The team makes the numbers, not the campaign

3 a.m., the second play2match launch event in Rome just wrapped, and there we were, still talking about the future instead of going to bed. (Yes, we're a little sick in the head. But happy.)

Looking at the photo from that night, I felt like taking stock of the third quarter, seen from marketing. New sign-ups went from just over 3,100 to more than 10,700: more than triple, which in Bologna earns a big “soccia” (our all-purpose “wow”). People playing their first match went from 546 to more than 1,300. And the share of people who come because someone told them about us rose from about 8% to more than 20%: word of mouth is doing some serious damage, the good kind.

It wasn't all smooth sailing

Bologna, the city where it all started, is the one where we struggled the most. It grew less than our other markets, we changed our approach and we're still working on it.

It's a bit like moving up two divisions in one season: the standings say you're flying, but on the court you realise your opponents run twice as fast and you have to train in a different way.

The lesson

Those numbers weren't made by a well-built ad campaign. They were made by a team that at 2 a.m., after two days on the court, still wants to talk about how to do better. You can copy a campaign in an afternoon. A team like that, not so much.

If you want to see what's on the other side of those numbers, the easiest way is to come and play: you can book matches on play2match.it.