Pickit improves presentations and works with image bank assets
Pickit, a visual media company based in Visby, Sweden, offers free images, icons, and illustrations through its Office 365 add-in, enabling users to build impactful presentations. People using Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, or Microsoft Teams can quickly enhance their documents with legally cleared visual elements via the add-in instead of scouring websites and search engines for royalty-free images.
When Pickit began, it acquired its images through crowdsourcing. “As we learned more about Microsoft Office users and their needs, we started to contract niche stock image providers to aggregate content that fits perfectly with the usage in PowerPoint and Word,” said Rob Dysell, Chief Marketing Officer for Pickit.
Pickit now offers access to more than 10 million photos in its library, but companies also can use Pickit with their own image banks. Thus, employees can share approved company assets in addition to slide designs and photos from the Pickit library.
Microsoft AppSource provides a pipeline to customers
Eager to build momentum, Pickit worked with Microsoft to make its add-in available through Microsoft AppSource. After deep linking was employed and Pickit synchronized its Azure Table data with HubSpot, traffic and customers rolled in.
“Today we have over 47,000 companies and customers using our add-in in over 180 countries,” Dysell said. “They are all managed through automated marketing and product, so no salespeople are involved. They are all from Microsoft AppSource and the Office Store.”
Through its services and association with Microsoft, Pickit has gained not just legions of customers, but fans, winning the People's Choice Award at Microsoft’s 2018 Office App Awards. It also was recognized in the Best User Experience category, placing third. Microsoft judges based that award on the ease of Office 365 integration and how well each app enhanced business productivity and user experience. The People‘s Choice category was determined by user votes.
“Our business was tailored and built for the Microsoft ecosystem,” Dysell said. “Microsoft gives us two things of major importance: distribution and trust.”