Zaius raises $30M to help marketers unify their customer data

Zaius, a customer data company working with consumer brands like Tea Forte and Burt’s Bees Baby, has raised $30 million in Series B funding.

CEO Mark Gally said that while business-to-business marketing revolves around the CRM, there’s a “hodgepodge” on the consumer marketing side. More specifically, he said consumer marketers have a “swivel chair problem” where they have might have a customer data platform that doesn’t actually allow marketers to do the necessary personalization across channels, or a marketing automation product that isn’t as “robust” when it comes to customer data.

“We’ve literally smashed these two systems together,” Gally said. (I might quibble with his use of “literally” if it wasn’t such a fun image.)

So for example, with Zaius (which is named after the Planet of the Apes character, who was the keeper of truth for the apes), a clothing brand would have access to key data about a customer, like the fact that they’re more interested in early access than discounts, across devices and communications channels. They could then tailor their messages accordingly.

Gally said that for some customers, Zaius can deliver a 33 percent improvement in revenue per message and, by allowing them to coordinate campaigns across channels, grow their reach by up to 50 percent.

Jurgen Nebelung, vice president of e-commerce and digital at Tea Forte, made a similar point in the funding announcement, saying that using other marketing software resulted in “siloed data and a disconnected customer experience”: “Zaius brought our data into one place, delivering a complete view of how shoppers are engaging with our brand whether it’s on web, mobile or email.”

Zaius has now raised $50.8 million in total funding. The new round was led by Insight Venture Partners, with participation from previous investors Matrix Partners, Underscore VC and Leaders Fun. Insight Managing Director Nikitas Koutoupes is joining the company’s board of directors.

“It’s no secret that B2C marketers are under increased pressure as their role in business continues to evolve, and they need tools of their own to help drive results,” said Insight principal Teddie Wardi in an emailed statement. “Through a single platform, Zaius provides B2C marketers a complete view of their customers as they move through the purchase process, paired with campaign execution tools to engage those customers with personalized communications across channels.”

Among other things, Gally said the new funding will allow the company expand its developer ecosystem and integrate with other marketing tools.

“What’s key is not forcing a rip-and-replace,” he said. “We’re upgrading their overall systems … Not only unifying the ecosystem, but now powering the ecosystem, is a huge opportunity where we will continue to put a focus.”

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