TLDR
Managed marketplaces can create a step-function improvement in user experience, but they can be complicated to operate & challenging to scale. Craigslist and Thumbtack are much bigger businesses than managed marketplaces that have attempted to employ home services pros themselves and own the end-to-end experience. In categories where services are viewed by users as commodities and/or users are especially price-sensitive, the open version of a marketplace often wins out over more managed versions. The key is finding a way to provide a more delightful, managed experience where it matters, but doing so scalably, leveraging software.via the TL;DR App
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Written by lijin | I am a founder and Managing Partner at Atelier, an early-stage VC firm.
