Unified Inbox acquires U.S. startup SocialGrow
UIB Names SocialGrow Co-Founder Ken Herron Head of Marketing
Singapore (September 16, 2014) — Unified Inbox, the social communication and collaboration platform, today announced that it has acquired Boston-based social networking application company SocialGrow for an undisclosed amount. SocialGrow’s Chief Marketing Officer and Co-Founder Ken Herron will join Unified Inbox as Head of Marketing.
Key components of SocialGrow, an application that makes it easier for organizations and individuals to better connect with the people they know on different social networks, will be integrated into Unified Inbox’s product offerings.
“SocialGrow gives us the opportunity to further unify your communications, including collecting and managing contacts from your in- and outboxes. Integrating SocialGrow showcases how we are using unified communications as a platform to encourage developers to create apps that will allow customers to fully customize their inboxes &mdash pixel by pixel if they so choose &mdash to meet their specific needs and preferences,” said Unified Inbox CEO Toby Ruckert.
“Besides the smart technology that we’re integrating, I’m also very excited to have Ken joining our team to drive Unified Inbox further towards public availability.”
With experience holding several executive marketing and sales leadership positions and an expertise in rapidly growing revenues for multiple early- and mid-stage startup companies, Herron will spearhead Unified Inbox’s global marketing efforts as the company readies its first commercial launches and prepares for global availability in 2015.
“As a CEO who’s both a founder and a grower, it’s great to work with Toby, and I’m lucky to join the very talented Unified Inbox team,” shared Ken. “I’m excited not only to help integrate SocialGrow’s key features into new solutions, but to work with the Unified Inbox team to create something even bigger – really simplifying communications and collaboration for both organizations and individuals.”
SocialGrow will enable businesses and organizations to easily connect with prospects and customers across various social and professional business networks, which supports Unified Inbox’s focus on enhancing how people communicate on their different email, messaging, and social media communications channels, and introducing a new communications protocol.
Added Nathan Zeldes, President of the Information Overload Research Group (IORG): “This move integrates two streams of information, each previously prone to its own debilitating information overload: email, and the management of social network connectivity. By intelligently automating the second based on what happens in the first, the overall overload and time investment is reduced even while the quality of social relationships is deepened. I love it!”
And Dr. Darl Kolb, Professor of Connectivity at the University of Auckland Business School’s Graduate School of Management and author of the blog Connectivity Corner, said, “Social networks and connectivity are really two sides of the same coin. You can’t have a network without connectivity, and connectivity by its very nature creates and sustains networks. Ever since Granovetter’s famous article on the ‘strength of weak ties,’ we have understood the power of reaching out beyond our day-to-day contacts. But, visualizing and organizing our connections is not easy. As networks become increasingly important, tools to manage them will become increasingly important. To be connected is a powerful thing and to see our connections brings connectivity to life.”
The acquisition of SocialGrow comes after other recent milestones of Unified Inbox with its July 2014 announcement of leveraging SAP HANA© technology for its smart sorting mechanism “InboxRank©”, its May 2014 acquisition of U.S. firm SMAK to integrate LifeModes®, and the April 2014 opening of its new global headquarters in Singapore.
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