Marketing industry publisher Adweek is expanding with the acquisition of newsletter and event producer Social Media Week. Adweek itself was purchased last June by Shamrock Capital and bought Target Marketing and Publishing Executive magazines in September. So we know what’s on Shamrock’s mind, too.
The non-profit sector is less attractive to outside investors but vendors still jostle for position. Fundraising marketing company Moore just bought Amergent, adding the direct marketing and donor management company to its existing stable of 37 businesses. This follows Personify’s purchase of MemberClicks late last month. Personify and MemberClicks both help associations and other non-profits manage their businesses.
Digital customer service platform Khoros just bought Topbox, which collects and analyzes interaction data from calls, chat, social media, surveys, and other sources. The deal was accompanied by a new investment in Khoros by private equity firm Vista Equity Partners, which bought control of customer success vendor Gainsight last December. You can see what they’re thinking.
CX management platform Sprinklr is introducing “digital twins.” Not your average chatbot, a Sprinklr digital twin is more like an AI-powered employee, able to plan actions, create workflows and make decisions, but at speed and at scale. They are said to be more easily trained than chatbots and can operate within brand policies and guardrails.