WAYN
Re-writing the rules – challenging entrepreneurial thinking: a case study
Founders Pete Ward and Jerome Touze started WAYN in their spare time after returning home from a 'round-the-world' trip with combined debts of over £40,000. With a background in consultancy and a history of entrepreneurship, the founders wanted to create a breakthrough social media platform that could bring together people with a similar outlook and interests.
Having founded the company in 2002 with the development brain of Mike Lines on board, WAYN secured initial backing from Steve Pankhurst, founder of 'Friends Reunited', in 2003. The growth was unprecedented. WAYN had more than 1 million members by the end of 2003 through word of mouth alone. Today, it has around 15 million members in 220 countries.
The development of the business has followed an interesting path. In May 2007, following four years of success, the founders turned the business on its head. From a subscription-led model, they moved to driving advertising revenue – and over the course of the next year, WAYN.com’s monthly unique visitors went from 1.8m to 7.5m. One year later, in April 2009, the site relaunched with a sleeker, more lifestyle oriented look as a response to the changing demographic of the network. In fact, rather than the gap-year backpacker you might expect, 75% of the users are in long-term employment and half are over 35 years old.
In the development of WAYN we have had to remain flexible both in terms of our operating model and our customer needs. We have strived to drive an innovative culture throughout our business but the most rewarding and cost-effective change has come from being able to test our thinking on a willing and informed consumer base."
For a rapidly growing company with a frequently changing customer base, WAYN had to respond to a multitude of demands - something they did not have the capability to handle internally. A sophisticated fraud management system had to be built and the risk of chargebacks had to be mitigated. This activity was undertaken with PayPoint.net and included real-time reporting and administration tools – 24 hours a day 7 days a week. In addition, privacy is critical to the success of any social network so WAYN had to build exceptional strength and resilience into its platform.
Success, however, has also brought about challenges. By developing an online business that is predicated on a massive scale, the WAYN entrepreneurs have had to react and predict customer behaviour – amongst 15 million people! By putting their members at the core of their strategy, they have been able to innovate through listening, an experience they describe as “humbling”. WAYN demonstrates the benefits of having an engaged consumer base that is willing to co-develop the functionality of the site.
As for the future – their aim is to help people realise their dreams, by connecting like-minded people, based on what they would love to do, as well as the modest goal of becoming globally recognised.
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