NFR #39 - Unicorns, Marijuana & Sleep Talking

🐦 Inspirational Tweet 🐦

@ProfFeynman

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🤖 eCommerce News:

👀 Meta plans ‘Zuck bucks’ virtual coins for Facebook and Instagram users

“Mark Zuckerberg is looking to develop virtual coins, nicknamed “Zuck bucks” by staff, for users of Facebook and Instagram as part of a suite of products designed to reduce his platforms’ dependence on advertising in the future metaverse. Facebook’s parent group, Meta, is looking to develop a range of virtual products – including digital tokens and “creator coins” – to diversify income and revitalise its user base, which is increasingly turning to newer rivals such as TikTok.”

🚀Avatar startup Genies hits $1 billion valuation in latest raise

“Only in the current market can one wonder how a celebrity avatar startup that sells NFT accessories took so long to hit a unicorn valuation. Genies, an LA-based digital avatar startup, announced Tuesday that it had raised $150 million in funding from Silver Lake, with participation from Bond, NEA and Tamarack Global. The round was first reported by DealBook. It follows a $65 million Series B raised last May.”

🍔 DoorDash adds cheaper subscription tier for takeaway-hungry students

“Food delivery platform DoorDash is adding a new cheaper subscription plan called DashPass for Students. It costs $4.99 a month, half that of its regular $9.99 DashPass subscription, and offers similar benefits including: free delivery on eligible orders over a minimum threshold (generally $12 for restaurants and $25 for grocery orders); 5 percent credit back on pickup orders from certain restaurants; and access to other members-only promotions.”

⚡️Fast is closing its doors: 'We ran out of money

“Online payments service Fast announced Tuesday that it is closing its doors, a sudden, stunning end to a seemingly fast-growing ecommerce venture once considered a pandemic darling. The one-click-checkout software maker will discontinue service of its Fast Checkout on Friday, CEO and co-founder Domm Holland said in a statement. “Sometimes trailblazers don’t make it all the way to the mountaintop,” he said. Fast ran out of funds after failing to secure additional investment fast enough in what had become a tough fundraising environment, a Fast employee told Protocol.”

♻️ Google Adds New Recycling Attribute to Maximize Business Discovery

“As explained by Google: “By adding the new recycling attribute to Business Profiles, local storefronts and shops can show the recycling services they offer in just a few clicks - whether it’s for plastic bottles, electronics or glass bottles. As a result, people looking for something like “battery recycling near me” can more easily pinpoint local businesses on Search with the in-store recycling they need. Adding this information to the Business Profile, ultimately, can help these businesses to stand out.””

🕹TikTok launches its own AR development platform, Effect House

“Last August, TechCrunch noted TikTok was working to build its own augmented reality (AR) development platform called Effect House, which would allow creators to build AR effects for use in TikTok’s video app. Today, Effect House has officially gone live. The platform has been operating in a close beta since last fall, where it’s so far been adopted by more than 450 creators who have gone on to publish their effects on TikTok, where they’ve been used in 1.5 billion videos gaining over 600 billion views globally, says TikTok.”

💸 Over 14,000 Etsy sellers are going on strike to protest increased transaction fees

““We’re hoping to get Etsy’s attention that we are fed up,” said Kristi Cassidy, an organizer of the strike, in an interview with Yahoo! Finance. Cassidy concedes that 14,000 sellers isn’t a huge percentage of the marketplace’s 5.3 million active sellers, but she says, “It’s also quite a bit for just people trying to spread a movement online with no advertising. The amount of support we have gotten when we put this out into the world… people are sharing, it’s spreading entirely organically.””

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🎶 Tik Tok Ad Of The Week

Sleep Cycle UGC

“Sleep Cycle tracks and analyzes your sleep, waking you up at the most perfect time, feeling rested!”

Link to app

Why did I include an organic video in this section?

The app Sleep Cycle has managed to get incredible exposure for free after user @katierslattery posted a video on her own Tik Tok page about her Sleep Talking experiences.

They have a freemium feature which records any sounds a user makes while sleeping & allows them to listen back the next morning.

The video starts with a great hook ⬇️

“When he says he can’t wait to sleep next to you…and you don’t know how to tell him”

The video goes on to be a screenshare of the hilarious recordings the phone picks up during the night.

(Link to Tik Tok)

Stats:

• 54 Million views

• 1 Million likes

• 6,371 Comments

A brilliant viral feature created by Sleep Cycle who are now getting incredible exposure & downloads for a very simple feature.

When thinking & deciding on how you develop your product & service always have the second and third order consequences of a feature in mind.

As it might help you be at the centre of a new viral trend!

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📈 Trends Of The Week:

The Boom in Boomer Business Deals

“The Signal: An estimated ~10k boomers hit retirement age every day in the US. Among these, ~8.3% are self-employed, meaning ~303k boomer business owners face retirement every year.”

Source: Kansas City Federal Reserve

“The scale of this issue is mind-boggling. Boomers own nearly half of all private businesses with employees in America. That adds up to 2.34m companies, ~24.7m employees, and ~$5.1T in sales.

Business-For-Sale Platforms: You’ve seen these grow recently. BizBuySell is a thousand-pound gorilla with ~1.9m visits/mo., and more niche options like MicroAcquire have quickly gained popularity, too.”

Legal marijuana sales in the U.S. expected to hit $33 billion this year

“Legal sales of marijuana are expected to top $33 billion by the end of 2022, according to a new study by MJBiz, a leading B2B cannabis industry resource. That’s a 32% increase over 2021’s total of $25 billion.

And by 2026, the group estimates, annual sales will exceed $52 billion.”

Surging inflation compelling small businesses to raise prices

“Two out of three (67%) small businesses have raised prices during the past 12 months and 85% are concerned about the persistence of the highest inflation in 40 years, according to a quarterly survey by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and MetLife.”

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✍️ Poem Of The Week

“Hope” is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -

And sore must be the storm -

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -

And on the strangest Sea -

Yet - never - in Extremity,

It asked a crumb - of me.

Emily Dickinson

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⛓ Podcast Of The Week:

(Link to episode)

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Happy Existing 👋