Social media firm Sprinklr just became the latest $1bn startup
New York-based marketing group Sprinklr just became the lastest billion-dollar tech startup.
The social media platform today revealed it had raised $46m (£30.1m) in its latest round of funding from “our family of investors”, valuing it at more than $1bn.
Sprinklr, which employs 700 people, offers a host of tools for businesses to manage their social media presence including the ability to assess its “brand health”, online ratings and reviews, paid social media campaigns and so on.
This latest funding, which takes the total raised to $123.5m, will be used to launch a new product, said founder and chief executive Ragy Thomas, who described the funding as a “huge milestone” .
The new product, Sprinklr Experience Cloud, will connect all of a business' “social touch points”, extending the platform to websites and transactions.
“Customers have changed. They are more social, more connected, more mobile, more demanding, and more vocal. At the same time, they are less predictable, and their purchase process is much more complex than it used to be, Thomas wrote in a blog.
“Given the massive changes in consumer behaviour over the last few years, it’s reasonable to expect that brands would adapt accordingly. Unfortunately, we’re not there yet. Many brands are completely unprepared for this new world.
“But the truth is that customers just don’t care. It’s irrelevant to them whether they’re talking to marketing or sales, US operations or UK operations.”
A startup wouldn't be a startup without an evangelising person at the helm. The video below shows Thomas explaining why better social media management is so crucial.