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User-First Monetization — Lessons from Instagram and Strava

Last year, James Quarles walked into an unexpected interaction with a dad from his kids' elementary school. Running late to an evening event for parents, he was greeted by another father who knew that Quarles worked at Instagram. "Man, you just … get me," the guy said. Quarles wasn’t following. "The ads you're running are ridiculous — you know exactly what I like, what I'm interested in — everythi