For our semester-long project in Entrepreneurship Lab at MIT Sloan, three groupmates and I consulted with group social networking app weCliq to help them understand key issues that exist within the realm of group socialization and which market(s) experience the biggest "pain point" when it comes to meeting new people. When weCliq came to us, it was targeting college students via is "group selfie" photo-sharing app. We conducted customer discovery interviews with college students to determine that socialization wasn't actually a huge problem for that market, given the ample on-campus opportunities students have for meeting new people. We expanded our interview to include young professionals and found that this group had more of a challenge with socializing, since they weren't co-located with people of their age, spent more time working and enjoying hobbies, and - more often than college students - had relocated to a new city after school. Since weCliq's app is based on the assumption that people want to socialize via these "group selfie" photos, we also tested that assumption in our interviews. Finding that interviewees were shy to share their opinions about "selfies" and "groupies" (group selfies), we conducted an extensive Facebook data study, in which we analyzed the 50 most recent photos that 60+ users were tagged in, determining what settings these photos were taken within, what type of photos they were (group candid, group staged, individual, groupie, selfie, etc.), and what the key demographic traits of the user tagged were. The findings of our two methods - customer discovery interviews and data analysis - can be found within this presentation, which we shared with weCliq's team and our class of peers to kick off a discussion of potential strategies that build upon our findings. This project was conducted by Christina Chen (MIT Sloan, M.B.A., 2016), Shambhu Koriala (MIT, B.S. Management Science, 2014), Simone Liano (Wellesley College, B.S. Neuroscience and Economics, 2017) and Erica Swallow (MIT Sloan, M.B.A., 2015).

1. weCliq
Defining Key Issues in Group Socialization
and Choosing a Primary Market
Presented by:
Christina Chen Simone Liano
Shambhu Koirala Erica Swallow

2.  weCliq Overview
 Project Scope
 Methodology
 Key Findings
 Recommendations
Agenda

3. weCliq Overview
weCliq is a social networking app that enables groups of people to meet
and interact via “groupies,” group selfies.

4. Project Scope
 PROBLEM STATEMENT
What key problems exist in
the market regarding group
socialization and which
group of consumers
experience this problem the
most?

5. Methodology
 Customer Interviews
 30-45 minute qualitative
interviews
 Smartphone-toting college
students, 18-24 years old
 Discussed…
 Photo-taking habits
 Socialization norms
 Opinions on groupies/selfies
 Limited data analysis
 Data Analysis
 3,050 unique Facebook
photos analyzed on 30
dimensions (90,000+ data
points)
 Type of photo
 Occasion
 User demographics
 Researched two groups
 Young professionals
 College students

6. Key Findings

7.  College students have ample socialization opportunities.
 Interest-driven clubs, mixers, dorm life, sports, classes
 Groupies have a more positive reputation than selfies.
 Selfies are seen as vane, while groupies are fun and interactive.
 College students have bigger problems with scheduling.
 They don’t need more friends. Corralling current friends
through existing social apps is hard enough.
Customer Discovery Findings
See full customer discovery findings in mid-term presentation.

8. “Trying to meet new people online is
awkward. I feel it's better to be introduced
by a friend of a friend.”
Students Prefer Offline…
See full customer discovery findings in mid-term presentation.
 65% of interviewees reported having met someone
online, but most claimed meeting through friends is
preferred. Meeting online still has a stigma.

9. Enter Facebook Data Analysis
 PROJECT GOAL
Analyze 50 most recent
photos for 60+ Facebook
users in two segments to
quantitatively understand
group photo-taking habits.

10.  The data echoes that college students don’t have a deep
pain point for group socialization.
 Young professionals are more diverse in the activities they
convey in social media photos.
 Our assumption that women take more selfies and
groupies was debunked.
Data Analysis Findings

11. Two’s company.
Three’s a crowd.
Four’s a party.
Five’s a groupie.
The average
“groupie” has
4.6 people in it.

12. Hypothesis: Groupies/selfies make
up a small portion of photos taken.
Finding: While “staged” group
photos are the most popular photo
type (54%). Groupies are the
second most popular, accounting
for 15% of photos. Selfies are least
popular, at 4% of photos.
4%
15%
13%
54%
14%
Overall Photo Types
Selfie Groupie Self Staged Candid
Groupies are Prevalent

13. Hypothesis: College students take more groupies/selfies.
Finding: Photo types are quite consistent across students and professionals.
3%
17%
15%
53%
12%
Photo Types (Student)
5%
13%
13%
54%
15%
Photo Types (Young Pros)
Photo Types are Consistent
Across Groups

14. Hypothesis: We weren’t sure which settings would prevail in either group.
Finding: >50% of student photos are travel/going out. Professionals are more diverse.
25%
11%
8%26%
14%
9%
7%
Student Settings
(Total)
14%
13%
8%
28%
17%
12%
8%
Young Pro Settings
(Total)
Professionals Have More
Diverse Photo Settings

15. Professional Group Photos
Are Also More Diverse
Hypothesis: Pros have greater income and thus go out more.
Finding: Professionals spend more group time on hobbies/sports/holidays, actually.
37%
14%14%
14%
9%
8%
4%
Professional Groupies
44%
23%
11%
5%
3% 10%
4%
Student Groupies

16. 5%
16%
11%
52%
16%
Photo Types (Male)
3%
14%
16%
55%
12%
Photo Types (Female)
Hypothesis: Women take more groupies and selfies.
Finding: Types of photos taken is consistent across genders.
Men & Women Have Similar
Behavior

17. Hypothesis: Women take more selfies and groupies.
Finding: Men & students take more groupies. Professionals & men take more selfies.
Groupie Count
6.5 Groupies
1.4 Selfies
7.9 Groupies
2.5 Selfies
8.1 Groupies
1.2 Selfies
6.0 Groupies
2.5 Selfies

18.  Target young professionals.
 They exhibit greater need to socialize in groups.
 Focus marketing towards interest-based use cases.
 Young professionals focus their group time on diverse activities.
 Consider moving away from “groupie” format.
 Groupie format limits potential, since “staged” group photos
account for the majority of social media photos.
Recommendations

19. Thank you!

20.  How do you find out about new apps?
 Which apps do you use most for meeting up with friends?
 Have you ever met someone virtually before meeting them
in person?
 How do you tend to spend your free time?
 Do you use any online or social platforms to meet new
people?
 Do you ever take “group selfies”?
 What do you think a “group selfie” means? What does it
convey?
Appendix 1: Sample Customer
Discovery Interview Questions

21.  During Facebook data collection, the parameters used
to categorize individuals were: Age, gender, race,
student/working, sexual orientation, marital status,
rural/urban, and whether the individual had children.
 The parameters used to categorize photos were: Date
uploaded, groupie, selfie, group staged photo, group
candid photo, self photo, uploaded by subject, number
of people in photo, travel, active/sport, food/dining,
going out/social/drinks, holiday/life event, professional
event/formal, and family.
Appendix 2: Data Dimensions

22. Appendix 3: “Groupie” Definition
 A Groupie is a self-
administered photo of a
group. Typically, one
person holds the camera
to snap a shot of a group
(e.g. two or more people).
15% of photos in our study
were groupies.

23. Appendix 4: “Selfie” Definition
 A Selfie is a self portrait
taken by an individual.
Typically, she or he holds
the camera afar and snaps
a shot of herself or himself.
Only 4% of photos in our
study were selfies, making
it the least popular
category.

24. Appendix 5: “Staged” Definition
 In our study, “Staged”
refers to staged group
photos. These photos
entail the subjects of the
photos posing for the
photo. These photos
account for 54% of all
photos uploaded to
Facebook in our study.

25. Appendix 6: “Candid” Definition
 In our study, “Candid”
refers to a candid group
photo – a group photo that
was taken unbeknownst to
the subjects in the image.
This accounts for 14% of all
images in our study.

26. Appendix 7: “Self” Definition
 A photo defined as “Self”
in our study refers to a
photo of an individual
taken by someone else (or
on timer from afar). These
photos were posted by the
subject, but were not self-
administered (selfies). 13%
of photos in our study fall
in this category.

27.  Going out/Social/Drinks: Photos featuring subjects in nightlife or spirited settings, including those in dance
clubs, at bars, at house parties, and in typical “going out” mode.
 Travel: Photos that emphasize that the subject is traveling, including touristy shots and posed images in
front of landmarks or cultural scenes.
 Active/Sport: Photos that showcase the subject(s) of the photo in action, including at sporting events
(participating or spectating), out in nature (hiking), or on the go (intense walking).
 Food/Dining: Photos that feature the subject(s) at meals or eating foods. These include dinners, brunches,
breakfast, snack shots, ice cream selfies, and the like.
 Holiday/Life Event: Photos that act as a marker of a life event or holiday, including Christmas, Thanksgiving,
a birthday, graduation day, a wedding, or the first day of school.
 Professional Event/Formal: Photos that entail “dressing up.” Professional events include conferences and
work gatherings, while formals include proms, galas, and anything gown-and-tuxedo related.
 Family: Photos that emphasize a family setting, particularly with elders or children. Images of the subject
with his children, siblings, cousins, parents, or grandparents, for example, fall in this category.
Appendix 8: Setting Definitions

28. Appendix 9: Data
Demographics
Demographic Detail Percentage of Subjects
Male 45%
Female 55%
Student 58%
Young Professional 42%
Urban 75%
Rural 25%
LGBTQ 23%
Heterosexual 77%

29. Appendix 10: Groupie
Occasions
19%
10%
9%
40%
12%
4%
6%
Groupies by Occasion
Travel
Active / Sport
Food / Dining
Going Out / Social /
Drinks
Holiday / Life Event
Professional Event /
Formal
Family

30. 17%
13%
10%
30%
13%
10%
7%
Male Settings (Total)
21%
11%
7%
25%
18%
10%
8%
Female Settings (Total)
Appendix 11: Photo Settings
by Gender