Addvocate has raised $2.39 million for its service that helps companies put some operations management behind its social media efforts. The round was led by Rogers Venture Partners and included angel investor Karen Riley.
A social media strategy is now a mainstream part of sales and marketing. But it has little infrastructure behind it. Addvocate provides a way for companies to have their employees opt-in for sharing company information on their personal social networks. As I wrote in January, people who opt-in to Addvocate can also suggest content to fellow co-workers. Moderators approve, schedule, and direct the content to the people or channels where it will be most effective. Analytics tools show the effectiveness and return on investment of the social media outreach.
Distinctive to the service is Addvocate’s capability to use short URLs and campaign codes to track how customers interact with the tweets or other social media. By connecting the influencer to the customer action, Addvocate allows marketers to understand which content generated the most buzz and which employees are driving influence.
Addvocate works from the browser: in Chrome as a plug-in, and in Firefox and Internet Explorer as a bookmarklet. It is not available in Safari. Mobile apps are coming in the next few months.
Addvocate is another example of how data-driven technologies are shaping the way we work. The ones to watch are the platforms that use analtytics to influence behavior. Identity providers in particular could pose a challenge, as well as companies such as Zuberance, Extole and Influitive.