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Ever spoke to a friend about a product you saw somewhere and immediately saw an advertisement while browsing through the internet? Don’t even answer it, we all know how intrusive search engines are these days. Especially one particular search giant is notorious in poking nose all over in your data. We all know who I am talking about.

From knowing your flight itinerary to your daily commute to your favourite sports team, Google has become your new (and boundary crossing) best friend. The reason why we don’t make a fuss about it because we believe that it has to track your information to generate revenue. “If you are not paying for something, you are the product”.

But is it necessarily true? Do search engines really require your data to generate revenue?

DuckDuckGo denies.

What Is DuckDuckGo?

DuckDuckGo was established in the year 2008 as an internet privacy company which aims at being a secure search engine and not a pseudo-tracking engine. Basically, DuckDuckGo is an alternative to Google which doesn’t follow and track your behaviour.

So how does DDG make money? We will get to the answer after a short brief of their history.

History of DuckDuckGo

Founded in 2008 by Gabriel Weinberg, DuckDuckGo was a self-funded project after Weinberg sold his previous venture NamesDatabase to classmates.com in 2006 for $10 million.

The core idea behind starting DuckDuckGo was to provide search results in a secure internet space. During October 2011, DDG was funded by Union Square Ventures because they believed that competitiveness in search engine is through privacy now. By 2014, DDG was a profitable company although earning a tiny fraction of what Google earns. In August 2018, DDG raised another $10 million from Omers Ventures as Google was accused of biased internet search by US President Donald Trump. Although DDG was doing well off without the funding, the money could be used to spread awareness about the big bout between data privacy provided by DDG vs the giant Google.

DDG With Numbers

With 22 Billion searches under their belt, DDG has 55 employees currently and are keen on taking up the game with dedicated APIs to protect you from being followed by Google everywhere you go. DDG meanwhile is also keen on studying how Google tracks and stores data, therefore, having a head-on collision with Google in terms of data security.

DuckDuckGo Business Model

The Primary means of business for DuckDuckGo is always going to be its search engine. But even they know it is not enough to sustain themselves in the market where the competitor is Google.

With time DDG has moved on to its own app in Google Play store and Apple iTunes, and also launched it as a Chrome extension giving a much convenient option than using DDG through the browser.

DDG has its own instant answers API that is free of cost. Although, you might use it commercially only after getting email approval from DuckDuckGo. Pretty easy and convenient to use and aimed at getting more people to use DDG.

DDG is now developing APIs targeted on preventing your data from being processed while browsing other websites and will continue to keep up the fight with more data and more solutions to prevent internet users’ privacy being violated.

Not to forget the extensive study and fight DDG has put up against Google to protect user privacy. It now extensively conducts studies and shares results with masses to emphasize the need for more secure search engines.

How Does DuckDuckGo Make Money?

Most search engines make money by showing you advertisements related to the keywords you type in the search box. It is an acceptable approach except most search engines save the data about what you search.

DDG is different here: DDG makes sure it doesn’t save your IP, look at your cookie data or even remember who you are when you make consecutive searches. Basically, every time you use DDG, it is as if you are using the search engine for the first time.

So how do they give you targeted ads?

They don’t. They use keywords typed in to show advertisements (which are syndicated through Yahoo!). For example: If you search for ‘buy headphones online’, you will be shown headphones advertisements without peeping into your private data.

Thus, DuckDuckGo only shows you ads related to the keywords typed in the search box. (which by the way, you can disable in settings) This is their primary source of income.

The other method of generating revenue is non-tracking affiliate partnership with eBay and Amazon. When you purchase something from these websites through DDG, DuckDuckGo receives a small commission out of it.

So basically the other way DDG earns revenue is by getting a cut out of each product you buy through the DDG redirection link.

Naturally, these are not very profitable means and DDG is constantly on a lookout for more revenue generating models without putting user data at risk.

DuckDuckGo Vs Google

Most people are curious how DuckDuckGo makes a difference as compared to their usual Google search. Here is an infographic that will help you understand it better.

How Google Handles A Search Query

When you put in a search keyword on the search bar, Google takes in the keywords and shows you related Advertisements (also stores in what keyword you had typed, from what device, at what time and location). After picking a suitable header when you click on a link, Google sends your IP address and user agent(basically your complete digital identity)  to that website thus recording not just what you searched but from what device you searched and who searched it. It further keeps this information to itself to show you the advertisements of products that you may have left in your cart, etc. To have a thorough follow up, it creeps up on your internet activity through trackers that are on multiple websites that carry Advertisements driven by Google AdWords.

How DDG Handles A Search Query

When you put in a search keyword on the search bar, DDG takes in the keywords and shows advertisements based on the keyword (without saving your search history).Further when you click a link, DDG to make sure your identity is safe, changes link from a majority of websites so as to make the user data almost encrypted where the website won’t know the user information

DuckDuckGo Current Stance

Is DuckDuckGo all about a safe browser that doesn’t follow you or is there more to it?

10 years into a successful launch, DuckDuckGo has picked up the axe, has its warcry ready and is heading straight to tackle the biggest shark in the sea: Google.

DDG has made it open that it is against Google’s ­creepy tracking of the internet. Now that DDG has newly acquired funds, it has been on Google’s tail and has made an extensive study of how Google collects and uses User data and started making masses aware of how we can get rid of this creepy stalking. With the latest study by DDG claiming that Google still personalises your search results even when you are in incognito mode i.e. incognito isn’t as private as you thought it was. This isn’t as big a shock as the fact that was discovered that over 75% of the websites you visit have secret trackers in them which are installed in them by Google as part of Adwords or other support systems.

Now, leaving aside the mass study and awareness DDG is spreading to put its name out there, DDG is also developing methods to keep you safe when you browse the internet. DDG makes sure there is no search leakage when you browse through DDG. So now, they are making internet search more private, but they are also making some noise about it. The business model has changed drastically.

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You want to eat your favourite food from your favourite restaurant, but there is the usual tedious task in front of you – from getting ready to arriving at the restaurant through modern-day traffic to waiting for your table.

You suddenly decide to postpone your dine-out plan and eat home-cooked food instead. Available are food ordering options but you still have to pick it up from the restaurant. Hence, eating at home often seems to be a better option after a tiring day at work.

Worry no more because Swiggy has come to the rescue.

Prior to Swiggy, all options available were food ordering services, but Swiggy introduced ordering & delivering food services at your doorsteps – much needed by the customers.

Let us now understand how Swiggy works and makes money by diving deep into Swiggy’s business model.

Swiggy Business Model

Just like Grubhub in the USA, Swiggy operates on a hyperlocal on-demand food delivery business model. It not only aggregates restaurants but also organises a fleet of delivery partners which deliver the food (in less than 30 minutes) on-demand.

Owned and operated by Bundl Technologies Private Limited, this unicorn startup followed the path paved by Uber and crafted a business model which relied on a dual partnership model. The partners can be divided into two categories:

Restaurant Partners: The restaurant partners are restaurants which opt to deliver to customers that come from the Swiggy application and website.

Delivery Partners: They form the delivery fleet which is given the responsibility to pick up the order from the partner restaurant and deliver it to the end consumer.

How Swiggy Works?

Swiggy provides an online platform for ordering from a wide range of listed neighbourhood partner restaurants and has its own fleet of delivery personnel who pick up the orders from the partner restaurants and deliver them to the customers at their doorsteps.

Swiggy works by providing a complete food ordering and delivery solution that connects the existing neighbourhood restaurants with the urban foodies proving to be beneficial for both.

You can open the Swiggy application on your mobile phone or visit the Swiggy website, and you will find a whole list of restaurants to order from.

Once the restaurant is selected and the order placed, the restaurant which has its own Swiggy application receives the order details and starts preparing the order.

A broadcast signal is then sent to all the drivers in the vicinity who have their own driver applications. Those willing to accept the order can choose to accept and deliver it.

Like other on-demand delivery startups, Swiggy also has integrated the Google Maps API, which lets the customers know where their order is and the amount of time it will take for their order to get delivered in real-time.

How Swiggy Makes Money?

Swiggy’s business model has made Swiggy an early mover in the food service space in India and has had a set base model on which its business is based, but it has started earning revenues from other related avenues ever since it established itself.

The following are the different sources that Swiggy makes money from:-

Commissions

Swiggy typically charges a 15% – 25% commission on the order bill amount received by the restaurant. This commission is charged on the full bill amount, including the Goods and Service Tax charged over and above the menu price.

Swiggy continuously tries to get restaurants on board to be available on Swiggy exclusively. On this account, certain benefits are given to restaurants, like greater visibility and sometimes a drop in the commission of about 2% – 3%. But since the resulting benefit is far more than the drop in revenue, Swiggy does this aggressively.

The percentage of the commission depends on various factors like the frequency of orders received, location of the restaurant, dependency of the restaurant on Swiggy, the percentage charged by competitors, penetration to a new city etc.

Delivery charges

Swiggy does not have a minimum order requirement for delivery, so Swiggy often receives orders amounting to less than Rs 100. This increases the logistics cost per order.

So, after Swiggy got a stronghold of the market, it started charging delivery charges to low order amounts (depending on and varying from city to city). Delivery charges are typically around Rs 20 for orders less than Rs 250. Swiggy sometimes also charges a surge in delivery prices in times of high demand, rains, special occasions and midnight delivery in select markets.

This additionally helps in pushing customers to order above the threshold to avoid paying delivery charges.

Advertising

Swiggy started earning advertising revenue via two models – Banner promotions and priority listing of restaurants.

Swiggy recently started with Banner promotions to take a leaf out of Zomato and Foodpanda’s books. Restaurants are promoted and displayed in their app and website pertaining to regions. Different regions on the displayed page vary in their rates based on the visibility that the restaurant is to receive via the banner promotion.

The only limitation is that Swiggy does not share customer data, so the restaurants rely on generating raw revenue through higher visibility only.

Swiggy typically displays a list of available restaurants to the customers. It has tapped this very potential into a revenue stream by charging a premium from restaurants in return for giving priority listing to the restaurants. The higher up the list the restaurant is displayed, the higher the cost the restaurant has to pay.

Restaurants

Swiggy has started its own restaurants, which are prominently displayed on the application and website with the highest amount of visibility you can imagine. This started in Bangalore and is said to be replicated soon in markets like Mumbai and Hyderabad.

Swiggy Access

Swiggy has recently launched Swiggy Access, a central kitchen base-like facility which houses kitchens of different restaurants, including Swiggy’s private labels. This cloud kitchen business model will help restaurants to set up kitchens in locations even where they are not present.

Launched in Bangalore last year, it has expanded to include 30 restaurants with 36 kitchens in new cities, including Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad.

This inter-city model is expected to be a game-changer for penetration into tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

Currently, in markets where it is launched, about 8% – 25% of order volumes come via Access kitchens. Restaurants on Access have to pay higher commissions than the existing average commissions that the platform charges for delivery only.

Swiggy Super

Swiggy has recently launched Swiggy Super which is a membership program for customers. It offers unlimited free delivery on orders above Rs 99 and no surge pricing for which the customer has to pay a fixed amount.

Available options include a one-month membership for Rs 149 and a 3-month membership for Rs 349, which are being offered at introductory prices of Rs 49 and Rs 129, respectively. This amount, in addition to the repeat orders Swiggy expects through this membership program, is expected to increase revenue.

Affiliate Income

Besides the core business practices, Swiggy also makes money in the form of affiliate income by referring credit cards to its customers. The company has partnered with financial institutions and banks like American Express, Citibank, ICICI bank, HSBC, etc. to sell their credit cards to customers.

Customers see the credit card offers on the order tracking screen.

Sources Of Expenses For Swiggy

Apart from the revenue streams, Swiggy also has to incur expenses for its day-to-day functioning. These expenses, coupled with Swiggy’s motive to gain market share aggressively, led Swiggy to lose Rs. 1.5 for every Re. 1 it earned in 2017. But, Swiggy owing to its expansion strategies across the country and having gained considerable market share, has managed to earn Rs. 1.1 for every rupee it lost in 2018.

• Payments and incentives to delivery partners (the amount varies according to the experience, place of operation, and the number and time of delivery)
• Application and website development charges
• Application and website maintenance charges
• Salaries and provisions for full-time employees
• Administrative costs
• Advertising and marketing costs
• Benefits given to customers in the form of offers
• Returns and refunds
• Miscellaneous expenses

Future Of Swiggy

Swiggy recently became the first aggregator to offer the 30 minutes or free delivery feature to customers. It is available at select restaurants in select cities but it solves a huge pain point of customers having to wait for 40-60 minutes for their food to get delivered. Once it is fully launched – Swiggy will bear 70% – 80% of the cost in case it fails to deliver on time, while the restaurants will bear the rest.

Swiggy also launched the Swiggy POP, which focuses on providing single-serve meals that save time. It is aimed at time-pressed professionals who are on the move and want a foolproof mix for their daily needs.

Swiggy now also allows customers to pre-order their meals through Swiggy scheduled. They can now place their orders in slots of 30 minutes, a minimum of two hours and a maximum of 48 hours in advance. This enhances the experience of those who order from Swiggy regularly.

Bottom Line?

Due to such different features and a host of different options provided by Swiggy, it might soon gain a competitive advantage and increase its customer base, as we already see happening. Additionally, due to its innovation, the resultant growth would be purely organic in nature – something that every company dreams of.

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If you’re reading this article on your smartphone, there’s a probability that imagining a world without Google Maps now could be a bit difficult for you.

Started as C++ program in 2004, Google Maps has literally brought the world at your fingertips. It has become so important part of our lives and businesses that if we were to experience a crash in Google Maps services, big unicorns like Uber, Didi, and Airbnb will go down along with it.

But how does this giant work? How does Google Maps make money given that it is free to use? Here’s an article to answer all your questions regarding this pioneer of web mapping.

How Google Maps Works?

With over 154 million monthly users, Google Maps, no doubt, has established its brand name as a synonym to the word maps. It provides us with everything from traffic highlights to road maps, from street signs to businesses. But how does it all works? Where does Google Maps gets all its data from?

The answer to this is crowdsourcing.

Google Maps depends on its Map Content Partners for most of its data. The Map Content Partners can be divided into five categories –

• Base Map Partners For Geological Maps: The Base Map Partner Program collects information in the form of vector data from a range of credible organizations like USDA Forest Service, the U.S. National Park Service, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and U.S. Geological Survey.
• Imagery Partners For Aerial Views: Partners, both private and government organisations, provide high-resolution aerial imagery to be used in Google Maps, and Google Earth. These images are either taken by a satellite or from an aircraft flying at a considerable height from the ground.
• Transit Partners: Transit is the public transportation planning tool that combines the Google Maps data with the latest agency data like transit stop, route, schedule, and fare information to make trip planning effortless. These transit partners include government departments running trains, busses, etc. and even ride-hailing companies like Uber too.
• Individual Partners: Google collects the location data from your smartphone and analyses it to provide features like real-time traffic updates, new routes, alternate routes, etc. Besides this, every Google Maps user can also become a local guide and contribute to making the application better by contributing their local knowledge to the platform.
• Google My Business: Google lets the businesses list themselves on Google Maps by registering on Google MyBusiness. This adds to the utility as more and more addresses are added every day automatically.

Besides this, Google also sources minutely detailed digital images from its company-owned vehicles which patrol almost all the streets, neighbourhoods and residential complexes round the clock.

How Google Maps Makes Money?

Google Maps not only gives you directions between places but also features nearby stores, pharmacies, service centres, etc. including your business for free. While the Maps don’t charge you for your usage, it still earns a considerable amount of revenue (expected to rise to $5 billion by 2020) from advertisements and strategic partnerships.

1. Advertising

Just like the parent company, Google Maps make most of its revenue from advertisements. These ads can be divided into two categories

Local Search Ads: Local search ads are featured businesses which appear as top results whenever people search for nearby businesses on Google or Google Maps or explore the businesses in the neighbourhood on Google Maps.

Promoted Pins: Google Maps uses a ‘pin’ like symbol to indicate the location of a place. But in very large cities with thousands of businesses, it is difficult to locate a specific place among so many pins. Here google steps in by offering to display the company’s logo instead of the standard pin. For example, McDonald’s pays a fee to Google to have its signature ‘M’ logo to be embedded in each map. The logos (the promoted pins), differently coloured, definitely stand out and are easy to spot.

Not only does this increase the businesses’ visibility, but also streamlines the user experience, and of course, helps generates more revenue. Most importantly, this form of advertising is small-scale and subtle and doesn’t scream pop-ups so it drives clicks purely through brand recognition.

2. Google Maps API

Google Maps isn’t limited to the Google Maps or Google Maps Go application. Companies Like Uber, Airbnb, and even The Pokemon Company pay to include Google Maps API in their services. But what exactly is API and how can other companies use an application within their own application?

In simple terms, an API is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. Google maps sells its API to businesses like Uber and Pokemon Go which tailor it according to their needs and use it to make money.

Google API can be categorized into three products:

• Custom Maps
• Routes
• Places

Custom Maps are customizable maps and street view imagery which can be embedded in the application or website to enhance the user experience by helping them get the context they need. Such Maps are used by hotel marketplaces or aggregators, real estate website and applications, etc.

Routes has comprehensive, up-to-date transit, biking, driving, and walking directions covering 40 million miles of roads in over 200 countries and territories. It’s used by companies like Vallie, Swiggy, Appy Parking etc. which often need to be on the road, deliver the products, or show routes and their current location to the users.

Places is used to help the users discover points of interest on-demand. It is apt for applications and websites dealing in events, trip booking, trip planning, etc.

How much does it cost to use the Google Maps API?

The pricing strategies adopted by Google for its Google Maps products are a pay as you go and you only pay for what you use. The amount is calculated based on the number of calls for each SKU.

The user also gets a recurring $200 credit on his billing account each month to offset the usage costs.

You can find more about the pricing on this webpage and learn about the costing structure on this webpage.

3. Partnerships

Google Maps has partnered with several cab-hailing companies across the world like Uber, Lyft, Ola, etc. and added the option of discovering available cabs and their pricing within the Google Maps App. A user gets to explore different offers from the cab-hailing companies within the Google Maps app and is directed to their applications if he plans to book one.

The cab-hailing section of the Google Maps includes a sticker of Ads which means these companies pay the platform per impression or per click.

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In this ever-changing world of workplace set ups, you might have heard of or witnessed your entrepreneur friends choosing CoWorking Spaces as their office.

There must be many questions in your mind like “What is a co-working space?”, “How does a Coworking Space Operate and make money”?, “Why should I care about it?”

Well, on the contrary to popular beliefs, coworking space is a startup in itself which has disrupted the current workplace scenario. The way it operates and makes money is also a lot different from the usual. Read on to know more.

What Is Coworking Space?

Coworking space is a business service provision model which lets individuals and teams work independently or collaboratively in a shared office space. Even though it’s a shared office space, a coworking space provides an environment that simulates the environment found in an established venture.

Besides being a shared office space, coworking spaces also serve as a place to hold relevant workshops, conferences, and much more.

How Coworking Space Makes Money?

Unlike other office spaces, the co-working space business model is a bit different. A coworking space is a startup in itself which has disrupted the existing market scenario. It not only makes money in the form of rents but also has widened its branches to other revenue sources like partnerships and memberships.

Renting

1. Renting Out The Office Infrastructure

Just like a normal workplace, a coworking space has set number of workstations which it rents to individual and teams. This renting out the workstations acts as the primary source of revenue for most coworking spaces.

Besides the dedicated workstations, many coworking spaces offer dedicated cabins for rents too. Many of them also offer a flexible rent option where they provide an à la carte solutions to the users.

2. Renting Out Space

Many coworking spaces with available halls and meeting rooms also rent out these spaces for events like conferences, seminars, training workshops etc.

They charge a fee that is nominal when compared to other resource-intensive alternatives and also provide adequate facilities to host such events.

Virtual Offices

Some coworking spaces even add virtual offices offering to their business model. A virtual office is a premium work address which the business uses for listings and mails and packages, while the team works from home.

A virtual office is a boon for entrepreneurs who like to work from home but need a dedicated premium looking address for their startup.

Marketing

Since there is a lot of diversity in terms of types of companies, work structure, and employees in coworking spaces, some B2B companies usually use these spaces for promotional activities.

Even workshops or training that are conducted in coworking space serve as a means of promoting a product and become a source of revenue.

Premium Membership

Every product venture at some point of time does introduce features and facilities that could be availed by paying some amount. Premium membership is a one time fee usually charged annually and gives access to marquee facilities. This form of revenue generation also ensures loyalty.

Partnerships

Since there are a plethora of tasks that are being done under one roof, it becomes easier for both the investors and members to reach one another.

Strategic tie-ups with angel investors or venture capitalists lead to an increase in revenue and also popularity among the masses. Coworking spaces act as an easy medium to connect investors to the startup founders and charge a small commission or fee for the same.

Why Have Coworking Spaces Become So Popular?

Coworking spaces provide a cheap alternative for budding enterprises. You could book a room for a team of even two people or an entire floor for a medium scale enterprise and still pay nominal fees.

Even after being a cheaper alternative, coworking space still has the best resources for the community.

Benefits Of Coworking Spaces

Zero Capital Investment

The biggest benefit of coworking spaces is that entrepreneurs don’t have to shed their pockets or look for investors to invest in offices before the actual product is released or the actual business is set up.

Productivity

Working from home has an abundance of distractions like TV, pets, bed, and family, and such constant distractions reduce productivity.

Maintaining a clear distinction between work and home allows an individual to keep the structure in their life, and provides all the more reason to get out of the comforts of their home and work in an office like environment.

Networking

Since coworking space brings people from diverse background, it provides you with an opportunity to work with people vastly different skillsets and gain a new perspective about solutions to a problem and if you are in a coworking space that has more professionals aligned with interest you could actually come with a novel solution.

Flexibility

As a budding entrepreneur, it is impossible to set up a fully functional office as you might be investing even the seed funding in hiring the best talent to help your venture grow.

Apart from this owning an office space is no easy task in itself.

Lease agreements, utility bills and the infrastructure for ensuring smooth functioning require a significant amount of money as well as time.

On the other hand coworking spaces already have these arrangements in place.

Emotional Stability

There will be times when you as an entrepreneur would feel like nothing is working and would tend to give up. When in self-doubt, the best way to overcome it is the being in the company of people. Their stories and struggles might motivate you and reduce the negative vibes in your life.

Also working alone in your home would make you feel lonely and you would want someone to address your concerns be it technical or spiritual.

Working in a coworking space brings you an opportunity to connect with people and learn from them.

The Best Coworking Spaces In The World

While defining the best coworking space, it is essential to have some basic criteria for judgements.

The best coworking space could be judged on three parameters – Location, Innovativeness and Community.

Location: It is crucial for a location to be situated in a metropolis. This is because a metropolis has better access to facilities and it is easy to find fast solutions if a problem may occur.

Innovativeness: It is essential for the coworking space to have some innovation. It should not be just four walls with basic amenities. It should provide some facilities that stand out.

Community: Coworking space is all about community. There is no point of a coworking space if it doesn’t have the right people working there. A large part is about the spirit of the people you work with.

Let’s look at some of the best coworking space around the globe.

1. TNW’s TQ, Amsterdam, Holland

Located in Amsterdam TQ has created a niche for itself. Providing members with access to world-class seminars, conferences, community and events; it is a dream come true for many entrepreneurs.

2. Village Underground Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal

Apart from the community and facilities, it has to offer, the best part about it is the structure. Its unique architectural structure is made from shipping containers and double-decker buses, recycled into office spaces, a restaurant and conference room.

Apart from this Village Underground has established itself as a global powerhouse when it comes to CoWorking Spaces establishing a branch in London as well.

3. The Pool, Mexico

It’s the atmosphere of departure that makes “The Pool” so special. You can experience creativity and productivity in every corner of the building.

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