DAN FELD: Hi.
We're here live at the Founder World Event at Pier 27
in San Francisco.
With me is Purnima Kochikar, the Director of App
and Games Business Development at Google Play.
Hi, Purnima.
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Hello.
Very nice to see you.
DAN FELD: Would you like to tell us
a little bit about your background and, perhaps,
how did you get to Google?
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Well, I started like most Indians
as a software engineer.
So I think I started as a developer.
I've always been passionate about how
technology changes lives.
So just before Google, I was at Nokia managing the developer
network.
And candidly, Google found me on Google.
DAN FELD: And when was that?
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: It was three years ago
when Play was just founded.
It was Android Marketplace before that.
And so at the launch of Play, Jamie Rosenberg,
who heads all of Play, reached out.
And the rest is history.
DAN FELD: That's fascinating.
So you got the privilege actually
to work with Google Play from the very beginning
and to build the business from its foundation.
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Yes.
I can't think of a more exciting place to be.
When I joined, it was like a team of less than five people.
And now we have a global team supporting
developers in big and small places around the world.
DAN FELD: So speaking about developers,
I meet developers almost every day just like you.
We are both working in different capacities,
but in the field trying to work with developers
and have developers.
Many of them are looking to monetize.
And they're looking to speak and to get advice and to, perhaps,
get features on Google Play.
So would you have any guidance how
to build it for success and to the right way of monetization?
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: No, absolutely.
So what we find is that the people who monetize the best
are the ones who don't think about monetization.
They spend a lot of time really thinking about the user
and creating value for the user and actually
being very, very careful about when they monetize.
So I think that's number one.
So I always tell people, think about your user,
think about your value proposition to the user
and think about the one single engagement metric around which
you can build your company.
So for example, if you want people to come back and play
multiple sessions, then think about how
to have them come back lots of times.
If you want people to spend a lot of time in one session,
then you do different things.
So messaging apps, lots of small sessions.
Media apps, perhaps longer sessions and so on.
So that's something we find constantly.
Casual games, lots of small sessions.
RPG games, large sessions, so you
have to have a bigger storyline, larger characters, and so on.
So quality matters.
I would encourage people to go and look
at the Secrets of App Success on Google Play.
I think it's being given out to the founders
here today, which tells you all the different ways you can
improve the quality of your app, acquire and retain
good users, et cetera.
Really, really think about and listen to your users.
Think about reviews.
What the people are saying, and how you can respond to that.
And we are typically looking at those signals.
We're looking at, is this a high quality app?
Are users loving it?
What does the ratings say?
Is there enough innovation in the app
for that particular category?
Or is that just a me-too app?
And finally, and most importantly, is it timed right?
Right?
Because sometimes you might launch something,
and it's drowned in the noise of something else.
And so, yeah.
I mean, we discover great hidden gems constantly.
And we're always looking for the next innovator.
DAN FELD: So quality matters, but timing is not
less important.
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Exactly.
DAN FELD: Would you differ or perhaps
divert your advice between early-stage and more mature
companies, startups?
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Yeah.
I mean, the early-stage guys I think
are still trying to find their bearing.
I would highly recommend-- and this is true for mature
as well, but for early-stage especially--
to build a very trusted community of alpha and beta
testers so that they can have people
who can amplify their words.
Because then people will go out and talk about it.
So building a community of people who care about it
I think matters even more in early-stage.
With the mature guys-- and when it is a mature company,
metrics matter.
Are they growing at the right clip?
When you have one install and you get to a second install,
you still have 100% growth, right?
So as you get bigger, is the growth continuing?
Are the installs happening?
How does the uninstall look?
Are people still actively using the app?
It becomes much more quantitative
about how they should think about their business.
DAN FELD: I know that you just came
from upstairs giving a keynote.
What did you discuss?
And what to were the reactions?
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Well, I hope the reaction was positive.
What we discussed is the amazing ability for founders today
to build global businesses on platforms like Android.
That you can be two guys sitting in San Francisco
or in Cameroon, but you have the world at your fingertips, which
I think was not true even 10, 15 years ago.
When people decided that they were going global,
they had new management teams come in, et cetera.
So it is fascinating that two guys sitting anywhere
could reach the world.
And I gave some tips about when you think about this big world,
there's huge opportunity.
But you also have to think very locally to go global.
So that was the crux of the conversation.
DAN FELD: I think it's a key point.
Go locally, even if you know that you want to go globally.
I think it's very important advice.
Finally, what was your impression from Founder World,
both in terms of the audience, and perhaps
the activities here?
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Well, the excitement is totally palpable.
It always reminds me why I do what I do.
Because being around people who are constantly
thinking about changing the world
is highly infectious and highly energizing.
So I do want to thank you and your team
for putting this together and giving me the opportunity
to be here.
DAN FELD: Thank you very much for taking the time.
I know that you are very busy.
PURNIMA KOCHIKAR: Well, thanks for having me.
It was really fun.
DAN FELD: Thank you very much.
And thank you for watching live from Founder World.
See you at the next segment.
[MUSIC PLAYING]