Datran Media, a database marketing services company has acquired Skylist, an e-mail service provider (ESP). This acquisition is another in a recent trend of database marketing firms investing their money in e-mail services companies.
This deal will merge Datran’s client list that includes JPMorgan Chase, Sprint Corp., AOL, and USA Today with Skylist’s customers, which include eDiets.com, Boston.com, and babytobee.com.
A number of database marketing firms have acquired e-mail marketing companies, including Merkle, Acxiom, Donnelley, Epsilon, Experian, Harte-Hanks, and Alterian.
“Most mergers of ESPs are about industry consolidation. But the strategy behind our merger with an e-mail service provider is to combine delivery and marketing, the two essential elements to building a solid product,” said chief marketing officer of Datran, New York, Sean O’Neal.
According to founder and CEO of Skylist, Josh Baer, Datran and Skylist have been mulling this deal over for a while now. “We’ve been talking about this for years, but now is the time because the market today demands this integration. The market is hot right now,” Baer said.
While Datran will concentrate mainly on the marketing side and Skylist will focus on the technical side, both companies will now share their sales databases between their two systems.
The acquisition will also lead to the release of adLoyalty, which is an e-mail marketing customer relationship tool that will be integrated to allow clients to seek out acquisition, retention, and loyalty solutions. AdLoyalty will combine Skylist’s StormPost automated e-mail delivery system with Datran’s marketing and analytics tools. The new system will be touted as an all-encompassing tool that will allow clients to obtain new customers, maintain and develop relationships with them, and have an e-mail deliverability back end available to them.
Baer thinks that adLoyalty will be an ideal instrument for big brands that own many sub-brands since it will allow the umbrella company to combine all the information it has garnered from all of its departments and business areas.
Systems integration went over better than expected according to O’Neal. “The real challenge has been keeping up with the orders. In the first 30 days we sold two packages to major global brands and six total,” he said.
“Looking forward, we will focus on the performance, marketing, and advertising components of adLoyalty,” he added.
Baer will take on the role of chief technology officer and will report to Matt Keiser, president of Datran. Skylist will maintain its brand name as well as its base of operations in Austin, Texas.
The terms of the deal were not made known.
Source:
http://www.dmnews.com/cms/dm-news/database-marketing/37069.html
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