As an agency client, its growth is very satisfying to me personally but – like most valuable web brands – the secrets of success are the proposition itself and the technical execution. If you’re considering a new web venture or you’re looking at taking your offline business digital, then it’s worth a look.

Like many online businesses, Pitchero started life as a drawing board concept and its user base on day one was non-existent. In other words, it didn’t have a brandname it could trade on, or a customer base it could leverage.

Similar businesses are founded every hour but very few enjoy the rapid and wide-reaching brand success enjoyed by Pitchero. Granted, it’s far from being in the same league as Google, YouTube, Facebook etc. but it does share some characteristics with these online giants.

I’ve listed below four useful pointers (not intended to be an exhaustive analysis):

1. Keep it simple

When Google first went live, it did a better job of indexing web pages than any of its competitors. At the outset it was simple and easily understood. Sergey famously said, “when users come to Google.com all they want to do is search. And that’s our product”

Like Pitchero, a good proposition is often a simple one. Countless web ventures demonstrate a user-experience whose simplicity belies the power of the underlying technology and possibilities. From LinkedIn to Twitter, simplicity helps: users just ‘get it’ quickly.

Of course, the Pitchero backend is complicated and the architecture is cleverly designed to encourage data transfer and interaction – just as Google’s algorithms and search applications are hugely diverse – but the user experience is simple.

2. Do it well

The Pitchero proposition is clear and compelling: build a free, customisable website specifically designed for sports clubs. The proposition works and works well.

When you’re good, the advocates and early-adopters are happy to sing your praises. The bloggers and commentators (on and offline) will help spread the world, endorsing and raising awareness in the process. Early adopters are critical to building a company’s reputation.

3. Be good

Google also tried to be ‘good’ in the moral sense. The original, informal company motto was “Don’t be evil”. Cast aside your cynicism, because – whether you believe this approach is genuine or long since lost – this perception was critical to Google’s success.

Similarly, Pitchero have maintained their belief throughout that every new feature or functionality, every aspect of the club sites they help to create, must be in the sports club’s interest.

For example, by making the core product free, Pitchero recognise the financial constraints most grassroots clubs operate under. The temptation of course is to litter the club sites with display advertising, pop-ups and intrusive promotions. Instead, Pitchero took the long view: advertising is kept to a minimum and is designed not to be intrusive to the point that it detracts from the club’s message and focus. Advertising is also appropriate and, where possible, relevant to the audience.

For the premium features, the revenue model was also based upon clubs’ interests in the first instance. Most advisors recommended that when introducing a club shop service, Pitchero should either attempt to sell their own goods or at the very least take a small commission on all transactions using their platform. Management chose to do neither, instead offering the technology at a price lower that most clubs were used to paying just to host their old website.

This approach isn’t simply altruistic. Pitchero is a commercial venture and needs to make a profit. But the management team insist on the “club’s interest test” for every decision they take because this builds trust. The Pitchero brand is no longer undefined and anonymous – it is reliable and trustworthy.

Very quickly, Google built up a loyal following of users who felt they could trust the new kid on the block. The simple, stripped down design and the almost childish logo were reassuring to new users. They didn’t feel they were being manipulated or channelled into the ‘walled gardens’ that AOL and Yahoo! were hellbent on creating. Search results appeared fair and reliable – not exploited or skewed. Trust is an incredibly powerful determinant of success.

Once you have a large, captive audience, it is tempting to introduce clumsy new initiatives aimed at exploiting your users and increase your share-of-wallet. Be warned: online customers are used to having lots of options and they can quickly switch to a competitor if they feel they are being manipulated. First time users typically expect a good deal online: sites which require a credit card transaction without having earned a customer’s trust are likely to fail.

Online users, particularly Generation Y, are cautious of “empty brands”.

4. Embed yourself

Once you have established trust, brand familiarity should be promoted. Once a user knows what to expect from Pitchero, in terms of reliability, responsiveness etc, they are more willing to grant brands further access into their life. So, they welcome Pitchero widgets on their desktop, they download the latest i-phone app to keep abreast of results and news, they follow Pitchero on Twitter and they join the Facebook page. All the time, the Pitchero brand is becoming more and more embedded creating a virtuous cycle of acceptance and reward.

If you have an existing brand and customer base, be realistic about its worth and your users’ inclination to follow you online. Don’t overestimate their desire to purchase or interact digitally: you must be solving an offline problem or shortcoming for the online approach to be worthwhile.

However, when an existing strong brand is combined with a clever online strategy and effective execution, you create a very powerful proposition. Unlike web startups, you have the trust and the recognition of a strong brand already. You don’t have to be good or to work as hard to win users; you need to ensure your online presence continues to deliver on the existing brand promise.

Andrew McCarthy is Fantastic Media’s Strategic Planning Director
a (dot) mccarthy (at) fantasticmedia (dot) co (dot) uk – www.fantasticmedia.co.uk

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At the time, nobody was predicting financial meltdown and economic turmoil. The client – tongue firmly in cheek – was exasperated by the fact that every passing taxi was already occupied. His comment now seems insensitive in the doom and gloom of 2009. At the time, it was a perceptive observation on disposable income and the feelgood factor, delivered in his own, inimitable style.

Over the past decade, the tide of rising affluence has been driven by credit and exploited by marketing. Advertising and promotional activities played a central role in our burgeoning economy. As cash vanishes and global economies recede, marketers are left pondering the implications for their profession. While most of us have enjoyed the excesses, the fallout will be painful. The bursting bubble will not only blow away the froth, it will require all of us – advertisers, agencies, consumers – to re-evaluate many of our comfortable assumptions about marketing.

For clients, first and foremost, the instinctive response is to cut back on non-essential expenditure. Don’t. Marketing spend should remain a constant. It’s no more discretionary than paying the rent; companies that stop promoting themselves and neglect their brand are destined for failure. For the brave, it’s a time of opportunity when market share can be captured with reduced investment.

The emphasis may switch to direct marketing or substituting radio for television advertising but a brand’s share of voice must remain high and, ideally, increase. So, marketing strategies should be adapted, not abandoned. The general commitment to marketing should be unwavering, but we can expect to see changes in terms of tone, message and brand personality from our advertisers.

In the B2C sector in particular, warmer, more inclusive and thoughtful brands will become increasingly commonplace, as the likes of Google and Innocent Smoothies set the tone. Traditional, nostalgic and family scenes will become more popular subject matter, as consumers seek comfort and reassurance from big business.

Similarly, in B2B advertising, the emphasis will be on integrity and decency as brands look to convey a reliable persona. Trusted brands are highly valued in times of economic turmoil. Advertising should major on price, value and performance, not corporate image. As such, pricing transparency and ‘unbundling’ of products and services are to be encouraged. On a tactical level, now is the perfect opportunity to rework your sales collateral, ensuring that weaker product offerings are pruned, new products and services are clearly communicated and the key messages are promoted effectively.

The value of your offering needs to stand out in a commoditised marketplace, especially a price-sensitive one. If in doubt, listen to your customers. They will tell you how to beat the recession; you just have to ask them, or at least understand them, through research. More than ever before, you need to know how customers are defining ‘value’. If they are looking to postpone purchases or trade down then you need to respond accordingly.

The ‘that’s how it’s always been done’ rulebook no longer applies.

In tough times, price cuts attract more consumer support than promotions. Customers will be shopping around for the best deals. Every industry, therefore, must intensify its new business efforts. Marketing agencies are no exception. Moray MacLennan, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi and IPA President, recently predicted that “advertising is going to be no place for the faint hearted in 2009”. He’s right. Marketing budgets will be cut and agencies will disappear. Those that deliver value to their own and their clients’ bottomline, however, will thrive: positive, ambitious agencies committed to delivering success.

The rules of the game remain unchanged; businesses with a sustainable competitive advantage will win through. The fundamentals are constant. Keep watching your competition. Excess got us into this mess and in one sense, my client’s declaration was right: we do need a recession to encourage us to focus on essentials and re-examine our value proposition. None of us can predict with any certainty how long and how severe this recession will be. We’re powerless over the billions being wiped out in global markets.

Predictions for 2009 all hinge on the restoration of confidence, a fickle and unreliable commodity. What we do know is that – eventually – attempts to reflate the global economy will work. In the meantime, we all need to adapt our immediate tactics and our long-term strategies to the changing economic environment.

Andrew McCarthy is Fantastic Media’s Strategic Planning Director
a (dot) mccarthy (at) fantasticmedia (dot) co (dot) uk – www.fantasticmedia.co.uk

It’s easy to be cynical about clichés, however well-intentioned or insightful. Such advice seems glib and simplistic when you’re at debts’ door, faced with falling sales and an uncooperative bank.

But then most businesses are pretty simple. As managers, we tend to complicate the execution. We know we should focus on our goals and long-term objectives but we’re still beguiled by fads, flavours of the month and short term pressures.

Our direction and focus changes as we leap from one ‘opportunity’ (read distraction) to the next.

Take online marketing, for example. The temptation to jump onboard the latest ‘must-have’ marketing technology or trend is overwhelming.

From crowdsourcing to social networking, from viral promotions to real-time messaging, the tools and dynamics at play have changed dramatically. This is fertile ground for creative marketers. Employed effectively, of course, new online initiatives can have an incredible impact on customer relationships and business performance.

But don’t adopt a new technology just because everyone else is.

An ‘online strategy’ is not about keeping up with the joneses. It’s should be one aspect of a co-ordinated marketing and business strategy; not a standalone project.

Ask yourself why your business needs a second life or what your i-phone app really achieves.

What metric will you use to measure their success? Are you trying to connect with your audience at a subtle, psychological level or generate leads? Is the cost of development and ongoing support the best allocation of your communications budget?

Even if they appear cost-effective, don’t pursue marketing ploys for their own sake. Savvy customers know when they are being manipulated or hoodwinked.  As a business you need to prove yourself trustworthy and respectful.

If in doubt, steer clear. Even worse than the cynical marketing ploy, is the neglected Facebook group or customer forum.

So, do like the management books advise and reduce extraneous activities. Focus on your core business and your marketing objectives. Live the clichés: win the war and lose fewer online battles along the way!

Andrew McCarthy is Fantastic Media’s Strategic Planning Director
a (dot) mccarthy (at) fantasticmedia (dot) co (dot) uk – www.fantasticmedia.co.uk

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