TapInfluence

TapInfluence was a Boulder, Colorado-based software-as-a-service company operating an influencer marketing platform that automated the creation, management and measurement of online influencer programs. The platform let brands and agencies search an opt-in marketplace of digital influencers — bloggers and creators with audiences on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, Vine and SnapChat — co-create branded content with them, distribute that content across social platforms and brand sites, and access analytics intended to measure monetary value and return on investment through a single workflow system.

The company was launched in March 2009 under the name BlogFrog by Rustin Banks and Holly Hamann, and later rebranded as TapInfluence. At the time of its 2018 sale it described a marketplace of more than 87,000 registered users and reported average monthly influencer cash compensation of $763.50. In July 2018 the company was acquired by publicly traded IZEA, Inc. and became a wholly-owned subsidiary; IZEA said it planned to operate the TapInfluence platform for 12–18 months while migrating key features and technologies into its own IZEAx marketplace, and that eleven full-time employees would join IZEA in California and Colorado offices.

Founding story

Holly Hamann became interested in how Gen Y audiences communicated online while working in the music-sharing space, where bloggers her company hired produced content that was picked up by large news outlets. She was introduced to Rustin Banks, and in March 2009 the pair launched BlogFrog, later renamed TapInfluence, aiming to connect brands with influencers across social platforms by automating marketer workflow. The early operation was run from public libraries, a Panera and other locations with Wi-Fi in Boulder.

Business model

Marketers licensed the cloud-based TapInfluence SaaS platform to find, contract with and manage digital influencers, while influencers joined an opt-in marketplace and were compensated in cash for the branded content they created and distributed.

Software licensed to marketers and agencies, with an accompanying influencer marketplace through which creators earned revenue from brand content.

Traction

More than 87,000 registered users as of the 2018 acquisition announcement, with average monthly influencer cash compensation of $763.50. Cited customers included Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, Kraft, Coca-Cola, RedBox, Burt's Bees, Lego, Horizon Organic, Panasonic and SunTrust.

Latest developments

IZEA announced a definitive merger agreement to acquire TapInfluence on July 12, 2018 and closed the transaction on July 26, 2018 for approximately $7.6 million in cash and stock, comprising $1.3 million in cash and 1.15 million common shares at closing, a further $1 million payable six months after closing and $3.5 million payable twelve months after closing, at IZEA's option in cash or stock. TapInfluence became a wholly-owned IZEA subsidiary, with its platform slated for feature migration into IZEAx over 12–18 months.