LeadRocket/Genius Acquired by SaaS Vendor CallidusCloud

by Dan Freeman 
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Last week, Marketing automation vendor LeadRocket (formerly, Genius) was acquired by Callidus Software Inc., which also owns LeadFormix, for an undisclosed amount. This announcement came a week after Salesfusion’s acquisition of Loopfuse (Salesfusion raised $8.25 million in venture capital just two weeks prior). As marketing automation catches on, and as more software firms—we count over 50—chase an expanding customer base, we will continue to see more consolidation.

The LeadRocket acquisition is notable as Genius was the an early leader in marketing automation—they raised over $40 million in venture capital between 2006 and 2009—more than any other marketing automation vendor during that time frame.

Venture Capital Funding for Marketing Automation (2005 - Current)

The publicly traded Callidus CALD acquired marketing automation vendor LeadFormix in 2012 for $9 million. Its full product suite provides Software as a Service (SaaS) for hiring, learning, marketing and selling.

So many factors come into play in determining vendor success; product features, usability, marketing prowess, pricing, support, company leadership, strategy, etc. These factors will sort themselves out through tens of thousands of marketplace experiments over the next year as users attempt to leverage marketing technologies to get a handle on the new world of digital marketing.

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Marketing Growth Strategies LLC has been engaged in research, analysis, lead generation, and client implementation in the Marketing Automation sector since 2009 and has recently revised its highly successful 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Are you a marketing automation vendor? Learn about the capturing up to 500 fresh Marketing Automation leads.

Considering implementing marketing automation? Download the 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Salesfusion Buys Loopfuse

by Dan Freeman 
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Atlanta-based marketing automation vendor Salesfusion announced this morning the acquisition of LoopFuse, another marketing automation company, also based in Atlanta. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.  Reflecting the rapid change in the marketing automation sector, this news comes two weeks after Salesfusion raised $8.25 million in a Series B financing round. According to the Salesfusion website,

“Salesfusion expects to more than triple sales, revenue, and customers by the end of the year.”

As adoption of marketing technologies accelerate, venture capital continues to flow into marketing automation.

More from the Salesfusion website;

Acquiring LoopFuse has significant implications for Salesfusion and the entire marketing automation space. Salesfusion is embedding LoopFuse’s dynamic social media publishing and monitoring tools directly into the Salesfusion suite of products adding social listening, publishing and nurturing to the leading marketing automation suite for midsized businesses. Expanding on current Loopfuse technology, Salesfusion will be the first provider to bring the power of predictive analytics to marketing automation, arming marketers with the first “smart” marketing automation solution and enabling them to interact with and nurture prospects and customers in a more efficient, intelligent way.
The addition of LoopFuse customers to the Salesfusion portfolio makes Salesfusion one of the largest marketing automation software vendors focused specifically on the midmarket segment, overtaking several competitors. Pease and Young, both of whom will stay on at Salesfusion, enhance the company’s business and technical capabilities and attractiveness to customers and investors. Said Christian Nahas, CEO of Salesfusion, “Marketers are asking for a solution that is smart and intuitive. A solution that helps them reduce the friction between marketing and sales and deliver bottom line results like never before. We are now one step closer to achieving that goal.” See more here. 

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Marketing Growth Strategies LLC has been engaged in research, analysis, lead generation, and client implementation in the Marketing Automation sector since 2009 and has recently revised its highly successful 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Are you a marketing automation vendor? Learn about the capturing up to 500 fresh Marketing Automation leads.

Considering implementing marketing automation? Download the 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Can the Market Absorb More Marketing Automation Vendors?

by Dan Freeman 
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With last month's $1.5 billion purchase of Responsys by Oracle, marketing automation continues to be in the limelight. On the surface industry consolidation appears to be the narrative, but dig deeper and you will find compelling subplots. Creative destruction—which has transformed marketing since the rise of the Internet—is accelerating. As traditional marketing (think Madmen) gives way to digital, marketing technology ascends.

As this Infographic from Scott Brinker (Chief Marketing Technologist blog) shows, it’s truly the wild west for marketing technology, and marketing automation, as a “backbone platform” is front and center. Platforms are software that every marketer needs—such as CRM, or web content management—and Brinker includes marketing automation as another must-have technology.

“What makes them platforms, rather than just products, is that they’re increasingly open — interoperable with other, more specialized marketing software.”

Can the market absorb the entry of tech giants like Oracle, IBM, Adobe, and Salesforce, as well as dozens of new marketing automation start-ups? Our answer is yes. Consolidation and growth will occur in tandem as tens of thousands of marketplace experiments among platform users determine the eventual winners and losers.

One thing is for certain; adoption rates are hitting the steepest part of the product lifecycle, and to be a winner, vendors need to be in the game now.

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Marketing Growth Strategies LLC has been engaged in research, analysis, lead generation, and client implementation in the Marketing Automation sector since 2009 and has recently revised its highly successful 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Are you a marketing automation vendor? Learn about the capturing up to 500 fresh Marketing Automation leads.

Considering implementing marketing automation? Download the 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Oracle to Buy Responsys for $1.5 Billion

by Dan Freeman 
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More evidence (as if we needed more) of the strength of the marketing automation sector came on Friday as Oracle announced the purchase of Responsys for about $1.5 billion.

Interestingly Responsys (MKTG +40.4%) closed Friday at $27.40, $0.40 above Oracle's (ORCL -0.6%) $27/share acquisition price. Speculation grew that investors are betting on an SAP counteroffer arriving soon.

Meanwhile, fellow cloud marketing automation software firms Marketo (MKTO +11.3%) and Constant Contact (CTCT +6.8%) closed up sharply.

As we’ve been saying for the past year, if you are a marketing automation company, this is your moment. Carp diem!

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.
Old Time is still a-flying
And this same flower that smiles today,
Tomorrow will be dying.

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Marketing Growth Strategies LLC has been engaged in research, analysis, lead generation, and client implementation in the Marketing Automation sector since 2009 and has recently revised its highly successful 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.

Are you a marketing automation vendor? Learn about the capturing up to 500 fresh Marketing Automation leads.

Considering implementing marketing automation? Download the 2014 Marketing Automation eBook.