• by Ben Frederick  @mp_benfred, May 17, 2016

Cloud-based texting platform Teckst announced the close of a $2.5 million funding round to fuel growth and expand into new markets. 

Teckst has reportedly set its sights high, hoping to partner with 5,000 businesses by the end of the year. So far, early adopters of Teckst’s service include JackThreads, Memebox and Luxe.

Jason Rosser, director of customer service at JackThreads, was quoted in <i>Text.Co</i>, noting: "Our audience is nearly 80% millennial men and over 50% of the time they are purchasing on mobile.”

Though there are myriad channels through which customers can reach the various customer service departments of companies, many are automated. Consumer sentiment leans toward interacting with another human without having to speak to them. Teckst’s service seems tailor-made for millennials and heavy mobile users who dread phone calls.

Most B2C texting platforms connect consumers with bots, but Teckst utilizes a Web platform that can lets small businesses log into from any device. Larger businesses can use it through CRMs like SalesForce, HelpScout, Oracle, and SugarCRM. The service connects people directly with customer service agents instead of a bot.

In Teckst’s model, it’s the customer service agents who get the benefit of the bots, given that a consumer-facing bot is a big risk for brands at this stage in development. Agent-facing bots can help update tickets, while the agent is responding to a consumer.

New monies came from Composite Capital, Gaingels, Kernel Capital and Zelkova Ventures. Angel investors Walter Burr, Adam Press, Dan Porter, and Kevin Mahaffey also participated. So far, the company has raised about $5 million.