Podcast Summary
Identifying hidden market opportunities: Recognizing personal struggles in traditional learning environments led Sameer Sharif to found Cambly, an on-demand English learning service, uncovering the massive market opportunity of English language learning.
Learning from this episode of Founders Field Guide is the importance of addressing hidden market opportunities. Sameer Sharif, the CEO of Cambly, shared his experience of identifying the need for an on-demand English learning service despite being surrounded by English speakers. This concept grew out of their personal experiences struggling to learn languages in traditional classroom environments and the effectiveness of immersive learning. The massive market opportunity of English language learning, which is often overlooked due to its ubiquity in the English-speaking world, was brought to light through their experiences. Additionally, the episode highlighted the importance of compliance certifications for startups, as discussed with Vanta, and the benefits of using their continuous monitoring solution to streamline the audit process. Lastly, the episode featured Snack Magic, a customizable snack and swag service, showcasing the importance of thoughtful gifting and appreciation for teams and clients.
Creating Accessible Language Learning Resources: Former Google employees founded Cambly, a platform connecting users with native speakers for real-time, one-on-one conversation practice, addressing the vast issue of limited language learning resources for non-English speakers.
There's a vast, overlooked problem in the world: the lack of access to language learning resources for non-English speakers. Two former Google employees, both technologists and product people, identified this issue and wanted to create a solution. They envisioned a platform where people could connect with native speakers for conversational practice, similar to making friends while traveling. Initially, they aimed to learn French and Spanish themselves. However, they soon realized that the majority of the world's population doesn't speak English, and over 1.5 billion people are actively trying to learn it. This enormous problem, while not personally relatable for English speakers, can significantly impact individuals' lives by unlocking economic opportunities, access to information, and more. In the early days, they started Cambly, a language learning platform that connects users with native speakers for real-time, one-on-one conversation practice. This innovative solution addresses the need for accessible language learning resources, enabling non-English speakers to connect with the world in a more meaningful way.
Creating an 'alive' experience in a 2-sided marketplace: To build a successful marketplace, focus on delivering an on-demand, high-quality experience for both sides, even in the early stages, and address technical challenges to ensure clear communication.
Building a successful marketplace, like Preply, requires addressing the needs of both sides of the marketplace and creating an "alive" experience. Preply is a mobile and web app that connects English language learners with native English speakers for conversational practice. The app functions as a 2-sided marketplace, with tutors on one side and students on the other. The challenge in the early stages was to ensure a constant supply of tutors to create an "alive" experience for students. The founders started by being the only tutors, but soon realized they needed to build up the supply side to make the service on-demand. They paid people to wait for calls from students, effectively creating a pool of available tutors. The founders' focus on delivering an on-demand, high-quality experience, even in the early stages, was crucial to the success of the marketplace. Additionally, there were technical challenges to overcome in order to provide clear, high-fidelity voice connections for effective language practice. Despite these challenges, the founders' commitment to understanding their customers' needs and delivering a valuable experience helped them build a successful marketplace that connects English language learners with native speakers from around the world.
Demand for English education and smartphones enable real-time language learning: Canvas identified a gap in the market for interactive English learning experiences, using technology to connect learners with native speakers for real-time practice.
The advent of smartphones with fast Internet and video chat capabilities opened up a vast market for instant language learning with native speakers, which was previously impossible or inaccessible for many. The demand for English education has been growing, but the technological advancements enabled by smartphones made it possible to create a marketplace for 1-on-1 video chat sessions with native English speakers. However, building such a service comes with numerous challenges, such as predicting demand, ensuring quality control, and managing communication between tutors and learners with language barriers. Canvas, a language learning platform, identified a gap in the market for interactive English learning experiences, where learners could practice speaking with native speakers in real-time. To create an effective business model for this on-demand streaming service, Canvas had to build technology to match demand with supply, ensure tutor availability, and create a seamless user experience, making it possible for learners to connect with native English speakers instantly.
Cambly's Unique Subscription Model Encourages Regular Usage: Cambly's subscription model incentivizes students to use the platform daily and rewards tutors for their time, promoting effective language learning and alignment with company goals.
The business model of Cambly, an online language learning platform, is designed to encourage regular usage of the service by students and tutors through a unique subscription model. The students pay a monthly fee for a set amount of daily usage, which is "use it or lose it," and the tutors get paid for every minute they spend speaking with students. This model encourages students to use the product daily for effective language learning and aligns with the company's goal of creating a product that people not only pay for but also actively use. Additionally, Cambly has moderation tools in place to ensure a safe and effective English learning environment for both students and tutors, as the platform facilitates person-to-person conversations. The company has learned from past mistakes, such as a pay-as-you-go model, which didn't effectively communicate the importance of regular usage and daily practice. The unique challenges of managing a large-scale human-to-human marketplace, including moderation, are complex issues that will continue to be relevant in the future as more massive human-to-human networks emerge on the internet.
Learn English and Make International Connections with Cambly: Cambly is an online English learning platform that facilitates human-to-human connections across cultures, using video chat, messaging, translation, and curriculum-based courses.
Cambly, an online English language learning platform, offers unique human-to-human connections with people from different cultures and parts of the globe. Unlike social media platforms where you interact with people you already know, Cambly enables international connections, fostering a cultural exchange that brings people closer despite their differences. The technology used in Cambly includes video chat, messaging, translation, and curriculum-based courses to cater to diverse student needs. The platform's primary goal is to help people learn English, but it also provides a valuable opportunity for personal connections and understanding between individuals from various backgrounds. Cambly's core functions include setting rules and standards, providing core tools and services, and matching students with tutors effectively. Future improvements may include additional features to enhance the learning and teaching experience, making it even more effective and engaging for both sides of the market.
Personalized one-on-one language instruction for better learning outcomes: Future language learning may offer tailored instruction based on learners' interests, personality, style, and occupation for optimal educational outcomes. Scaling this approach requires significant resources to ensure high-quality matches and a diverse range of tutors.
The future of language learning could involve highly personalized and effective one-on-one instruction, aiming to deliver an "11 star" experience. This could mean matching learners with tutors who share their interests, personality, style, and occupation, providing a truly tailored learning experience. The vision is to serve as many non-English speakers as possible and help them learn English quickly and effectively. This personalized approach is inspired by research showing that one-on-one tutoring yields better educational outcomes than traditional classroom learning. Preparing for this future requires significant scale and liquidity to ensure high-quality matches and a diverse range of tutors. By addressing the "Bloom's 2 Sigma problem" and scaling one-on-one tutoring, language learning companies can help learners maximize their learning rate and reach their full potential.
Scaling English education services and exploring new learning verticals: Cambly, a one-on-one English language tutoring platform, is focusing on scaling its English education services due to market size, but recognizes its technology's potential in other learning settings. The complex matchmaking process requires effective data collection and audience building strategies for growth.
Cambly, a platform for one-on-one English language tutoring over video chat, is currently focused on scaling its English education services due to the vast market size. However, the company recognizes the potential of its technology and product in other one-on-one learning settings. The matchmaking process, a complex problem, involves collecting structured data on both sides of the marketplace to facilitate matches based on personality, style, interests, and occupation. The scale required to effectively match in all dimensions, including time, is surprising. Audience building strategies, including initial cohort acquisition through job boards, are essential for the platform's growth. Despite the current focus on English education, the technology's potential extends to various verticals, making it an exciting investment opportunity.
Creating a 'wow moment' leads to growth: Building a local team and understanding local markets can create a 'wow moment' for international customers, leading to significant word-of-mouth growth.
Creating a "wow moment" for customers in the initial stages of using a product or service can lead to significant word-of-mouth growth. The story of a Brazilian student discovering an English learning app and instantly connecting with a native English speaker illustrates this concept. For businesses aiming to expand internationally, it's crucial to understand local markets and build teams with country managers who have a strong understanding of the culture and language. Cambly's success in being perceived as a local company in various markets is a testament to their extensive localization efforts. Their strategy involves hiring country managers with a high level of ownership and analytical skills to spearhead market entry and growth.
Launching and growing an international business: Iterate product, master marketing and scaling, and hire local expertise to navigate international markets for business success.
Building a successful business, especially in an international market, requires a scrappy, entrepreneurial, and highly analytical individual. This person should be able to grow into a manager and leader as the business expands. The process begins with a single person who localizes the business and builds the brand, similar to a franchising model. The biggest challenges include launching and iterating a product, marketing and scaling the service, and hiring local expertise to navigate international markets. The markets with the greatest demand for English language learning and the ability to pay for the service vary, with East Asia and developing regions being particularly successful. The biggest "boss battles" include overcoming a rough product launch, figuring out marketing and scaling, and hiring local expertise. Through these challenges, the lesson learned was the importance of iteration, marketing and scaling, and local expertise in building a successful international business.
Expanding a business into an unfamiliar market: hiring local and raising capital: Hire local experts to fill knowledge gaps and focus on building a strong business with traction before fundraising to make the process easier and more productive.
Starting a business in an unfamiliar market comes with unique challenges, particularly when it comes to hiring and fundraising. The speakers, who were early employees at Cambly, a language learning platform, discussed their experience expanding into the Korean market. They emphasized the importance of filling gaps in knowledge and expertise by hiring local country managers. However, raising capital was also difficult due to the lack of understanding and visibility into the market. The speakers advised founders to focus on building a strong business with traction before fundraising, as it will make the process easier and more productive. They also emphasized the importance of being lean and focusing on growth before raising capital. Throughout their journey, the speakers' roles evolved as the business scaled, starting as software engineers and product people, and eventually leading to managing a large marketplace. Despite the challenges, they emphasized the importance of staying focused on the opportunity and the potential for growth.
From doing the work yourself to managing a team: Delegating tasks and giving team members autonomy leads to a robust team and strategic company growth.
Building a company involves a significant shift from doing the work yourself to managing and leading a team. This transition can be challenging, especially for those with an engineering background used to hands-on work. However, delegating tasks and giving team members autonomy is crucial for building a robust team and freeing up time for strategic company building. Hiring experts in their fields and trusting them to take ownership of their roles can lead to great results. One company that has inspired the speaker's approach is Airbnb, which normalized the concept of staying in someone's guest room through its international marketplace. The speaker learned from their experience at Y Combinator and the parallels between their companies' growth. Collaborative learning and delegation are essential for effective company building.
Overcoming Challenges and Finding Inspiration in Entrepreneurship: Perseverance, inspiration, and family/mentor support are crucial for entrepreneurial success. Famous entrepreneurs faced similar struggles and provided inspiration, while personal sacrifices and role models also played a key role.
Building a successful company often involves overcoming skepticism and challenges, as well as finding inspiration and mentorship from other entrepreneurs. The speakers in this discussion, including the founders of Cambly and Airbnb, faced similar struggles in their early days and provided inspiration for each other. Another role model for the Cambly founder was Katrina Lake of Citrix, who also faced funding challenges but went on to build a successful team and company. The kindest thing anyone has ever done for the Cambly founder was the sacrifices made by his parents, allowing him to take risks and start his own business. Overall, the discussion highlights the importance of perseverance, inspiration, and the support of family and mentors in entrepreneurship.
Snack Magic adapts to modern work with remote and in-person solutions: Snack Magic offers customizable snack deliveries, works with 350+ brands, and aims to be more than just a retailer, focusing on discovery and wholesale. They provide both remote and in-person solutions, including goodie bags, grab-and-go trays, and office-wide snack polls.
Snack Magic, an ultramodern snack delivery service, is adapting to the evolving world of work by offering both remote and in-person solutions. Their app, which ensures efficiency and speed, allows users to customize their snack selections and have them delivered to their homes or offices. Snack Magic works directly with over 350 brands to offer a curated selection of 700-800 products, catering to the unique preferences of individual consumers. The company aims to be more than just a retailer, focusing on discovery and wholesale, and is open to working with new brands looking for distribution. Snack Magic's long-term strategy is to offer a combination of remote and in-person solutions, depending on a company's culture. They have recently launched in-person offerings, including custom goodie bags, grab-and-go trays, and office-wide snack polls. The opportunity lies in the long tail of consumer preferences, with a wide variety of items ordered beyond the top 5-10 popular choices.
