Appboy, a New York-based startup that’s challenging Salesforce and other business software giants, now has $50 million in new Series D money. Iconiq Capital led the round which brings total funding to $93.6 million.
The company specializes in marketing tech. Software companies can use Appboy’s services to tailor the best pitch for a given consumer, deliver it, and track the results. Salesforce (CRM) is the giant incumbent here with its Marketing Cloud, which builds on its $2.5 billion acquisition of ExactTarget four years ago
Appboy CEO Bill Magnuson explains how the company launched in 2011 into the new world of mobile devices, while Salesforce and other older companies were still adapting to meet new demands.
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“Legacy clouds founded in 1999 and 2000 don’t understand what it means to transact in mobile,” he tells Fortune. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff would likely dispute that.
Related: Adobe Overhauls Digital Marketing Services
Appboy claims its technology enables personalized interactions between businesses and their customers whether the customer is browsing a web site or carries a mobile phone. The company counts as customers companies like AirBnb, Lyft, DraftKings, Domino’s (DPZ), Citibank (C), ABC News, and Microsoft (MSFT).
The additional investment will feed all core functions—engineering, sales, marketing—and boost its presence worldwide. Besides its New York headquarters, Appboy has offices in San Francisco and London with reseller partners in Japan, Thailand, and elsewhere.
Asked if Appboy’s game plan will involve M&A or going public, he said: “Our goal is to control our own destiny and be an independent, robust company.
