According to the Federal Statistical Office, around 83% of people in Germany aged 16–74 purchased or ordered something online at least once in 2024. This buying behaviour highlights that digital services are now embedded in everyday life in Germany. It also shows the growing importance of modern, digitally supported business models.

For companies operating in Germany, managing business processes and customer interactions has become increasingly important. Many businesses rely on platform solutions, but developing and implementing a platform requires an efficient and organised strategy.

In this article, we look at what a platform strategy is and how to devise one. We also discuss the challenges involved and the basic types of platforms German businesses need to know about.

What's in this article?

• What is a platform strategy?
  
• The three platform levels
  
• Why platform strategies matter in Germany
  
• How to develop a platform strategy
  
• The challenges of developing a platform strategy
  
• Examples of platform strategies
  

What is a platform strategy?

A platform strategy is an approach that allows businesses to use digital platforms to improve their business models and interact with their customers, partners and other stakeholders. Instead of relying on independent applications or processes, a platform connects different actors, enhancing the exchange of information, products and services.

A platform can include many components, from sales channels to services and shared technologies. Digital networks are key, as they help businesses automate their processes and adapt them to their customers' needs. Platforms also promote the development of agile, future-proof business models and rapid adaptations to new market requirements. Fundamentally, a platform strategy is the deployment of a flexible and adaptable infrastructure that can meet the demands of the digital world.

Germany's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are typically highly specialised and regionally rooted businesses. These companies could benefit significantly from platform strategies. Even smaller companies can strengthen their competitive positions as well by using digital connectivity and automation to compete with larger, international businesses.

The three platform levels

Platforms can operate on three basic levels. These three levels are interconnected and offer businesses the opportunity to align their strategies sustainably long term.

Customer platforms

The top level of a platform strategy involves mapping the customer journey as a platform. The customer journey is the entire process customers experience, from their first contact with a business to the purchase and beyond. A customer platform allows businesses to refine all interfaces and third-party interactions and to integrate them into a single platform. Ideally, the platform addresses online store interactions as well as other digital communications provided through apps, social media and other channels. The aim should be to offer an exceptional, user-friendly and personalised customer experience.

Capability platforms

Below the customer platform level is the service and capability platform. It involves identifying the functionalities and capabilities required to implement the customer platform. These functionalities should support an efficient, adaptable customer experience and be designed with flexibility and reusability in mind.

The business might already have some of these services and capabilities, such as specialised information technology (IT) systems, marketing tools or customer support features. In this case, the business can use existing systems and integrate them into the new platform. Working with technology and service providers can also be beneficial. These third-party partners can offer the expertise and operational solutions required to expand the platform's functionalities.

Technological platforms

Technological platforms support the other types of platforms. They power the necessary technical resources and infrastructures, including servers, networks, databases and software. Technological platforms allow digital applications to run securely and smoothly, and they support the development and operational performance of capability and customer platforms.

Why platform strategies matter in Germany

Digital platforms already hold significant value in Germany. Around 96% of the German population is online. According to the German Retail Association, total e-commerce revenue reached nearly €89 billion in 2024, with projections of more than €92 billion for 2025. Another clear indicator of the shift towards digital transactions is the rise in mobile payments. In 2023, around 593 million transactions were made using e-wallets in German retail shops.

Many factors can influence businesses operating in Germany to automate processes and build digital-first business models. These include international competition and customer expectations, which can lead to skilled labour shortages. However, many German companies still rate their own level of digital maturity as average. According to the Digitalisation Survey 2025 by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK), German companies rate their level of digitalisation with a score of 2.8 out of 6. This score shows that digitalisation is seen as a support tool for day-to-day operations, rather than a true driver of change.

Platform strategies can enable improvement, integrating partners more efficiently and opening up revenue streams. For Germany's economy – shaped by a strong presence of SMEs – platform strategies can also offer a way to stay competitive by focusing on specialisation, regional proximity and data-driven services.

How to develop a platform strategy

Here are the key steps to developing a successful platform strategy:

Define your goals

The first step in developing a platform strategy is to define clear objectives. Businesses need to identify what added value the platform should offer. Is it meant to increase efficiency, improve the customer experience or create new business opportunities? Defining precise goals allows the business to make the most of the platform. These goals serve as guidelines for next steps in the development of the platform and make it possible to measure its long-term success.

Analyse your target demographics

Before developing a platform, it's important to consider the business' target demographics and their needs. Businesses should understand who will use the platform. This includes customers, partners, suppliers and other stakeholders involved in the platform's offerings.

Especially in Germany – a highly diversified and regionally structured market – precise target group analysis is necessary. Regional preferences, technical infrastructure and payment habits can vary significantly and businesses should consider them carefully.

Develop your business model

After defining goals and analysing target demographics, the next step is to develop a business model – how the platform is monetised and what value it creates for customers. Different types of customer platforms support different business models and a business should choose the one that aligns best with its strategy and the needs of its target customers. Here are the three basic types of platform:

• Transaction platforms: These platforms connect parties, enabling the exchange of products, services or information. They create a marketplace where transactions happen. The business model is usually based on transaction fees or commissions on every successful transaction.

• Infrastructure platforms: These platforms provide a basic technical infrastructure that can be used by other applications and services. They typically rely on per-use fees or subscriptions.

• Content platforms: These platforms source and distribute content, including texts, videos, music or other media. These are often monetised per content item or through subscriptions.

Build the infrastructure

Next, the business must deploy the selected customer platform through the corresponding capability or technological infrastructure. The choice of business model has a significant impact on platform requirements at lower levels. For example, a transaction platform requires a reliable payment processing infrastructure and the integration of third-party services. The technological infrastructure should allow the platform to scale and respond flexibly to new requirements.

A robust technical foundation ensures the platform runs smoothly and also plays a key role in offering customers the best experience possible. This should include easy navigation and an attractive design. A platform that runs well on the technical level but is not user-friendly can generate a high bounce rate. The platform should also work well on different devices and browsers.

Set up partnerships

The development of a platform's suite of offerings is a key component of any platform strategy. A successful platform typically relies on its own functionalities and on integrated third-party capabilities. This allows businesses to add new features – such as payment processing, logistics and marketing – without having to develop them in house.

Stripe Connect allows you to automate the calculation and collection of sales taxes and to enable in-person payments, instant payouts, financing and corporate credit cards on your platform. It supports a wide range of payment methods, so customers around the world can use the payment methods that are popular locally. Connect can be implemented in just a few weeks, allowing you to build a profitable and scalable business on your platform.

Scale and improve

Finally, it's important to define a clear plan for managing and developing the platform. Flexibility should be a goal from the outset to ensure the platform can keep pace with the expanding needs of the business and its customers. Continuous improvement of the platform should also be a goal (e.g. with the implementation of new functionalities).

The challenges of developing a platform strategy

Developing and implementing a platform strategy creates opportunities and challenges for businesses. For example, new platforms often require significant up-front funding. Businesses should invest in robust IT infrastructures and software development. Implementing a platform strategy is time-consuming for employees, which can result in added costs. Ongoing platform maintenance and updates also represent costs that should be included in the business' long-term planning.

Compliance with regulations regarding data protection and security is another challenge. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regulates how and when customer data is stored and processed. Businesses should also ensure their platforms are protected from unauthorised access by third parties. In addition to the GDPR, companies in Germany must comply with further legal requirements, such as the principles for the proper management and storage of books, records and documents in electronic form (GoBD) and the German IT Security Act 2.0. These regulations set specific standards for data storage, archiving and protection against unauthorised access. They require a platform strategy customised for the German regulatory environment.

Attracting customers to the platform can also be a challenge for businesses. A critical user mass is usually required for a network effect to occur and for a platform to become attractive. That's why any platform strategy should consider how target customers become aware of the platform.

Examples of platform strategies

Platform strategy for an industrial business' B2B dealer portal

The first step should be to clearly define the goal of the platform or the problem it's meant to solve. In the case of a B2B dealer portal, the goal is to increase the efficiency of business interactions between manufacturers, suppliers and customers. The platform supports the purchase of goods and improves the exchange of information.

The second step is to determine what services and capabilities are required to implement the customer platform. Basic services – such as order and customer management – are already integrated into the business' existing systems. However, the business relies on third-party solutions for communicating product information and engaging with suppliers.

The third step involves developing the technical infrastructure to ensure the stable and flexible operation of the platform. All services should be efficiently integrated. For the B2B dealer portal, this could mean engineering a powerful server infrastructure that enables real-time order processing and the rapid delivery of product information. In addition, interfaces should be developed to ensure the different systems can communicate with each other. A flexible architecture that can handle increasing demand is required to keep pace with growing user numbers and transaction volumes. The business should also consider security from the outset to protect sensitive business data and comply with legal requirements.

Platform strategy for a gym chain's fitness platform

The goal of the digital platform is to provide gym members with a central point of contact for personalised training plans, live workouts and nutritional advice.

The business already offers a variety of fitness content, including video tutorials and standard workout programs. New features – such as personalised workouts, nutrition plans and live-streaming – must be integrated. The business provides its members with easy and secure payment options thanks to Stripe Connect, which supports seamless membership management and payment processing. This allows the business to focus on delivering fitness content and services, without having to deal with the technical aspects of payment processing.

The business deploys the technical infrastructure. The digital platform must feature a robust back-end framework that supports the live-streaming of fitness classes and real-time tracking of individual performances. Connect is integrated as a central solution for managing member payments. It ensures the platform works well on mobile and desktop. The business should also make the platform flexible to easily add new features and training content as its customer base grows.