It’s a Saturday morning and I am reading the latest .net magazine. By the way, It’s a great magazine for all Internet enthusiasts. I am reading an article about the digital agency Fortune Cookie whilst eating my fried egg breakfast.
.net profiles a digital agency every month and this month they were covering the agency fortunecookie.co.uk in an interview with the founder Justin Cooke. I started reading the article. The first question from .net to Justin was “How and when did Fortune Cookie form?” The answer to this question always fascinates me.
I’ve been working on growing my own digital agency for the past two years and who better to gain inspiration from than other entrepreneurs who have made it. One of my biggest questions has always been how to win those bigger and better deals? I am sure you know the scenario: small agency bidding for a large project, client asking for previous experience and a solid track record with their industry. Yes! Typical chicken and egg scenario.
So anyway, back to the answer that Justin gave to .net’s question “How and when did Fortune Cookie form?” Just the first two paragraphs told me so much that I can’t believe it. Have you ever had that moment when suddenly everything becomes clear and an answer appears right in front of you?
Here is the exact answer:
“JC: I founded Fortune Cookie in 1997 with the aim of making it one of the most successful web design agencies in the UK.”
With the aim of making it one of the most successful web design agencies in the UK
My commentary: already here we have the mindset of an ambitious and confident entrepreneur. What we also have is clear goal setting and vision. All of the things I have heard time and time again from various entrepreneurs and motivational speakers. A bit different than when I first started with the aim of designing a few websites that can pay the bills! Go figure! OK that was long time ago and I have expanded my vision since then!
Justin continues:
“JC: Our first account was with a luxury Caribbean hotel chain, as we had no previous experience, we did the work in exchange for hotel room bookings, which we then sold on to the travel agent for £35.000 profit! Fortune Cookie was a one-man band in the beginning and I founded the business on credit cards.”
WOW! Talk about thinking outside the box…
My commentary: I mean here it is again a fantastic example of an entrepreneurial mindset. How did he get around the lack of experience? He provided his services in return for something the hotel could give away for free. I remember Roger Hamilton put it very nicely once. “first prove your worth, then ask for what you are worth”. Other things that inspire me here is the fact he started the whole business on his own and only on credit cards. So no big investments or venture capital here.
Back to Justin’s answer:
“JC: We got lucky with our second project. The CEO of Thames Water had returned from a course in the US where he’d learnt about this new medium called the internet. He found Fortune Cookie in the Yellow Pages, called us up and we struck a deal! Thames Water would send us a Quark Express file and we’d transform it into ‘an internet’! I was then able to take on our first two employees. “
Inspiring stuff!
My commentary: So here we have another key element of success: LUCK! Yes luck, but still that luck wouldn’t be there if Justin hadn’t placed the ad in yellow pages. Reading this struck a chord with me. When I was operating as a one man band, my biggest question was at what point can I afford to take on employees? Justin’s story answers this for me: When you win a large enough deal that allows you to pay the monthly salary of an employee then you are in a position to take on your first employee. Simple isn’t it? I think so.
My conclusion – key elements in getting a new agency off the ground:
- Ambition
- Clear goal
- Being creative and think outside the box
- Prove your worth first
- Take action
- Luck
Ok, so this was me getting so much clarity from reading two paragraphs on this article! I don’t know maybe it was the omelette I was having for breakfast. I am sure Justin’s story means different things to different people. You can read the rest of the article in issue 198 of the .net Magazine. The website for .net magazine is http://www.netmag.co.uk.
What has been your experience with growing your business?
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Ashkan is an SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and social media consultant who helps website owners achieve high ranking in Google’s organic search results. Here Ash shares his experience, tips and advice to help you make the most of your web business. 
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Excellent article Ashkan!
As Adrian says great article Ashkan. I love the idea of bartering and selling on the clients comodity, what a good idea. In the last year, with the recession biting and time freeing up, we did a sweat equity deal, so we work for a stake in the company, a longer term and potentially riskier punt so you need to understand your clients. But the key is be creative and hey if you’re an agency that shouldn’t be too hard right
Thanks Adrian and Andy for the comments. Glad you liked it.
Adrian, you are right.. being creative is the name of the game in these times. I have also struck a couple of deals whereby I provide my services in return for share of profit. In the above story Justin also had the luxury of being an early entry in the market. Hard thing to come across these days !
Hello Ashkan,
great article.
I would also say that building a company involves taking risks. You are taking risk when financing your dream from credit cards or loans, you are taking risk when taking on new employees, larger office etc…. I suppose this is what prevents a lot of people from succeeding eventually – they are too afraid to take risks but this is an inseparable part of the game.