Feature Articles

Last week’s announcement that Marketo had secured an additional $25 million in funding had the blogosphere buzzing as analysts and competitors alike chimed in with their take on the latest financial infusion into the marketing automation category.

The latest round of funding led by Institutional Venture Partners (IVP), the company that’s backed brands including Netflix and Twitter, shifted the spotlight back to the marketing automation category, and likely turned up the heat on competition in the space.

Although it was overshadowed by Marketo’s latest round, Act-On Software also announced that it had raised $4 million in a second round of VC investment, led by Voyager Capital with US Venture Partners. The Beaverton, OR-based marketing automation solution provider pointed out that it has already reached 160 customers with only $2.5 million prior funding.

As buyers continue to dictate the new terms of engagement, BtoB sales and marketing teams are tasked with answering the growing demand for personalized and relevant messaging. The new realities of the changing buyer were all prominent themes at last week’s Sales & Marketing 2.0 Conference in San Francisco, where presenters offered solutions and strategies for utilizing social networks, channeling the changing buyer and the ever-present alignment conundrum,

“Technology has changed, but human nature hasn’t,” said Peter Stewart, SVP Collaboration Technology Services at PGi, a company that brings people together through virtual meetings. In his keynote, “Collaboration 2.0,” Stewart emphasized how meetings can be a competitive differentiator and help companies drive revenue more efficiently.