Sparkroom Raises $4 Million from Matrix Partners; Announces Founding Team
Seasoned Team of Internet Veterans Building New Solution to Optimize Lead Performance
Toronto/Charlotte - March 17, 2008 – Sparkroom, Inc. (www.sparkroom.com), a leading provider of Lead Performance Optimization solutions for the online lead generation industry, today announced a $4 million round of Series A financing from Matrix Partners. The proceeds from the financing will be used to fund product development, build a world-class team and to expand operations.
Sparkroom’s Lead Performance Optimization solution, initially focused on the mortgage industry, uniquely combines online direct marketing expertise and proprietary technology to help lenders dramatically improve the performance of their online leads, by lowering customer acquisition costs, significantly improving marketing efficiency and measurably increasing profitability.
"Online lead generation spending is rapidly growing and marketers are frustrated that they lack the tools and skills needed to optimize their marketing investment in this increasingly important channel," said chief executive officer, Jamie McDonald. "We are bringing together the industry’s leading direct marketers with a world-class technology platform to solve this problem. We are thrilled to have Matrix Partners as an investor and partner in our business."
In May of 2007, Sparkroom received $4 million in Series A financing from Matrix Partners, one of the top-performing venture capital firms over the past three decades. "We believe in the Sparkroom solution, market opportunity and the team. We are excited to have the opportunity to work with Sparkroom to build a truly great company in the rapidly growing online lead generation space," said Nick Beim, general partner at Matrix Partners. Nick Beim has joined Sparkroom’s board of directors.
Your Sparkroom account team is supported by online direct marketing experts from the mortgage industry who understand how to maximize the ROI of your lead spend.
Founding Management Team
Sparkroom’s initial senior management team is a seasoned group of mortgage, direct marketing and technology executives.
Jamie McDonald, President and CEO
Prior to founding Sparkroom, Jamie was the Vice President of Destination Services at Expedia and IAC Travel. He joined the Expedia marketing team in 1999 where he discovered his passion for online direct marketing. Prior to Expedia, Jamie worked for Microsoft and Black & McDonald.
Edward Powell, Vice President, Sales
Prior to founding Sparkroom, Edward held marketing roles at HSBC and was a key early employee at LendingTree, an early pioneer in the online lead generation industry. As the Vice President of National Sales and Account Management at LendingTree, he was responsible for managing the company’s relationships with major financial institutions including Wachovia, Citibank and Wells Fargo.
Jamie Shulman, Vice President, Operations
Prior to founding Sparkroom, Jamie was Vice President, Digital at Indigo Books & Music, Canada’s largest book retailer. From 2002 to 2005, Jamie was Vice President & Assistant General Counsel at QRS, a public supply chain software and services company in San Francisco. He has also practiced law at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Palo Alto, California and at Torys in Toronto, Ontario, specializing in corporate finance for technology companies.
Charles Barton, Vice President, Research and Development
Charles has held several senior management roles in his 18 year career in software development and architecture. Most recently, he was Vice President of Software Architecture at Workbrain, a widely-deployed workforce management solution for large enterprises (now part of Infor Global Solutions). Prior to Workbrain, Charles held positions as the Director of Software Architecture at Octanewave (now part of Dexterra), and Director of OSS Gateway Architecture at DSET.
Stephen Smith, Vice President, Product Management
Steve has over 15 years of software industry experience in senior product management, consulting and information technology roles, managing market-leading solutions in a number of segments, including workforce management, customer relationship management, and operational support systems. Prior to Sparkroom, he was responsible for Product Management for Workbrain, a widely-deployed workforce management solution for large enterprises (now part of Infor Global Solutions).
About Sparkroom
Sparkroom is the first provider of Lead Performance Management, a solution that uniquely combines hosted software with expert account management services to give online lead buyers the tools and expertise needed to measure, manage and optimize their lead acquisition spending. Founded in early 2007, Sparkroom is privately-held, with funding from private investors and Matrix Partners. For more information, visit www.sparkroom.com.
About Matrix Partners
Matrix Partners (www.matrixpartners.com) is a venture capital firm focused on early stage investments in the communications, consumer Internet, mobile, semiconductor, and software sectors. The firm emphasizes long-term relationships with world-class entrepreneurs. Founded in 1977, Matrix Partners ranks among the industry's top-performing venture capital firms. Prior portfolio companies include Apple, JBoss, OpenWave, SanDisk, Sycamore, and TheLadders.
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