Marketplace Advisor
Strategic frameworks for two-sided and multi-sided marketplace founders, operators, and product leaders. Marketplaces have distinctive economics — most ecommerce / SaaS playbooks don't translate.
Keywords
marketplace, two-sided market, three-sided market, multi-sided market, supply, demand, liquidity, take rate, network effects, chicken and egg, GMV, repeat rate, fill rate, supply density
Clarify First
Before scoring, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:
Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the score.
Quick Start
python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json
Scores marketplace health across liquidity, supply/demand balance, take rate sustainability, repeat rate, and network-effect strength.
Core Workflows
Workflow 1: Marketplace Health Diagnostic
- Capture key metrics: GMV, take rate, supply, demand, fill rate, repeat rate
- Run:
python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json
- Identify which dimension is the constraint (usually one of: not enough supply, not enough demand, low repeat, weak liquidity, take rate too high or too low)
- Plan one focused intervention; don't try to fix all five at once
Time Estimate: 2-4 weeks per diagnostic.
Workflow 2: Chicken-and-Egg Strategy
- Read
references/marketplace_dynamics.md
- Identify your "constrained side" (usually supply for new marketplaces)
- Pick a strategy: subsidize the constrained side, single-player mode, vertical wedge, geographic concentration
- Measure liquidity in the smallest viable unit (one city, one category, one buyer segment)
Time Estimate: 6-12 months for first liquid segment.
Workflow 3: Take-Rate Decision
- Read
references/take_rate_design.md
- Benchmark category norms (eBay 10-13%, Airbnb 14%, Uber 25-30%, Etsy 6.5%, vertical B2B varies)
- Decide: high take rate (full-stack with lots of value-add) vs. low take rate (commodity matching)
- Plan trajectory: most marketplaces raise take rate over time as value-adds compound
Time Estimate: 4-8 weeks for first take-rate decision.
Tools
marketplace_health_scorer.py
Scores marketplace health on five dimensions: liquidity, balance, take-rate sustainability, repeat-rate strength, and supply density.
python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json
python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json --json
Reference Guides
references/marketplace_dynamics.md — Chicken-and-egg, liquidity, network effects, vertical / horizontal trade-offsreferences/take_rate_design.md — Take rate benchmarks, when to raise / lower, full-stack vs lean
Templates
assets/marketplace_metrics_template.json — Input file for the health scorer with example values
Best Practices
- Liquidity over GMV. A marketplace with $10M GMV across 1,000 cities is mostly broken; the same GMV in 5 cities can be liquid and growing.
- Pick a wedge. New marketplaces almost always start narrow (single city, single category, single segment) and expand.
- Measure repeat early. Marketplaces without repeat are often serving as infrastructure for off-platform transactions (a leakage problem to fix or accept).
- Take rate ratchets up, rarely down. Start low to attract supply; add value-adds (payments, fulfillment, insurance, financing) that justify higher take rate.
- Single-side first when possible. Some categories let you build a tool for one side that becomes a marketplace once liquid (e.g., OpenTable started as restaurant software).
- Beware of weak network effects. Many "marketplaces" lack real network effects — supply on one platform doesn't make demand stickier on that platform. Examine carefully.
Integration Points
- Pairs with
business-growth/pricing-strategy — take rate is essentially marketplace pricing
- Pairs with
c-level-advisor/cs-fundraising-advisor — marketplace investor expectations differ from SaaS
- Pairs with
marketing/landing-page-generator for supply / demand recruitment funnels
1---2name: marketplace-advisor3description: Strategic advisory for two-sided marketplace founders on chicken-and-egg, take rates, liquidity, and network effects. Use when scoping a marketplace idea or scoring health, or mentioning marketplace, take rate, liquidity, or network effects.4license: MIT + Commons Clause5---6
7# Marketplace Advisor
8
9Strategic frameworks for two-sided and multi-sided marketplace founders, operators, and product leaders. Marketplaces have distinctive economics — most ecommerce / SaaS playbooks don't translate.
10
11---
12
13## Keywords
14
15marketplace, two-sided market, three-sided market, multi-sided market, supply, demand, liquidity, take rate, network effects, chicken and egg, GMV, repeat rate, fill rate, supply density
16
17---
18
19## Clarify First
20
21Before scoring, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:
22
23- [ ] **Measurement unit** — whole marketplace or one liquid segment (city/category)? Liquidity beats GMV; a blended global number can hide a broken core (sets what the score actually describes)
24- [ ] **Category + take rate** — benchmarks vary widely (Etsy ~6.5% vs Uber ~25-30%), so the take-rate-sustainability dimension is meaningless without the category
25- [ ] **Supply, demand, and fill rate** — drive the liquidity and balance dimensions, usually the binding constraint
26- [ ] **Repeat rate** — drives repeat-strength; a low repeat often signals off-platform leakage rather than a healthy marketplace
27
28Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the score.
29
30## Quick Start
31
32```bash
33python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json
34```
35
36Scores marketplace health across liquidity, supply/demand balance, take rate sustainability, repeat rate, and network-effect strength.
37
38---
39
40## Core Workflows
41
42### Workflow 1: Marketplace Health Diagnostic
431. Capture key metrics: GMV, take rate, supply, demand, fill rate, repeat rate
442. Run: `python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json`
453. Identify which dimension is the constraint (usually one of: not enough supply, not enough demand, low repeat, weak liquidity, take rate too high or too low)
464. Plan one focused intervention; don't try to fix all five at once
47
48**Time Estimate:** 2-4 weeks per diagnostic.
49
50### Workflow 2: Chicken-and-Egg Strategy
511. Read `references/marketplace_dynamics.md`
522. Identify your "constrained side" (usually supply for new marketplaces)
533. Pick a strategy: subsidize the constrained side, single-player mode, vertical wedge, geographic concentration
544. Measure liquidity in the smallest viable unit (one city, one category, one buyer segment)
55
56**Time Estimate:** 6-12 months for first liquid segment.
57
58### Workflow 3: Take-Rate Decision
591. Read `references/take_rate_design.md`
602. Benchmark category norms (eBay 10-13%, Airbnb 14%, Uber 25-30%, Etsy 6.5%, vertical B2B varies)
613. Decide: high take rate (full-stack with lots of value-add) vs. low take rate (commodity matching)
624. Plan trajectory: most marketplaces *raise* take rate over time as value-adds compound
63
64**Time Estimate:** 4-8 weeks for first take-rate decision.
65
66---
67
68## Tools
69
70### marketplace_health_scorer.py
71
72Scores marketplace health on five dimensions: liquidity, balance, take-rate sustainability, repeat-rate strength, and supply density.
73
74```bash
75python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json
76python scripts/marketplace_health_scorer.py metrics.json --json
77```
78
79---
80
81## Reference Guides
82
83- **`references/marketplace_dynamics.md`** — Chicken-and-egg, liquidity, network effects, vertical / horizontal trade-offs
84- **`references/take_rate_design.md`** — Take rate benchmarks, when to raise / lower, full-stack vs lean
85
86---
87
88## Templates
89
90- **`assets/marketplace_metrics_template.json`** — Input file for the health scorer with example values
91
92---
93
94## Best Practices
95
96- **Liquidity over GMV.** A marketplace with $10M GMV across 1,000 cities is mostly broken; the same GMV in 5 cities can be liquid and growing.
97- **Pick a wedge.** New marketplaces almost always start narrow (single city, single category, single segment) and expand.
98- **Measure repeat early.** Marketplaces without repeat are often serving as infrastructure for off-platform transactions (a leakage problem to fix or accept).
99- **Take rate ratchets up, rarely down.** Start low to attract supply; add value-adds (payments, fulfillment, insurance, financing) that justify higher take rate.
100- **Single-side first when possible.** Some categories let you build a tool for one side that becomes a marketplace once liquid (e.g., OpenTable started as restaurant software).
101- **Beware of weak network effects.** Many "marketplaces" lack real network effects — supply on one platform doesn't make demand stickier on that platform. Examine carefully.
102
103---
104
105## Integration Points
106
107- Pairs with `business-growth/pricing-strategy` — take rate is essentially marketplace pricing
108- Pairs with `c-level-advisor/cs-fundraising-advisor` — marketplace investor expectations differ from SaaS
109- Pairs with `marketing/landing-page-generator` for supply / demand recruitment funnels
borghei