
Social-marketing firm Percolate has secured another $40 million in Series C financing led by Lightspeed Venture Partners.
Several existing investors participated in the round, including Sequoia
Capital, GGV Capital, First Round Capital and Lerer Hippeau Ventures. Percolate has now raised a total of $74.5 million.
Among other efforts, Percolate plans to use the funds to expand its San
Francisco office; enlarge its workforce from 200 to at least 300 employees; grow internationally; and improve its enterprise software platform.
More generally, Percolate CEO Noah Brier says
the funding is good news for CMOs.
By Brier’s estimation, the average Fortune 500 marketing department uses 50 separate software tools to manage more than 40 different communications
channels. That's where Percolate comes in. “Marketers and agencies need a system that makes them faster, more connected and more creative,” Brier said, referring to his company
offerings.
“CMOs need to capture the attention of the modern mobile consumer,” Brier added. “But the creative, marketing channels and workflows that build strong brands in
this environment are new, and they’re different.”
Percolate promises to reduce such sprawling infrastructures by offering a universal operating system, which accounts for the
entire marketing process.
Brier message appears to be resonating with marketers. Over the past year, he claims to have grown Percolate's customer base by more than 200%. Top clients include
Ford, General Electric and Unilever.
Last year -- on the heels of selling a minority stake to WPP’s digital investment arm -- Percolate raised $24 million in financing led by
Sequoia.