see the content shared by your friends in the circle of friends, you will develop a herd mentality for fear of being out of place .

2.2 Capabilities

The official positioning of the university is: a new type of general education university dedicated to truly independent education, cross-border cognition and lifelong learning, building a world-leading general education university.

This means that the learning content is not easy, so it is very important to lower the threshold for users to use and prevent them from being discouraged at the gate of university. The main ways to empower users are:

3. Variable rewards

Variable rewards mean that users gain additional satisfaction while using the product to meet their personal needs. And the rewards should be variable and unpredictable to keep users excited .

4. Investment

There are three main aspects of input: storing value, preference, and loading the next trigger .

4. HEART model analysis to obtain APP retention strategy

The Heart Model is a metric framework proposed by Google to measure user experience. This fully reflects the growth hacker's principle that data is king.

1. Happiness

Used to measure user satisfaction and happiness. NPS is the key metric.

NPS (Net Promoter Score) = (number of promoters/total number of samples) x 100% - (number of detractors/total number of samples) x 100%. It is a relatively effective measurement indicator.

The reference value of the Get APP is to encourage users to share voluntarily by improving the satisfaction and pleasure of existing users.

2. Engagement

Used to measure user activity and engagement. Frequency of use, duration of use, depth of access, etc. are key indicators.

Based on the latest data released by iResearch Qianfan, the monthly active users in April 2018 were 2.103 million and the daily active users were 466,000. The overall trend is downward.

Looking at the data on usage time, the average usage time per person in April 2018 was 2 hours, and the average daily usage time per person was 18 minutes, which is less than 20 minutes.

The average length of the course audio currently available is 10 minutes, which means that the average person attends only a little over one class per day.

3. Adoption

Used to measure new user acceptance of products/versions/features. The percentage of people using a product/version/function is a key indicator.

Based on the data revealed by the team at the weekly meeting on July 31, within one week after the release of version 5.0.0 on July 25, 2/3 of users had upgraded to the latest version.

Based on ASO100's rating and review statistics, the APP currently has 12,203 ratings with an overall score of 4.2. And the data in the figure below over the past six months shows that the five-star rating has seen the largest increase.

4. Rentention

Used to measure return visits and retention of existing users. User retention rate, repurchase rate and churn rate are key indicators.

Based on the latest data released by iResearch Qianfan, the next-month retention rate in April 2018 was 30.3%, which was half of the historical peak.

At the same time, from the overall trend, the retention rate in the first quarter of 2018 showed a significant decline.

5. Task success

Used to measure the completion of key tasks. Task completion rate and completion efficiency are key indicators.

For the Duode APP, users' course completion rate and graduation rate should be its Task success indicators. However, this data is still a black box for me and cannot be obtained yet.

Based on the above data, regarding the weakest link of the Get APP, the conclusion of the second chapter is still maintained - the overall retention and active performance are poor, and the trend is decreasing instead of increasing, which is the point that needs to be focused on at present. For specific optimization suggestions, please refer to 4.2 of the second module.

V. Conclusion

In the three years since the launch of the Duode APP, the number of users has grown from 0 to 20 million, which is not easy in the knowledge payment industry.

In the process of continuous user growth, the "Friends of Time" speech played an important role. In terms of growth hacking, we combined our own business characteristics and used a series of strategies that are worth learning. "Free trial" can bring higher conversions, "Knowledge City" can improve retention, "Listening to books VIP" can increase potential paying users, and the ubiquitous sharing mechanism can promote old customers to bring in new ones. "Ask friends to read" captures the readers' psychology and makes attracting new users more natural.

Despite this, I think there is still room for improvement in the growth model of the Dedao APP. We hope that in the new year, the Duode APP can maintain its retention and activity and produce better content products.

Source: Ou Jie