Masters of Scale
by WaitWhat
Latest Business Ideas
Leveraging User-Generated Content for Marketing
Leveraging user-generated content (UGC) can significantly enhance marketing efforts for digital products. This idea suggests that businesses should encourage their customers to create and share content related to their products, which not only builds community but also serves as authentic marketing material. Entrepreneurs can implement this by creating platforms for customers to share their experiences, such as social media hashtags, contests, or features on their websites. The target audience includes digital entrepreneurs in SaaS, consumer goods, and content-driven businesses looking to expand their reach and engagement. By fostering a community where users feel valued, businesses can achieve organic growth and enhance brand loyalty.
From: The insights that fuel SharkNinja’s biggest innovations
Consumer Insights-Driven Product Development
The concept revolves around using consumer insights to drive product development. This approach emphasizes identifying specific consumer problems through ethnographic research, social media feedback, and direct observations. Entrepreneurs can implement this by conducting surveys, engaging in community discussions, or utilizing platforms like Reddit to gather real-time consumer feedback. This method allows businesses to innovate effectively and meet market demands. The target audience includes entrepreneurs in retail, consumer goods, and technology sectors looking to create products that resonate with users. By focusing on genuine consumer needs, businesses can enhance their market presence and customer loyalty.
From: The insights that fuel SharkNinja’s biggest innovations
AI-Friendly Automation Hub for Local Businesses
As market dynamics evolve, local businesses are under pressure to modernize and adopt automation while maintaining human employment. Entrepreneurs can develop an 'Automation Hub' service, offering local businesses tailored AI solutions that enhance productivity without fully displacing human workers. This could involve consulting services to assess needs, implementing AI-driven tools to improve efficiency, and ongoing support to ensure smooth adoption. The target audience would be local businesses across various sectors, particularly those that have relied on manual processes and need to modernize. This initiative would solve the immediate pain of technology adoption and the transition to a more automated operating model.
From: Is it ‘economic halloween’ in the US? with political economist Mark Blyth
Local Community Skill Development Programs
With the shift in economic policy and the evident need to rebuild local communities, entrepreneurs can establish local skill development programs addressing the gap in skilled labor. These programs could focus on training individuals in various trades and technological skills, enhancing their employability, and stimulating local job markets. Such services can cater to high-demand sectors, ensuring participants are well-prepared to enter the workforce. Target audiences would be unemployed or underemployed individuals looking to gain new skills or re-enter the job market. Platforms could leverage e-learning tools, conduct workshops, or partner with local businesses to provide hands-on training, thus creating a strong community connection and easing local unemployment challenges.
From: Is it ‘economic halloween’ in the US? with political economist Mark Blyth
Data Transparency Services for Businesses
In light of market uncertainties and distrust in economic data, entrepreneurs can create a service offering businesses enhanced transparency in data management and reporting. By developing systems that track, validate, and display data accurately and comprehensibly, businesses can foster trust among employees and stakeholders. The service could include software solutions that automate data collection and reporting, alongside consulting on best practices for data handling. Target clients could include small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that require assistance in building credibility with their data reporting or compliance. Implementing real-time monitoring tools might also be part of the package, increasing businesses' confidence in their operations.
From: Is it ‘economic halloween’ in the US? with political economist Mark Blyth
Ad-Boycott & Brand Risk Campaign Advisory
This idea is a specialist advisory and coordination service that helps advocacy groups, coalitions, and corporate partners design and execute advertiser pressure campaigns (like 'Stop Hate for Profit') and linked reputational risk strategies. The episode explicitly describes how Color of Change coordinated with companies to pull ad spend from Facebook and used shareholder meetings and public pressure as levers. An entrepreneur could package those tactics into a service offering: campaign strategy, coalition-building, messaging & press playbooks, advertiser outreach templates, risk assessment for participating brands, and measurement of impact (ad spend withdrawn, policy commitments secured). The service addresses the gap many NGOs and smaller advocacy groups have in running complex corporate-targeted campaigns and helps brands weigh reputational risk vs business impact when deciding to participate. Target customers include NGOs, advocacy coalitions, PR agencies that want to run activist-style campaigns, and corporate CSR teams seeking structured, ethical ways to support social causes. Tactics from the episode to incorporate: linking multiple companies for collective action, using shareholder resolutions as pressure points, and providing clear asks and demands so corporate responses are measurable.
From: Rapid Response: What it will take for tech and Hollywood to be anti-racist, w/Color Of Change's Rashad Robinson
Bias-Detection & Transparency SaaS for Marketplaces
Referenced in the interview as 'Project Lighthouse' and described as a data-collection tool with transparency baked into its agreement, this idea is a productized SaaS that helps marketplaces and platforms monitor, detect, and report discriminatory patterns in listings, booking flows, search and ranking, and messaging. The product would ingest anonymized platform data (search logs, booking cancellations, messaging, listing acceptance rates) and run analytics / ML models and rule-based checks to surface differential treatment correlated with protected attributes or proxies. Implementation would involve building connectors for common platform data stores or providing a privacy-preserving SDK for platforms to submit telemetry; dashboards for risk metrics; automated report generation for compliance/transparency; and an API for platforms to integrate findings into engineering workflows. It solves the problem of platforms lacking reliable, auditable mechanisms to measure discrimination and respond proactively. Target customers are mid-to-large marketplaces (short-term rental platforms, e-commerce marketplaces, gig platforms) and enterprise trust & safety teams. The podcast mentions the importance of engineers and transparent data agreements — the product should prioritize privacy, clear consent, and joint transparency commitments with stakeholders.
From: Rapid Response: What it will take for tech and Hollywood to be anti-racist, w/Color Of Change's Rashad Robinson
Civil Rights Audit Service for Platforms
This idea is a specialist consulting practice that conducts civil-rights-style audits for online platforms, marketplaces, and digital products to detect discriminatory outcomes and recommend structural fixes. The podcast explicitly references Color of Change pushing Airbnb to commission a civil rights audit and the concrete outcomes (policy changes, auto-booking rules, engineer resources) that followed. A founder could implement this by assembling a small team combining civil-rights policy expertise, data/UX analysts, and legal researchers to offer audit packages: policy & terms review, data sampling and bias analysis, user journey and complaint pattern mapping, and a prioritized remediation roadmap. The service solves the problem of platforms being blind to or unwilling to surface how their product decisions disadvantage protected groups; it helps companies comply with emerging social, legal, and PR expectations while reducing user friction and regulatory risk. Target customers include mid-size and large marketplaces, two-sided platforms (short-term rentals, ride-hail, marketplaces), and social products under pressure from users or NGOs. Tactics mentioned in the episode that translate into deliverables: public-facing transparency agreements, concrete policy change recommendations (e.g., auto-booking controls), and technical remediation plans (engineering sprints to root out bias). Initial client acquisition can come via partnerships with civil-rights orgs, shareholder activists, or direct outreach to product/ethics teams at platforms.
From: Rapid Response: What it will take for tech and Hollywood to be anti-racist, w/Color Of Change's Rashad Robinson
Nonprofit Digital Transformation Consulting
This idea is to launch a consulting service targeted at nonprofits and charitable organizations that need to undergo digital transformation. Drawing inspiration from the massive digital-scale transformation implemented at St. Jude’s, the business would offer expertise in data analytics, integrated marketing, and digital fundraising strategies. The service would be focused on helping these organizations modernize their operations, optimize engagement through digital channels, and implement efficient, technology-driven processes to boost revenue and impact. With a hands-on approach, the consultancy would advise on the integration of AI-driven tools, customer data platforms, and multi-channel marketing strategies to create cohesive fundraising campaigns. Implementation involves leveraging the founder’s experience or assembling a team of experts in digital marketing, data analytics, and nonprofit operations. Initial work would consist of audits, workshops, and strategy sessions tailored to each client’s current capabilities and desired outcomes. Target clients include medium to large nonprofits that are under pressure to compete for scarce donor dollars in the modern digital landscape. The business solves the pressing problem of outdated fundraising methods and siloed operations by providing actionable, data-driven insights that can drive sustainable growth in donations and overall mission impact.
From: Inside one of the world’s greatest fundraising operations
Digital Charity Lottery Platform
This concept focuses on creating a digital marketplace platform that democratizes access to exclusive charity experiences by offering low-cost lottery tickets. The platform would allow nonprofits and corporate sponsors to list unique, high-profile experiences – ranging from a chance to attend exclusive events to once-in-a-lifetime adventures – and sell lottery tickets at a nominal fee. The revenue generated from ticket sales would be funneled back to the charitable partner while providing participants a chance to win memorable experiences. To implement this idea, an entrepreneur would need to develop a secure digital platform with integrated payment systems and robust compliance measures to navigate lottery and fundraising regulations. The platform would serve as an intermediary connecting donors with nonprofits, and its functionality could include features like automated draws, real-time results, and social media integrations for viral marketing. The target audience includes socially-conscious consumers who enjoy the thrill of a lottery while supporting a cause. Specific strategies might involve collaborating with existing nonprofits for early adoption, using influencer marketing to generate buzz, and offering tiered ticket pricing to maximize both participation and donations.
From: Inside one of the world’s greatest fundraising operations
Recent Episodes
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