Email marketing firm WhatCounts said July 11 that it has acquired email service provider Blue Sky Factory. WhatCounts president and founder Allen Nance said the acquisition will add social media functionality to his company’s offerings.
Nance said that Blue Sky Factory’s social media functionality was “awesome” and a “huge pick-up for our entire organization.”
“Every customer from Costco to AARP will benefit from that functionality,” he said.
Blue Sky Factory’s proprietary Publicaster application allowed email marketers to include social network sharing buttons in their messages and track shares and corresponding interaction metrics.
Greg Cangialosi, president and CEO of Blue Sky Factory, will leave his daily role at the company and work as an independent consultant, said Nance, who added that Cangialosi will also join WhatCounts’ board of directors.
Doug Broujos, managing partner and COO of Blue Sky Factory, will become VP of services at WhatCounts and report to WhatCounts CFO and COO Mark Pigott, Nance said. All other Blue Sky Factory employees will be folded into corresponding divisions at WhatCounts, said Nance.
Blue Sky Factory clients include fast-food chain Long John Silvers, watch company Seiko Corp. of America and Johns Hopkins University.
Nance said WhatCounts has more acquisitions planned for the next year, with “one or maybe two additional strategic acquisitions if we can find the right teams with the right people and the right customers.”
