This document discusses how businesses can evolve their models by adopting APIs in the same way Darwin's finches adapted through evolution. It notes that in the 20th century, businesses transitioned from direct to indirect models by selling through retailers. Similarly, the web is transitioning from direct to indirect models by using APIs. For businesses to be successful as the environment changes, they need to view their API as the product and ensure it can be easily reused and combined with other APIs. The document provides several examples of successful API adaptations businesses can make, such as unlocking legacy data and driving new data through APIs.

1. Darwin’s Finches,20th Century Business,and APIs Evolve Your Business Model Sam Ramji @sramji VP Strategy, Sonoa #EvolveAPI

2. DARWIN’S FINCHES

3. These birds

5. live in this paradise right here

7. so what’s the problem?

8. The problem is

9. they’re on a small island chain

11. a long way from anywhere else

13. that’s a lot of environmental pressure

14. so these finches

16. are actually terrific competitors

17. and their differences

19. were defined by this man

21. as successful adaptations.

22. The ones you don’t see today

23. had unsuccessful adaptations

24. and died out.

25. A century after

27. a team of scientists identified the mechanism of adaptation and evolution

29. Twenty years later

31. called out the gene as the atomic unit of competition.

32. From the perspective of the gene

33. the gene is successful if the organism that carries it is successful.

34. Switching gears

35. 20th CENTURY BUSINESS

36. In 1910 business was mostly direct

38. By the 1930s there was a lot of competition

40. But after World War II, there were new environmental pressures

49. Many businesses died out.

50. Business went from direct to indirect.

51. Those businesses who thrived in this transition

53. Shared a set of successful adaptations

54. Broad consumer marketing and branding Distribution exclusives in territory and product allocation Special makes for select retailers Retailer incentives – slotting fees, joint marketing, tiered volume discounts Consumer incentives – coupons, in-store events, limited time discounts

55. Unified by one idea

56. It was not just about selling in

57. It was not just about selling in It was about selling through.

58. From the perspective of the business

59. The business is successful If the retailer that it sells through is successful.

60. The real world went from direct to indirect

61. It went beyond the corner store.

62. The web world is going from direct to indirect.

63. It is going beyond the browser.

64. That takes us to

65. APIs

66. “ Robert Scoble Author of tech blog Scobleizer

67. Why?

68. Because in a web beyond the browser

69. APIs are how people get to your business.

70. You need to see things from the perspective of the gene.

71. The gene is successful if the organism that carries it is successful.

72. You need to see your business from the perspective of the API.

73. The API is successful if the application that carries it is successful.

74. Successful applications will use many different APIs.

76. and they will carry those APIs everywhere

77. z

78. taking your business with them.

81. For the successful companies, 80% of traffic will be coming from beyond the browser.

83. Everyone else will have to play in the world that the winners make.

84. One last thought on evolution

86. Adaptive Radiation in Twitter Applications Visualization by Sonoa Classifications by Oneforty.com

87. CURRENTENVIRONMENTAL PRESSURES

88. Mobile Social Cloud

89. They can be independent or they can support each other. It is up to you to decide if there’s harmony.

91. Your company may be very well adapted to the web, but is it adapted to mobile? Mobile devices have limited storage and processing and need to be tied in to real-world and social dimensions. They use APIs to get at location, maps, social graphs, and events.

92. Social sites are data services with a critical mass of users, where each new user makes the service better. You can’t build a new Facebook or Twitter. But you need to access them, so you use their APIs.

93. Cloud computing is not about Amazon.

94. Cloud computing is not about Rackspace.

95. Cloud computing is not about Microsoft.

96. Cloud computing is not about Google.

97. Cloud computing is about how you reach your customers

99. We’ve gone from libraries to APIs. In a cloud computing world people access library-like functionality via an API. These services are the unit of programming. Make your API useful and it will be carried to customers you’ve never met.

100. CHANGE AGENCY

101. I know you get all this already But how do you get your colleagues to join you in the journey to APIs?

102. What’s so damn wrong with the current model? I like it and it’s working for me. Plus, I understand it.

103. Actually, it’s not working.

104. Populations, societies, and markets are becoming more specialized and differentiated.

105. Consumer interest groups are fragmented.

106. Consumer interest groups are increasingly fragmented.

108. Markets are changing so fast that you can’t spend the time to “market size, focus group, plan, develop, launch, measure and sustain” because the market niche may be gone or fundamentally changed

109. A rapidly expanding range of computing platforms are needed to reach consumers.

110. Mary Meeker, Morgan Stanley

111. This is not a solvable problem nor a winnable game.

112. The only way to win is to change the game.

114. Thousands of people, who are not on your payroll, who are intimately part of each of these changing interest groups and niches, must be convinced to carry your product there for you in a way that adapts to the dynamic environment

115. Thousands of people, who are not on your payroll, who are intimately part of each of these changing interest groups and niches, must be convinced to carry your brand there for you in a way that adapts to the dynamic environment

116. Thousands of people, who are not on your payroll, who are intimately part of each of these changing interest groups and niches, must be convinced to carry your experience there for you in a way that adapts to the dynamic environment

117. It’s a competition for ideas

118. Enable your business to adapt into niches

120. Only 1 of 100 will be successful – not a failure rate that you can withstand and remain in business. You need to encourage that to happen “out there” where the cost structures and speed of business are synchronized. Be ready to reward or acquire the winners.

121. SUCCESSFULAPI ADAPTATIONS

122. Realizing that developers are your channel Being recombinant and easily mixed Unlocking your legacy data into open APIs Driving new data into your system via open APIs Supporting your application ecosystem

123. developers Why do you need to attract developers?

124. developers Because applications are the fastest growing and fastest changing organisms in this environment and they’re built by developers

125. developers Unsuccessful adaptations to this world are based on the following conventional wisdom

126. developers Companies providing APIs to access their business are the supply Developers who build against those APIs are the demand

127. developers This is exactly wrong.

128. developers Companies providing APIs are the demand

129. developers Companies providing APIs are the demand They demand developers’ attention and adoption

130. developers Developers building with APIs are the supply

131. developers Developers building with APIs are the supply They supply innovation and adaptation

133. developers Developers now sit between you and your customers They are like the retail store in the value chain

134. SUCCESSFULAPI ADAPTATIONS

135. recombinant Two rules for marketing your API to developers 1. Don’t assume that developers are clamoring for your API. 2. Don’t assume that developers will want to use your API alone.

137. recombinant Be robust so that your API is recombinant

138. “ This is all about the customers. To the customer it shouldn’t feel like a disjointed experience. It's like a bank : ATM , teller, website, iPhone app. This is the price of admission. this is the level of fidelity we need with the customer. Mike Debnar VP Retail, Blockbuster

139. Visualization by Sonoa

140. recombinant Rules for robustness

141. recombinant REST first, everything else second Nothing weird: straight XML, straight JSON Keep responses small Keep calls granular No custom security schemes: use OAuth Don’t make the developer deal with PCI-compliance Sample code wins every time You’ll get it wrong the first time – so listen well

142. recombinant Be remixable so that your API is recombinant

144. recombinant Rules for miscibility

145. recombinant Observe your adjacencies Don’t break social sign-ons If location matters then match Google Maps Don’t require session management Provide sample code for expected remixes Reward creativity through promotion

146. SUCCESSFULAPI ADAPTATIONS

147. legacy data Unlocking your legacy data into open APIs

148. legacy data Open APIs for your legacy data means innovation can happen out there

149. legacy data Product Catalogs that integrate with your backend Customer Preferences based on your interactions Historical Purchases through your existing sites Logistics Information about your supply chain Seasonality on purchases of goods and services Location of historical purchases User Recommendations of good and services Service Providers that you have transacted with

150. “

151. SUCCESSFULAPI ADAPTATIONS

152. new data Driving new data into your system via open APIs

153. new data Data is the new business model Each new user makes the service better Use the tail to feed the head

154. new data GameSpy Open One single API for the head and the tail Tail policy: limited access for free Head policy: unlimited access for fee

155. SUCCESSFULAPI ADAPTATIONS

156. Helping your finches succeed

157. Help your application ecosystem succeed

158. application ecosystem An app is only as strongas its weakest API call Your API is a product like any other product Design for scale of business processes There is a huge gap between a feature and a business

159. “ John Musser Founder, Programmable Web

160. Programmable Web

161. application ecosystem It is not just about selling in It is about selling through.

162. “ Fred Wilson Union Square Ventures

163. InCLOSING

164. John Musser Founder, Programmable Web

167. THANK YOU Questions and ideas to: @sramji sramji@sonoasystems.com