From Swaypay ('21) to SwayID ('23): A Pivot Self-Autopsy Case Study

10/10

Legal exposure is real, rising, and well funded

4/10

Weak brand-side pain; consumer gimmick

9/10

Legal/compliance budgets exist; clear ROI

2/10

No brand willingness to pay

9/10

Recurring revenue, low marginal cost, scalable SaaS

1/10

No monetization path

8/10

Legal defensibility layer + first to category

1/10

No moat, no infra, easily cloned

10/10

Class actions + FTC crackdown = fast-moving water

6/10

Rode TikTok’s rise but exposed to federal bans

10/10

Built from trauma and lived experience

7/10

Great consumer-side instinct, but lacked deep alignment with buyer pain

9/10

Brands, creators, and lawyers aligned on avoiding risk

2/10

Misaligned: creators chased cash, sacrificed truthful advertising

9/10

Cost-saving layer makes it self-reinforcing

1/10

Entirely dependent on venture subsidies

8/10

High integrity actions enforced through compliance

2/10

Attracted low-quality creators, fraud, and spam

9/10

Category-defining for influencer compliance infrastructure

3/10

No systemic leverage or long-term utility

✅ Clear Problem-Solution Logic

Solves real pain points: misalignment, ignorance of rules, lack of proof

✅ Enterprise-Grade Mental Model

Speaks to legal, ops, and compliance. Designed for system, not virality

✅ Low-Ego, High-Trust Tone

Teaches, reassures, embeds protection without hype

✅ Embedded Specialist Layer

Not DIY. Includes support, tools, oversight

✅ Language = Infrastructure

“Auto-logged,” “evidence collection,” “time-stamped proof” = systemic rails

❌ No Brand or Legal Stakeholder

Centered solely on creator incentives; no systemic buyer-side logic

❌ No Structural Protections

No rules, disclosures, contracts, or risk mitigation

❌ Oversimplified Incentive Chain

“Post = money” ignored trust, fraud, platform liability

⚠️ Appeals to Dopamine, Not Discipline

Designed to go viral, not to scale responsibly; zero accountability layer