April 2025
Harvard Business Review recently published an article co-authored by Marshall Van Alstyne, Allen and Kelli Professor in Information Systems, discussing how digital platforms have proven to be a powerful growth engine for both native and traditional companies.
As digital platforms continue to emerge as highly successful business models, many companies inadvertently overlook valuable opportunities for further expansion. To unlock growth, successful platforms typically rely on four key strategies: enhancing engagement, introducing new interactions, adding user groups or complementors, and combining these approaches. Platforms like Facebook and Uber have skillfully leveraged these strategies by incorporating services such as Marketplace and Uber Eats, respectively.
“To be successful, platform partnerships should create interdependencies among interactions by sharing data, maintaining compatible platform architecture, integrating payment systems, and more. This aligns incentives so that each partner benefits from the other’s success,” Van Alstyne and his co-authors explain.
For sustained platform growth, companies must consider all available opportunities, form strategic partnerships, foster innovation through affiliates, and define a compelling theme that facilitates continuous expansion.
