Shortlisted for The Good Web Guide Website of the Year Award 2009, Use Your Local gives pubs the chance accept parcel deliveries on behalf of locals who are out for the day. In doing so, founder Stuart Mills hopes to bring pubs back into the heart of local communities. We caught up with him to find out more.
Explain your website.
Useyourlocal.com is all about helping pubs cement their place at the heart of their local community, ultimately getting them more customers through their doors, more often. I guess we’re best known for our unique parcel collection service that lets people have parcels delivered to their local pub, but we’re also a social network for pubs that helps them better market to and communicate with their customers.
How does it make money?
We charge a subscription fee of £50 a year for pubs to be a registered member.
What is your background?
I have worked for Heineken UK (formerly Scottish & Newcastle plc) for the last 8 years. Previously to that I worked in both the media and IT industries – so I think that makes me bizarrely qualified to run a web-based, marketing vehicle for pubs!
When did the site launch?
We launched on 3rd August 2009 – why not check out
www.youtube.com/useyourlocal
How many pubs do you have on board so far?
The response has been fantastic. We have just gone over the 1,000 pub mark with more and more joining every day.
How many visitors do you have per day and what are your targets for the coming year?
We’re getting up to 20,000 a month at the moment, but it’s early days and we are working hard (and smart!) on ways of increasing this - so watch this space.
Describe your average visitor.
Anyone who thinks that the UK pub is an important part of the community that they don’t want to lose – count me in!
Who are your closest competitors?
There are quite a few sites out there that offer information on pubs – but we think we have some unique advantages - like our unique parcel service, our tie-up with Samsungfootball.co.uk (a great site to show people where they can watch football in the pub) and our links with the UK pub industry through Heineken.
What makes useyourlocal.com unique?
Our passion for pubs.
How important is the pub for local communities?
Very – just ask people who’ve lost theirs!
Will useyourlocal.com help to keep Britain’s pubs from closing?
It’s not the only answer but it’s certainly one of them. From what we can see so far, those pubs that are using us are definitely getting more customers, more often. That’s got to be a good thing
What has been the most positive thing to come out of useyourlocal.com so far?
The feedback from those pubs that have spent the £50 and told us that it really can make a difference.
Where do you see useyourlocal.com going from here?
We’ve got lots of really exciting things planned, but rest assured they’re all focused on achieving our goal of helping pubs to cement their place at the heart of their local community – and if I could ask you readers one thing it would be to go to our website and to all join their local pubs, because that way their sending a really clear message to their local that they do support it.
Visit
www.useyourlocal.com
25 November 09
