Author: Ben Martin, CAE

Chief Engagement Officer at Online Community Results, and Founder of theNIRD.org.

Personify has a new investor

In July 2018, Personify announced a new strategic investor, Pamlico Capital. Personify was due for a new private equity investor, as their previous investment from Rubicon was going on five years.

Community Brands acquires event tech ExpoLogic

In June 2018, Community Brands announced the acquisition of ExpoLogic, a leading event technology company, providing event registration, lead retrieval and trade show services. ExpoLogic has an estimated annual revenue of $10M.

This AMS has an inside track on blockchain tech

Thanks to last year’s acquisition of Wild Apricot, Personify is poised to lead the pack on blockchain technology in the AMS market. Why?

Dmitry Buterin, the founder of Wild Apricot happens to be the father of Vitalik Buterin, co-creator of Ethereum, which is widely acknowledged as the second most valuable cryptocurrency behind Bitcoin. Dmitry is a blockchain enthusiast, and left his position at Wild Apricot to pursue business ventures in blockchain.

And although the elder Buterin has moved on from his post at Wild Apricot, he still serves in an advisory role at Personify, and the Wild Apricot technical team remains highly interested in how blockchain could be applied to associations.

So if you’re curious to see how blockchain applications make their way into the association market, keep your eye on Wild Apricot and Personify.

One of 2017’s acquisitions has a curious twist

Ssshhhhh! There’s a secret about one of last year’s acquisitions in the association technology market. One that gives the acquiring company a significant advantage over its competitors on an emerging technology that many futurists predict will revolutionize the business world and transform society.

That emerging technology is called Blockchain, and I’ll reveal the secret connection (and the vendor that stands to benefit from it) during an Association Trends webinar next week, called Bitcoin, Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies: What are they and how will they affect your association?

The webinar will also cover:

  1. The basics of Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, and blockchains
  2. Professions, industries, and institutions that are most likely to be disrupted by blockchain technology
  3. Current and planned blockchain applications that are likely to affect or compete with associations
  4. Examples of established associations that are embracing and researching how blockchain will affect their members
  5. Critical questions about blockchain that association executives should be discussing with their senior teams and boards of directors

My co-presenter is anti-money laundering expert Doug McCalmont, founder of BlocAlt Consulting, which specializes in helping nonprofit organizations leverage blockchains to achieve their missions.

Register for the webinar today.

MemberSuite accepts $5.5M in funding

In November 2017, MemberSuite accepted a $5.5M round of funding. Check out the SEC filing.

To the best of my knowledge, MemberSuite is the only venture capital-backed AMS in the market, and has raised $13M in funding since September 2016. They appointed a new CEO in November 2017. This round of funding may have been used to acquire the shares owned by the founder and former CEO, transferring ownership of the company to new shareholders.

Gravitate accepts growth funding for Nucleus data analytics platform

In December 2017, Gravitate accepted an investment for Nucleus, its data analytics product for associations. The investor and amount of the investment were not disclosed. Read the press release.

Two acquisitions announced by Community Brands

In December 2017, Community Brands announced the “addition of 501 Auctions and Gesture to the company, and an agreement in principle to acquire GiveSmart.”