Business
The Rise and Fall of Wish, the Walmart of Ecommerce
Donald Trump won the presidential election on November 8th, 2016. On December 2nd, Wish’s then-CEO, Peter Szulczewski, offered his (highly anticipated, no doubt) two cents on the win.
In a Medium op-ed titled “The Invisible Half,” Peter argued that the election shocker was a vindication for Wish’s business model. Just like Trump, he opined, Wish had been turned away by Menlo Park fat cats out of touch with the “value conscious consumers” Wish targeted.
He stopped short of saying that he and Trump targeted the same audience. Still, it was a bold statement that could only come out of a time of great upheaval. Now, just as the “Trump train” went off the rails, Wish faces a rude awakening.
How it all started
Prior to founding Wish’s parent company, ContextLogic, Szulczewski worked as an engineer at Google for several years. He left in 2009 and took six months to code an ad recommendation platform that predicted people’s interests based on their browsing behaviors. Sound familiar?
ContextLogic launched in 2010 and garnered $1.7 million from investors—with the help of Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman. What did they do? At the outset, they offered the ad software that Peter coded. According to Forbes, investors weren’t wild about ContextLogic’s business plan, but they loved the tech.
Still, ContextLogic didn’t really know what kind of company it wanted to be. It was only when Szulczewski brought on Danny Zhang—his old friend from college—as cofounder that the wheels started to spin.
In a meeting with investors, Peter and Danny unveiled a new plan: ecommerce. At the time, Amazon had already been running the game for upwards of a decade, and the ecommerce field was seen as a nonstarter.
In 2011, Facebook offered $20 million to integrate ContextLogic into its own system. Peter turned it down, to the chagrin of some investors, but for better or worse, that decision is what gave us Wish.com.
A Wish come true
Have you ever wondered why the ecommerce platform is called Wish? Well, back when it launched as Wishwall.me in 2011, it was more of a wish list than a shopping site. Using Facebook ads, it invited people to browse products and select what they wanted—but not actually buy them from the site.
This all turned out to be part of the plan. Once they got a solid user base, they went to vendors off of eBay and Amazon. They promised ready buyers, but only if sellers provided their stuff at a discounted price.
Wish’s strategy of targeted ads and discounted deals helped them grow consistently throughout the 2010s. Once they started selling on-site in 2013, they noticed that most of their sales were coming from Florida, Texas, and Middle America.
This defied the conventional wisdom that tech-savvy urbanites made the most use of ecommerce. It’s why Vox labeled them “the next Walmart” in 2015. Their discounted, third-party goods appealed to people who couldn’t afford what Amazon and other online retailers offered.
The highs and lows
It’s not hard to see how Wish’s rise mirrored the early “what just happened?” narratives of Trump’s victory. One thing Wish and Trump definitely have in common: their times on top were equally turbulent.
In 2017, Wish was the most-downloaded ecommerce platform in the US. In 2018, itt was the most-downloaded in the world. They signed a lucrative multi-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, they ran a World Cup campaign soon after, and their valuation soared into the billions.
At the same time, the higher Wish’s profile got, the more it became associated with shoddy experiences. Horror stories started to mount about people receiving products that were nothing like their photos… if they ever received them at all.
The New York Times reported that these mishaps weren’t always by accident. Fake stores and rip-off contests were operated by the company as “experiments” to see whether customers would complain. Wish became content creator shorthand for hilariously bad bootleg products.
And that’s when things were good.
Wish’s descent into chaos
In a way, it’s surprising that Wish fell as far as it did in the early ‘20s. If any industry wasn’t steamrolled by the pandemic, it was ecommerce.
Things started out strong; Wish continued to grow at the onset of COVID-19 and even went public in 2020, valued at $24 a share. The thing is, the more prominent it got, the more complaints grew.
They came under fire for targeting explicit ads at children. Cries of copyright infringement and false advertising led to hundreds of complaints to the Better Business Bureau.
In 2021, Wish’s valuation fell 82%. Today, you can buy Wish stock for less than $2, the sort of steep discount you’d expect to find on their app. Peter resigned suddenly in 2021; internal reports say he all but vanished from the office once Wish went public. The new CEO, Vijay Talwar, is still in the process of recovering the brand.
What happened?
The way Wish tells it, they struggled due to rising costs of ads that forced them to scale back their marketing. Wish is, after all, primarily a marketing business model. Targeting ads to consumers based on their history came first; the ecommerce site was an afterthought.
Truth be told, maybe Wish’s business model was doomed to start with. The initial idea was cool, sure, but outsourcing commerce to third parties offering steep discounts is already precarious, and Wish seemed quite willing to dig into it.
There is one other reason. You see, a big part of the reason Wish’s products could come at such steep discounts is because of a peculiar postage deal between the U.S. and China. A 2011 agreement allowed packages of 4.4 pounds or less to be shipped to the U.S. from China for less than the cost of shipping between states.
In 2018, Trump announced his intent to withdraw the U.S. from the Universal Postal Union. Postal agreements with China categorized the country as developing, which he felt gave them an unfair advantage. One year later, a new deal was struck, keeping the U.S. in the Union and making it more costly to ship goods from China.
However you feel about that decision, it certainly didn’t help Wish. Szulczewski said at the time that Wish had a plan in place anticipating this change. But if you look at Wish’s rise and fall, both in value and in reputation, it definitely seems to line up.
That’s just one more thing that Wish and Trump may have in common: the person who caused their downfall.
It was just a week ago that X chair Elon Musk told former X advertisers like Disney and Apple to “go f*ck themselves.” And in a shocking twist, it didn’t bring them back.
This all marks a dramatic turn the-artist-formerly-known-as-Twitter has taken over the past year. At the start of 2023, advertisers were bullish that the richest person in the world could turn the stagnant social network around. Now, the opposite seems increasingly likely.
As we enter 2024, many advertisers are asking the question: is advertising on X still worth it? Let’s take a look.
The war on X advertisers
(Image source: The New York Times)
The problems started almost as soon as Musk’s deal to buy Twitter closed. By November 2022, NPR reported that they’d lost 50 of their top 100 advertisers. By February, more than 500 of the top 1000 had left. Their concerns included impersonation, staff shake-ups, reinstating banned accounts, and more.
Amidst all this, Musk made efforts to stem the bleeding, including offering flashy deals for advertisers and, eventually, hiring Linda Yaccarino to take over as CEO.
But at the same time, he lashed out at those who’d left, threatening them with lawsuits and accusing them of “[hating] free speech in America.” This cycle continued throughout 2023.
Things took another turn in October when Musk personally endorsed an antisemitic tweet accusing “Jewish communities” of promoting “hatred against whites.” Musk has apologized, but has not deleted the endorsement.
This seems to have been the final straw for many major advertisers, including Disney and Apple. Musk seemed pessimistic at the NYT DealBook Summit, saying these advertisers would likely kill the company.
What marketers are saying
Marketing consultant Lou Paskalis told the New York Times that those who’ve left X won’t be returning. “There is no advertising value that would offset the reputational risk of going back on the platform.”
Other outlets report the same. Companies feel that X advertising could stain their reputation—if not now, then the next time Musk starts a fire.
Penji is a leader in the design-as-a-service industry, offering creative services to businesses and agencies at a subscription rate. We spoke to Harper Goldman, a senior member of Penji’s marketing team, to get insight into how the marketing industry is responding.
“On the one hand,” she says, “of course the advertisers were going to leave. That’s the whole tension of the internet. The less rules you have, the less money you make.”
“On the other hand, Apple pulled out before, and then they came back. I don’t think any company’s actually faced blowback for advertising on Twitter—it’s still seen as a regular social network—so if there’s money to be made, they’ll probably be back.”
That raises the question: is there money to be made?
Is X advertising worth it in 2024?
Look, in light of Musk’s statements, we’re not gonna tell you you should advertise on X. But there may be some upside.
When a majority of top advertisers leave a platform, it creates a lot of cheap inventory. CPMs for advertising on X have reportedly been slashed since Musk took over. The platform still gets a ton of traffic, so making use of it can be a way to stand out… if you want that kind of attention.
Here’s the thing: the downside of X isn’t just association with Musk. Musk’s takeover has led to a huge spike in stolen content and impersonation, which the dwindling moderation team struggles to keep up with.
As it becomes a less reputable platform, less reputable brands have flocked to it. This means that advertising on X can mean sharing space with sketchy brands, criminal activities, and yes, more bigotry than ever before.
The bottom line: Advertising on X is high risk. There are bound to be more controversies to come, and most advertisers would rather get out now than wait for the other shoe to drop. It can also be high reward, so it’s up to businesses to decide what risks they’re willing to take.
What other options do marketers have?
“Twitter was never a huge part of our strategy,” Goldman admits. “Or a lot of our clients, for that matter. The reporting is not good, the targeting is not good, there’s a lack of control. And Facebook and Google have so much control and so much reporting that there’s really no contest.”
This is another piece of important context. Twitter wasn’t an important platform for most brands, and its appeal was always niche. While it’s a highly trafficked website, it wasn’t great for advertising to begin with.
At Penji, whose target audience is marketers and agencies, shakeups at X haven’t made much of a difference. “The only difference is that it’s in the news. People are talking about it. But that doesn’t mean they want to use it.”
Conversations around X have shifted from “Can Musk turn it around?” to “Can he control the damage?” The platform is still leaking brands and users, and people are starting to wonder how long it can stay afloat.
Our recommendation? The social media landscape is changing fast. Stay on top of new trends. There’s still money to be made in X advertising, for now. But don’t say we didn’t warn you.
Looking for an alternative to a freelance graphic designer? Are you trying to scale your business using your existing team? A new wave of companies who call themselves “Unlimited Graphic Design Services” are disrupting the creative industry, providing a solution to what is usually an expensive and unpredictable task. Here’s what their offerings have in common:
- Monthly subscription model
- 24-48 hour turnaround time
- Work with their vetted team of designers
- Unlimited design requests
- Unlimited revisions
- Money-back guarantee
- Cancel anytime
Which Provider Should You Choose?
We’ve done the homework and curated a list of Unlimited Graphic Design providers for you and also negotiated special deals on your behalf. You can see them all below and decide which one fits your business based on your needs.
Unlimited Graphic Design Providers
What Does Unlimited Graphic Design Mean?
These unlimited graphic design services have a monthly subscription business model. That means you can sign up and cancel whenever you like. What sets them apart from your typical freelancer, agency, or in-house designer is you gain access to a workflow that is designed to be quick and to the point.
You’ll communicate with their team through Trello, email, or an online platform. The option given is dependent on the company you choose. For example, only a small selection of services provide a custom built online platform for their customers.
Once you’re connected to their workflow, you can begin submitting as many design requests as you want. Although they all claim “unlimited”, it generally means you can “create” unlimited design requests. It doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll work on them all at once. Usually, they just work on one design at a time. When one completes, they start the next design.
The usual turnaround time is between 1 – 2 days, and that’s just for the first draft. It doesn’t mean your entire request is complete. If you don’t like it, you can request as many revisions as you want, and that will take more time. So it can take up to a week to actually get the design complete if you have a lot of revisions.
Another thing to keep in mind is content. You need to be able to have everything ready and provide all the content needed in order for their designers to get started.
How Does On-Demand Graphic Design Work?
Most graphic design services listed above offer clients a bespoke design platform. For instance, Penji’s design tool is an all-in-one platform where designers, account managers, customers, and their team members can communicate and collaborate.
Although the steps in working with a graphic design company are similar, we’ll use Penji’s design software to share the step-by-step graphic design process.
1. Log in
Once you’ve selected the subscription plan, log in to your design tool and access your dashboard. Most of these tools are user-friendly with a minimal learning curve and prioritize user experience.
This example of Penji’s dashboard shows a list and thumbnails of ongoing design projects. The menu at the top shows the Active, Completed, Drafted, and On-hold projects.
Submitting a design brief is the first step in the on-demand graphic design process. To submit, click the +New Project button at the upper right side of the dashboard.
2. Fill in the title
Think of a relevant project title that will describe the design accurately. Writing an accurate title will make browsing through ongoing projects easier once you have a long list.
For instance, if you’re creating a company logo, you can write “Logo design” and specify the company or industry beside it if you’re handling multiple brands.
3. Choose from design categories
The next step is to choose from the many design categories. Most unlimited graphic design services have around 100+ design categories. Penji has 120+ design categories. Choose one that fits your project.
4. Write a design brief
This step is crucial when working with on-demand graphic designers, as this will make or break your project outcome. Writing a thorough, clear, and well-thought-out design brief makes it easier for designers to understand exactly what you want.
Penji’s design platform has a few reminders on the left side when writing design briefs. Ensure you follow the tips for a better design outcome.
5. Attach files and images for inspiration
Some customers can’t express themselves clearly through written instructions. You can attach files and images to support your written descriptions with visuals. Attaching sample logos also helps lead designers in the right direction. Attaching your competitors’ logos is also a way to make yours better.
You’ll also need to choose the source file type in this step or let designers pick for you.
6. Choose a brand style guide
Subscribing to unlimited graphic design services means you can request any visuals for multiple brands. Penji’s design tool lets you save and categorize your brand style guides in folders. This way, you only have to choose a branding guideline for designers to follow.
Once you’ve chosen the associated brand, click the Create project button to start the process.
7. Wait 24 to 48 hours
Although most on-demand graphic design services’ turnaround is 24 to 48 hours, some companies may take more than two days.
Wait for the first draft and ask for revisions until you’re 100 percent happy with the design. Download the source file, and you’re good to go!
Why Should You Sign Up for Unlimited Graphic Design Services
Subscribing to unlimited graphic design services is more convenient than hiring freelance designers. Here’s why:
- Work with vetted designers and choose from various skill sets. There is no need to search for another designer fit for a particular project. The company will assign you the most suitable designer.
- No need to worry about additional fees as you only have to pay fixed monthly rates and get unlimited designs. Revisions also come at no extra cost.
- You don’t have to worry about graphic designers going MIA and abandoning crucial projects. Each design project is managed by an account manager who will check if deadlines are met on time.
- Signing up and canceling subscriptions with on-demand graphic design services is easy. You can sign up if you need a stream of designs while setting up shop and cancel anytime without incurring cancellation fees.
- Fast 24 to 48-hour turnaround, which prevents any bottlenecks in your marketing campaigns.
- Request to change assigned designers if you’re unhappy with their work at no additional cost.
- Organize your projects and brand style guides if you request multiple brand designs. The custom design platforms make managing projects efficient and convenient.
Are they worth it?
If you have a lot of design needs, they’re definitely worth it. Being that it’s a monthly recurring investment, you’ll need to make sure that you have the need for an ongoing graphic design service. This graphic design service model is comparable to outsourcing a designer yourself, except much of all the management work is done by the company. The quality of designs and turnaround time also tends to be significantly better when outsourcing a designer yourself.
In today’s fast-paced and competitive business landscape, startups often find themselves navigating a maze of challenges that can hinder their growth and potential.
This is where the concept of a startup incubator comes into play as a guiding light for emerging ventures. A startup incubator is more than just a physical space; it’s a dynamic ecosystem designed to nurture and propel early-stage ventures toward success.
In this article, we’ll tackle some of the most common questions surrounding incubators. For instance – what is the role of a startup incubator? How does it differ from an accelerator?
And most importantly, how can it optimize your business?
Let’s begin!
What is an incubator in a startup ecosystem?
In a startup ecosystem, an incubator refers to a supportive environment or program designed to help early-stage startups grow and develop.
Incubators provide a range of resources and services to entrepreneurs, typically for a fixed period of time, with the goal of nurturing and accelerating the growth of their businesses.
Here’s the usual process of how an incubator supports a startup:
Onboarding
Startups who applied and were accepted are welcomed into the incubator with an orientation session. During this phase, startups get an overview of the program’s structure, expectations, and available resources. They also meet their mentors, advisors, and fellow cohort members.
Mentorship and Guidance
Startups are paired with mentors who have relevant industry experience or expertise.
Regular mentorship sessions provide guidance, feedback, and insights to help startups navigate challenges and refine their strategies.
Workshops and Training
Incubators organize workshops, seminars, and training sessions on various aspects of entrepreneurship. Topics covered during the startup incubator program may include:
- Business planning
- Marketing strategies
- Product development
- Legal and regulatory matters
- Fundraising
Access to Resources
Aside from training sessions, startups can also gain access to resources such as:
- Office space
- Co-working environments
- Internet connectivity
- Meeting rooms
Some incubators provide access to shared equipment, startup software, and other tools needed for product development.
Networking and Events
Incubators often facilitate networking events, pitch sessions, and demo days where startups can showcase their progress to potential investors, partners, and the broader community.
Business Development
Startups work on refining their business models, products, and market strategies. They receive support in identifying their target audience, creating a value proposition, and developing a sustainable revenue model.
Funding and Investment
Incubators may provide introductions to potential investors, venture capitalists, and angel investors Startups also learn about different funding options and how to pitch their ideas to secure investment.
Graduation
Successful completion of the incubator program results in a “graduation” for startups.
Graduated startups may continue to receive support through alumni networks, ongoing mentorship, or access to incubator resources.
Startup Incubator vs. Accelerator
A startup incubator and a startup accelerator are both support programs designed to assist early-stage startups, but they have distinct characteristics and objectives. Here’s a comparison between the two:
- Focus. Incubators typically have a broader focus and cater to startups in various stages of development. They often work with startups that are in the ideation or early development phase. Accelerators, on the other hand, are more specialized and typically work with startups that have a viable product or service and are ready to scale rapidly. They focus on accelerating growth and reaching key milestones quickly.
- Stage. Incubators are well-suited for startups that are still refining their business models, conducting market research, and building their initial product or service. Accelerators, meanwhile, are best suited for startups that have a minimum viable product (MVP) and are seeking to refine their business model, gain traction, and secure funding to scale.
- Mentorship. A startup incubator provides mentorship and guidance, often with a focus on helping founders refine their business ideas, develop prototypes, and validate their concepts. On the other hand, an accelerator’s mentorship is often geared towards specific aspects of growth, such as scaling operations, marketing, fundraising, and product-market fit.
Startup Incubator Examples
If you’re looking for the best startup incubators in the world, here are a few you of the most popular ones to consider.
1. Y Combinator
Situated in the USA, Y Combinator is considered one of the best startup incubators which has played an instrumental role in fostering the growth trajectories of some of the most renowned startups globally. The Y Combinator program spans a duration of three months, during which startups receive a funding injection of $500,000, albeit subject to certain conditions.
Subsequently, founders are immersed in a sequence of mentoring and refinement initiatives that culminate in the prestigious Demo Day. Here, founders showcase their concepts to an audience comprising investors and handpicked media representatives.
Mentees: Airbnb, Dropbox, Coinbase, Gitlab
2. Techstars
Techstars directs its energy toward nurturing startups rooted in technology. Since its inception in 2006, Techstars has been a driving force behind the growth of numerous startups. Annually, they select more than 500 fledgling companies, providing them with up to $120,000 in investment and the invaluable chance to partake in mentorship programs.
Backed by an impressive funding sum of $21.3 billion, Techstars stands out as a reliable choice for technology-oriented startups. Within its portfolio of activities, Techstars hosts several high-profile events and initiatives, including Startup Week and Startup Weekend.
Mentees: Uber, DigitalOcean, SendGrid
3. 500 Startups
500 Startups operates as a dual-purpose platform, functioning as both an accelerator program and a seed fund dedicated to startups. Positioned primarily as a venture capital entity, they proudly proclaim a management portfolio worth $2.7 billion. Their primary interests converge on sectors where technology, innovation, and capital growth converge harmoniously.
Their extensive investment history spans more than 2,600 startups worldwide, underscoring the maturity and comprehensiveness of their accelerator program across diverse markets.
Mentees: Grab, Canva, Credit Karma
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Do I need an incubator for my startup?
If you’re in the early stages, lack experience, and could benefit from structured guidance, resources, and mentorship, an incubator might be valuable. However, if you’re aiming for rapid growth and have a clear roadmap, an accelerator could be more appropriate.
Do startup incubators provide funding?
Yes, many startup incubators provide funding as part of their support package. However, the funding offered by incubators can vary widely depending on the specific program, location, and the terms of the agreement. Some incubators offer direct funding to startups, while others may connect startups with potential investors or provide resources to help them secure funding elsewhere.
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