OPW INTERVIEW - May 5 -
What is your founding story?
We received investment from "The Web Production" (TWP) a major software developer, which has over 15 years of experience in delivering IT solutions for major European and American companies such as Siemens, T-Mobile, NEC, 1&1, Sony, etc. Our team of managers and developers (now co-founders) created and successfully promoted different IT products and solutions with TWP, which brought in millions of dollars of profit. When we created our dating app concepts, our partners from TWP invested and we created the dating services.
Why did you select the Malaysian and Indonesian markets to focus on?
- Emerging market are the place to be. Indonesia and Malaysia are two of the fastest growing internet markets with a huge, young and connected population. Almost 50% of the entire population (250 million) are age 15-45 and are very connected and open to new experiences. Mobile dating services are growing very fast.
- We have a partnership with Huawei, a strong partner with deep knowledge about these markets, and they're ready to support us to establish a strong presence.
- For a new app, the best growth strategy is to find a reliable publisher who believes in the products potential and are ready to share the risk and revenues. Compared with Western markets, emerging markets are more open to this business model.
How mature is the mobile and Internet dating market in Malaysia, and in Indonesia?
We see a lot of Asian and international companies starting to become active in these markets. While the competition is not so high, there is clearly much more space for growth than for example in the US and European markets. Also, potential local partners are much more likely to respond to different offers and have a potential for growth of their effectiveness.
What's your angle? How is SweetMatch different?
- We position our product as an online dating / flirting game.
- Our app reduces the amount of messaging between users in the early stages using various ice-breakers and games. While playing, users can find their best match.
- We focus on online interactions and instant feedback between users in real time.
Who are your notable competitors?
Yogrt, Wavoo, Setipe and Singapore-based Paktor are the most notable, as well as localized versions of international ones.
How do you monetize?
For Indonesian market we’ve modified our subscription model. We offer 3 days for 3,300 IDR (25c USD) subscription with a daily renewal. Users can send likes, play games and send messages for free, they need premium access to be able to read incoming messages.
What are your goals for 2015-2016?
We will be developing our partnership with Huawei and Huawei’s partners in major asian markets and improving our app according to the statistics we get, for the best user experience and monetization. Also, the iOS version of the app will be released and new partnerships in LATM and Europe will be announced.
Post by Mark Brooks @
