View BNN The Pitch.
Here were a few of my notes I scribbled about the two exciting presenters and maybe you can decide what you think. The panel was quite split in their views:
500px Inc.
The overall look and feel of the site is nicely set up, the interface is user-friendly and the professional quality of product (photos) is what sets it apart from the current competition. They’re playing off the online community concept (similar to all the social networks out there). Technically, the platform in not very advanced at this time, and there’s significant growth opportunity in the site’s capability to purchase, sell and share photos via established social networks.
What is the growth plan for getting more exposure and populate the site with paying customers?
There’s also opportunity to earn additional revenue through membership sales and advertising to complementary trades, such as make-up artists, modeling agencies, production companies, interior design professionals.
Another important growth market (not yet being explored by 500px) is the mobile market.
It has potential to become THE destination for professional photographers to market their products and services, but it’s currently lacking scope, and the founders need to dedicate to a well-structured marketing program to build a brand – the product (photos) will follow.
It essentially offers the ability to create and track marketing campaigns on Facebook. The space is about to become 1000x more competitive due to the newly introduced (May 2011) regulation that requires companies to use a 3rd party application to conduct promotions. So you better have superior technical capability or lower pricing to attract market share.
1. Need to get the platform into the hands of agencies - how?
2. What's the $250K used for? Is this for software innovation - keeping
ahead of their competitors? How much to marketing and sales force salaries.
If they get traction with their platform I can see them as an attractive acquisition target - where their software is embedded within a larger software suite (by Adobe, for example).
1. Need to get the platform into the hands of agencies - how?
2. What's the $250K used for? Is this for software innovation - keeping
ahead of their competitors? How much to marketing and sales force salaries.
If they get traction with their platform I can see them as an attractive acquisition target - where their software is embedded within a larger software suite (by Adobe, for example).
Yet, a major downside may be that Pinpoint’s capability is limited to Facebook, and many professional organizations remain anti-Facebook (crazy as it sounds!) If campaigns created on Pinpoint could be integrated with complementary print/social network/other campaigns, that would significantly increase their utility.
To succeed, Pinpoint has to be a highly scalable model, i.e. 100% self-serve, otherwise you’re paying expensive developers to manage campaign requests. Currently, creating campaigns requires a lot of customer support and they want the money to launch the self-serve, so thinking in the right direction.
The Pitch – Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Entrepreneurs:
Daniel Patricio, founder, Pinpoint Social
Ian Sobolev, founder, 500px.com-SK
Panelists:
Larry Wasser, Genuity Fund Management
Rick Nathan, Managing Director, Kensington Capital Partners
Jacoline Loewen, Director, Loewen Partnershttp://www.bnn.ca/Shows/The-Pitch.aspx
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