Which category of business models benefit most from onboarding customers and vendors?

• A. Direct-to-Consumer Stores
• B. Marketplace and Platforms
• C. SaaS Subscriptions
• D. Retail Banking

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is how onboarding participants drives value in two-sided marketplaces. When a platform brings on more buyers and more vendors, every new participant expands the set of possible transactions, reviews, and interactions, creating a network effect that makes the platform more valuable for everyone. On marketplaces and platforms, the goal is to maximize liquidity and matching opportunities, and onboarding both sides is the lever that accelerates that growth. That’s why this model benefits most from onboarding customers and vendors.

Direct-to-Consumer stores focus primarily on acquiring and retaining customers, with inventory controlled by the brand rather than a marketplace of multiple vendors. SaaS subscriptions center on getting end users to adopt and renew the software, not on coordinating an ecosystem of independent sellers. Retail banking targets individual and business customers and partners, but the distinctive value from widespread cross-side participation isn’t the core driver in the same way it is for a marketplace.