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was the raw, performance art version of an existing trend:Meme Startups that exist as something between a rapidly-spreading idea and a product early on.
Going viral early is great for cheap customer acq., but MS need to be like Leo and avoid the Will Ferrell Effect.
Quick note: if you like a higher word/meme ration, check out the original essay here: https://notboring.substack.com/p/the-will-ferrell-effect
Otherwise, letâs go
Otherwise, letâs go
Ok, letâs meet some of our Meme Startups:
@Superhuman
@SubstackInc
@Allbirds
@joinClubhouse
HEY from @jasonfried & @dhh
@RoamResearch #roamcult
@RobinhoodApp
@Superhuman
@SubstackInc
@Allbirds
@joinClubhouse
HEY from @jasonfried & @dhh
@RoamResearch #roamcult
@RobinhoodApp
Weâll get back to them, but first:
Started as a meme & blew up enough to highlight and fund racial justice causes.
For, the meme was an end in and of itself. For Meme Startups, the meme is a means to an end.
https://xn--mp8hai.fm/statementđđđ.fm/statement
Started as a meme & blew up enough to highlight and fund racial justice causes.
For
, the meme was an end in and of itself. For Meme Startups, the meme is a means to an end. https://xn--mp8hai.fm/statementđđđ.fm/statement
Who controls the memes, controls the Universe
More than just pictures with outlined Impact font, @RichardDawkins coined the term meme (âpronounced to rhyme with âcreamââ) in 1976 as âan idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture.â https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1276418907968925696
More than just pictures with outlined Impact font, @RichardDawkins coined the term meme (âpronounced to rhyme with âcreamââ) in 1976 as âan idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture.â https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1276418907968925696
Founders and marketers hack our predilection to copy each other to spread their products and jumpstart the loops that drive growth.
@chamath said that $0.40 of every $ raised goes to GOOG, FB, or AMZN; memes are a way to acquire customers cheaply and quickly. https://twitter.com/garrytan/status/1129053848960548864
@chamath said that $0.40 of every $ raised goes to GOOG, FB, or AMZN; memes are a way to acquire customers cheaply and quickly. https://twitter.com/garrytan/status/1129053848960548864
But memes have a certain amount to fuel to burn, and burning it too quickly is dangerously easy.
If they do, theyâll face the Will Ferrell Effect. To avoid that, they need to:
1. Balance Exposure
2. Build in Stickiness
3. Evolve
If they do, theyâll face the Will Ferrell Effect. To avoid that, they need to:
1. Balance Exposure
2. Build in Stickiness
3. Evolve
If youâre lucky enough to become a meme, you need to be prepared with a second act, or else you risk becoming a parody of yourself. Just ask Will Ferrell.
When I was a kid, no one was funnier than Will Ferrell. Spartan Cheerleaders is the first SNL skit I remember, and Dissing Your Dog is my all-time favorite.
He did Celeb Jeopardy, More Cowbell, Harry Caray, Inside the Actors Studio & so many more.
He did Celeb Jeopardy, More Cowbell, Harry Caray, Inside the Actors Studio & so many more.
That landed him #12 on @RollingStoneâs all-time SNL list and led to a historic run of comedy hits.
https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-lists/saturday-night-live-all-145-cast-members-ranked-146340/12-will-ferrell-167517/
https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-lists/saturday-night-live-all-145-cast-members-ranked-146340/12-will-ferrell-167517/
If you couldnât quote every Will Ferrell line, you werenât cool. Everyone had to go see his movies, and it shows in the 1998 -2005 box office receipts:
But Ferrell overexposed himself. He burned his meme fuel.
Imagine walking up to your friends right now and shouting âIâM IN A GLASS CASE OF EMOTION.â Wouldnât hit the same way.
Imagine walking up to your friends right now and shouting âIâM IN A GLASS CASE OF EMOTION.â Wouldnât hit the same way.
Thatâs the Will Ferrell Effect. One minute itâs everywhere, the next, itâs over.
Ferrellâs 2005-2010 box office run was choppy. Even his wins generated a much smaller return than before.
In startup terms, he couldnât grow into his valuation.
Ferrellâs 2005-2010 box office run was choppy. Even his wins generated a much smaller return than before.
In startup terms, he couldnât grow into his valuation.
2010-2020 was even uglier. Aside from The LEGO Movie, they were all duds.
Even before that awful run, @Forbes called Ferrell âHollywoodâs Most Overpaid Star.â His movies only brought in $3.29 for every $ he earned. Shia LeBouef brought in $160. https://www.forbes.com/2009/11/17/hollywoods-most-overpaid-stars-business-entertainment-overpaid-stars.html#1bc9e677f484
Even before that awful run, @Forbes called Ferrell âHollywoodâs Most Overpaid Star.â His movies only brought in $3.29 for every $ he earned. Shia LeBouef brought in $160. https://www.forbes.com/2009/11/17/hollywoods-most-overpaid-stars-business-entertainment-overpaid-stars.html#1bc9e677f484
Compare Ferrell to @LeoDiCaprio. Dude doesnât miss. From This Boyâs Life in 1993 to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood last year, his movies have been universally loved.
Leo doesnât have a schtick. He isnât a meme, he just stars in them.
Leo doesnât have a schtick. He isnât a meme, he just stars in them.
Rasons for Leoâs sustained success after a hot start:
1. Balanced exposure. Just 1 movie/yr for the past 26 years, compared to Ferrellâs 54.
2. Built in Stickiness. His performances are different & complex, you need to watch.
3. Evolve. He didnât win his first Oscar until 2016.
1. Balanced exposure. Just 1 movie/yr for the past 26 years, compared to Ferrellâs 54.
2. Built in Stickiness. His performances are different & complex, you need to watch.
3. Evolve. He didnât win his first Oscar until 2016.
Leoâs in a sweet spot between Ferrell, whoâs overexposed, and Daniel Day Lewis, whoâs a recluse.
If youâre a Meme Startup, you want to be Leo.
If youâre a Meme Startup, you want to be Leo.
The Downside of Virality
Isnât going viral always a good thing? Isnât it ok to be like Will Ferrell?
Well, memes only have a certain amount of fuel, and on the internet, itâs easy to burn through it before you live up to the hype.
Remember HQ Trivia?
Isnât going viral always a good thing? Isnât it ok to be like Will Ferrell?
Well, memes only have a certain amount of fuel, and on the internet, itâs easy to burn through it before you live up to the hype.
Remember HQ Trivia?
The @ringerâs Boom/Bust from @alyssabereznak is an incredible inside look into HQâs .. boom and bust. Launched in June 2017, grew to 2.3 million simultaneous users, raised $15mm in 2018, and then.. folded earlier this year. https://open.spotify.com/show/65F5z1u5FCLX9ddueCHJRb?si=1JbCZBMZT8K_Sic4G7zPyg
HQâs Animation Director Rusty Wyner said of a @TaylorLorenz article on @ScottRogowsky, âThe problem was that article made it get way too popular⊠that spike in popularity just made it grow too quickly, it was too viral.â https://www.thedailybeast.com/ceo-of-hq-the-hottest-app-going-if-you-run-this-profile-well-fire-our-host
HQ went too viral, too fast, and its systems, features, strategy, and team werenât ready for it.
@mgsiegler said of going viral too early, âIt also just breaks the way youâre thinking about how you should be building your company going forward.â
@mgsiegler said of going viral too early, âIt also just breaks the way youâre thinking about how you should be building your company going forward.â
So what can the Meme Startups @joinClubhouse HEY @Superhuman @RobinhoodApp @RoamResearch and @RobinhoodApp do to avoid the Will Ferrell Effect, and HQâs fate?
Transition from being known as a meme to being known as a great product that leverages memes to grow.
Transition from being known as a meme to being known as a great product that leverages memes to grow.
Look at @Nike, the @LeoDiCaprio of Meme Companies.
The company stood with @Kaepernick7 before it was fashionable. Theyâve been proven to have been on the right side of history, and created a shareable and remixable meme.
The company stood with @Kaepernick7 before it was fashionable. Theyâve been proven to have been on the right side of history, and created a shareable and remixable meme.
The Meme Startups, like Leo, need to:
1. Balance Exposure to stay cool with new audiences.
2. Build in stickiness so people donât leave when the buzz dies down.
3. Evolve the product - improve without straying too far from the core value prop, and create new memes.
1. Balance Exposure to stay cool with new audiences.
2. Build in stickiness so people donât leave when the buzz dies down.
3. Evolve the product - improve without straying too far from the core value prop, and create new memes.
Put in strategy terms, the Meme Startups need to Cross the Chasm and reach the Early Majority before the Innovators and Early Adopters grow tired of them and they die on the ... Vine.
. @Allbirds nailed the transition from Meme Startup to legit success. Launched in 2016, it sold its millionth pair two years later, and raised at a $1.4bn valuation shortly thereafter. They havenât needed to raise since.
Allbirds was such a meme that they were included in @vcstarterkitâs ... VC Starter Kit. https://vcstarterkit.com/
Hereâs the challenge with The Will Ferrell Effect: once everyone you know is wearing Allbirds, itâs no longer as cool to wear Allbirds. So people in tech move on to @WearAtoms , @mahabis, or whichever new cool sneaker brand only some people have heard of.
But good news - apparently, people outside of Silicon Valley wear sneakers, too. Allbirds Balanced Exposure by making the leap from the tech bubble to Hollywood - celebs like @Oprah have been spotted rocking Allbirds. Leo invested in the co, and even @BarackObama wears them.
By positioning itself as the sustainable shoe company, @Allbirds Built in Stickiness via values-aligned customers - the shoes donât just say you work in tech, they say you care about the planet.
That also gave them the upper hand when Amazon copied them. https://medium.com/@joeyzwillinger/dear-mr-bezos-e691f6d6d705
That also gave them the upper hand when Amazon copied them. https://medium.com/@joeyzwillinger/dear-mr-bezos-e691f6d6d705
. @Allbirds takes $$$ it saves via Word of Mouth - south of $500k/mo on paid acquisition on sales approaching $300mm - and reinvest in Evolving products.
On Venture Stories with @eriktorenberg, @henrylmcnamara said Allbirds is really a materials company. https://open.spotify.com/episode/19m8rzf6ujW5PuioCHAun3?si=Otp3uYhyTyqlSxVYKm6Csw
On Venture Stories with @eriktorenberg, @henrylmcnamara said Allbirds is really a materials company. https://open.spotify.com/episode/19m8rzf6ujW5PuioCHAun3?si=Otp3uYhyTyqlSxVYKm6Csw
. @Allbirds moved beyond the memable shoe that made it famous by focusing on sustainability and materials, which allowed it to land a deal that will generate the next meme: producing the worldâs most sustainable shoe with @Adidas. https://www.vogue.com/article/adidas-allbirds-collaboration-sustainable-sneaker-lowest-carbon-footprint
Thereâs a lot more to cover on the specifics of each Meme Startup, but itâs getting late and I donât want to burn all my meme fuel in one tweetstorm, so just a few quick ones:
According to @nbashaw, HEY doesnât need to become absolutely massive to be a success because it hasnât raised VC. @dhh and @jasonfried can just have fun with it. https://divinations.substack.com/p/will-hey-work
. @RobinhoodAppâs failure to build infrastructure has caused the app to crash at the most inopportune times, and lack of trade support / clarity contributed to a young traderâs suicide. Shows the importance of being ready when you go viral. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.marketwatch.com/amp/story/finance-isnt-worth-losing-your-life-over-the-heartbreaking-story-of-a-rookie-trader-who-racked-up-700000-in-debt-2020-06-14
. @joinClubhouse is doing a masterful job transitioning early from a place where tech broâs gather to the place where the most important convos are happening, including @Oprah and @MCHammer coming on to talk about race and justice. https://twitter.com/sidharthajha/status/1274504105378152450
The difficulty in learning @RoamResearch is a feature, not a bug. It builds stickiness and has contributed to creating the #roamcult.
@robbylit wrote an excellent piece on that here: https://goodbetterbest.substack.com/p/roam-research-the-cult-packaging
@robbylit wrote an excellent piece on that here: https://goodbetterbest.substack.com/p/roam-research-the-cult-packaging
At the end of the day, a meme is good only insofar as the product can back it up before the cool runs dry.
So with that, you stay classy, twitter.
So with that, you stay classy, twitter.
