13th November 2012: Slides to accompany a presentation to university students in Southampton. The presentation focuses on the 'Pitching & Qualification' process. By @renemorency

2. Hello.

3. Firstly…
Apologies for the silly pictures!
(…they tend to be memorable)
Some of the principles I’ll chat about
can be applied when looking for a job
Does everyone know what a ‘pitch’ is?

4. WHO am I ?
@renemorency

5. A student. . .
1999 - 2002

6. Graphic Designer
2003 - 2007

7. Founded Browser
2008 - onwards

8. Here to talk about…
The business side of design
Behind
the
heart
of
every
great
design
agency,
lies
a
great
business
mind

9. WHO
ARE we
www.browserlondon.com

10. 4 years old
Lots of long hard work (… on ironing boards)

11. Quite a few
Crazy but excellent office parties

12. Along the way
We met lots of new friends
(business & social)

13. We’re a digital agency
Strategy
Innovation
Design/build UX UI
Technical development

14. 12 person team, and growing
Business
development
Creative
Technical
Finance

15. WHy
digital

16. Why digital
It’s fast paced, exciting, fresh
and always moving forward

17. Why digital
Creation and innovation are
always at the forefront
Projection mapping Shoreditch
http://tiny.cc/0upmnw

18. Why digital
It’s a buoyant market at
the moment, and it’s
continuing to grow

19. Pitching &
Qualification

20. Pitch process (in a nut shell)
1. Receive brief and qualify
2. Internal meeting, research & concept creation
3. Craft the pitch and proposal document
Does everyone know what pitching is?
4. Choose team to present present
Does everyone know what pitching is?pitch
5. Present

21. First, ask yourself…
Does
it
fit
with
our
Strategic
objec3ves?
Will
it
help
us
get
to
where
we
want
to
be?
Remember
your
mountain

22. The Pitching
rules

23. When not pitch
If the brief doesn’t fit
with your specialty
Eg.
Will
pitching
for
an
ad
campaign
benefit
you
or
the
client?

24. When not pitch
When the client won’t
meet you face to face
Business
is
built
on
rela>onships,
get
a
feeling
for
their
needs

25. When not pitch
If
you’re
too
busy
and
don’t
have
the
resource
available
(always
aim
to
put
in
100%)

26. When not pitch
If
you
don’t
fit
into
their
criteria
(eg.
An
integrated
agency
required)

27. When not pitch
If
the
budget
is
undisclosed
It
could
be
£1
or
£100,000

28. When not pitch
If
you
don’t
understand
the
Need
behind
the
project
If
it
ain’t
broke
.
.
.

29. When not pitch
If
you
don’t
know
the
basis
for
selec3on,
is
it
cost,
quality,
technology?

30. When not pitch
If
their
expecta3ons
are
unaDainable/unrealis3c
Example:
re-­‐build
ebay

31. When not pitch
How
much
will
it
cost
us
to
pitch
(ie:
does
the
risk
jus3fy
the
reward?)
Average
cost
per
pitch?

32. When not pitch
And
lastly.
.
.
Only
go
for
projects
you
know
you
stand
a
very
good
chance
of
winning

33. Before
A pitch

34. Before a pitch
Research!
Research!
Research!

35. Before a pitch
What’s
the
company
background,
are
they
who
they
say
they
are
Check
background
info

36. Before a pitch
Find out who you’re pitching to
(ie: Finance director or marketing director)
It’s best to prepare yourself
for specific questions

37. Before a pitch
How
long
have
they
been
with
the
company/who
have
they
worked
with
before?
Each and every person
have their own objectives

38. Before a pitch
Who
else
is
pitching?
What
are
their
strengths
and
weaknesses?

39. Before a pitch
What
does
the
pitch
criteria
consist
of?
why
were
we
asked
to
pitch?

40. Before a pitch
Most
importantly
keep
in
touch
with
everyone
.
.
.
Become
friends!
You
never
know
where
their
next
job
will
be
-­‐
and
what
doors
could
open

41. Fine tuning
the pitch

42. Who do they want to see?
Creative / technical team

43. What’s important to them?
Visuals, team structure,
financial stability

44. The proposal, who’s
best to present it?

45. The value of
Your knowledge

46. Listen to what they want -
But explain what they need

47. We’re the experts, let them
know our insider info
The
next
big
thing
is…
Example:
hSp://>ny.cc/qv3unw

48. We’re the experts, let them
know our insider info
Example:
Flash
is
on
it’s
way
out
Example:
hSp://>ny.cc/sy3unw

49. Don’t just present,
Put on A show!

50. Presenting a pitch
People buy into people
(get the right people involved on the pitch)
Example:
hSp://>ny.cc/kk4unw

51. Presenting a pitch
Show your credibility and
examples of similar projects

52. Presenting a pitch
Try to proactively deal with
objection and weaknesses
(ie: responsive Vs web app)
See:
http://tiny.cc/htymmw

53. Presenting a pitch
Explain how to maximise ROI,
scalability and support
Confidence
is
assurance!

54. Presenting a pitch
Involve everyone in the room
Remember – we’re designing
for humans!
Capture
the
imagina>on!

55. Following
Up the pitch

56. Following up the pitch
Call
hem!
Call tthem!
Keep in touch, it’s always
good to talk

57. Following up the pitch
Tie up any loose ends
Unanswered questions,
clarification points,
any additional info

58. about 2 weeks
After the pitch…

59. We get a call telling us
we’ve won :)
All of the qualification
and hard work paid off!

60. Or we’ve lost :(
If so, we ask why we
lost, and we learn from
our mistakes

61. If that’s the case,
then quite often . . .
It’s budget related
It’s a very competitive market

62. Or. . .
We didn’t qualify the
project correctly and made
a mistake in the pitch direction

63. Or. . .
It’s something else…
(e.g. our dress sense!)

64. Suggested
resources

65. Books
‘Design is a job’
ISBN 10: 0-13-285836-3
‘Pitching to win’
ISBN 10: 190573624X
‘Paul Arden series’
ISBN 10: 0714843377

66. Links and blogs
www.gov.uk/designprinciples
www.smashingmagazine.com
www.browserlondon.com/blog

67. Twitter
@browserlondon @netmag @elliotjaystocks
@dbushell @SmashingMag @verge

68. Keep in
touch
@renemorency
in
Search ‘rene morency’
/browserlondon