Toronto startup Influitive has recently closed on a Series A funding round of $7.3 million that was spearheaded by Hummer Winblad and Relay Ventures. The round also featured investors that already had a share in the firm including angel investors and Lightspeed Venture Partners, New Enterprise Associates, Illuminate Ventures, Resolute.VC and Common Angels. As part of the deal, Lars Leckie of Hummer Winblad and Alex Baker of Relay Ventures will get a place on the board of directors for Influitive.
Influitive is expected to use the new cash to accelerate its growth. It will be investing in human capital for its marketing and sales teams while also adding people to the services part of the business. The company’s advocate marketing platform called AdvocateHub will also be sped up with faster development.
AdvocateHub is Influitive’s main service and is meant to make recruiting and mobilizing advocates easier for marketers. The tool is expected to be used as support for marketing campaigns, new client referrals and to help close deals faster. Lars explains that, “Influitive is exemplary of the kind of company in which Hummer Winblad looks to invest: at the forefront of an exciting market opportunity, management with a proven track record, and momentum that underscores and validates its market approach. As the founding CEO of Eloqua, [Influitive founder] Mark Organ has a deep understanding of the crucial importance of customer advocacy for the growth and profitability of B2B companies. We are excited to help bring his vision of the ideal advocate experience to the market.”
Overall the business community has seen a drop in trust for corporate sales and marketing. According to Influitive, the focus is now shifting to social media and blind peer endorsements and this is where AdvocateHub does a great job. The system helps drive more referrals in the social environment.
According to Relay Ventures, Alex Baker, “This is a team that has pioneered a multi-billion dollar industry in cloud-based marketing automation. We are seeing companies increasingly dependent on peer referencing for acquiring customers, and believe that Influitive’s advocate-centered, self-service approach is going to win out in a new multi-billion dollar Advocate Marketing space that is forming.”
The company explains that AdvocateHub “is an advocate community where customers can participate in online or offline campaigns like lead referrals, demand generation, events and product reviews.” There is a gamification of the concept and advocates need to complete challenges so they can get points, badges and level up. They gain perks and privileges as they advance.
Mark Organ, CEO of Influitive., talked about the new funds and how is company will use them by saying that, “This new investment will help us address a critical point of friction in the B2B marketing and sales marketplace by providing a platform that empowers customer advocates. Our users have enthusiastically embraced our unique solution because it focuses on the advocate experience, is highly engaging and drives measurable business value.”
Source: TechVibes
Instagram Gets New Privacy Policy That Hints At Data Sharing With Facebook
Virgin Mobile Says HTC 8S “has been flying off the shelves”
Lunches So Good Kids Can’t Ignore Them
Invigorating Ginger Smoothie
The U.K.’s Youngest Parents Ever
The new hair Jennifer Lawrence