Webflow, a web design and hosting platform, has recently made waves in the tech industry by raising over $330 million in funding and achieving a valuation of $4 billion. Now, the company is taking a bold step into a new market: marketing optimization.
In an exciting announcement today, Webflow revealed that it has acquired Intellimize, a startup that utilizes the power of AI to personalize websites for individual visitors. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, a source close to the matter has revealed that the acquisition cost was in the range of eight figures.
The majority of Intellimize’s team, consisting of around 50 individuals, will join Webflow. However, a few members have opted for outplacement packages, while others were provided with severance packages. Webflow has not disclosed the exact number of employees affected by this decision.
According to Vlad Magdalin, CEO of Webflow, Intellimize was a natural choice for the company’s first-ever acquisition. This is due to the fact that many of Webflow’s customers share a common need: personalizing and optimizing their websites.
“The common thread among our many customer segments is that they’re building professional websites that are not just visually appealing, but also effective in driving business results. Many of our customers and partners have asked us to help them improve their website’s ability to attract new customers, beyond just the initial build phase. Intellimize quickly emerged as an impressive player in this space, with numerous marketing and growth leaders singing their praises. It soon became clear that combining our products and teams would create a powerful combination.”
– Vlad Magdalin, CEO of Webflow
Intellimize was founded in 2016 by Guy Yalif, Brian Webb, and Jin Lim. Yalif, who previously served as the Head of Vertical Marketing at Twitter, had worked with Lim, then VP of Engineering at Yahoo, and Webb, an architect on Yahoo’s personalized content recommendation team. This connection came full circle when Yahoo was acquired by TechCrunch’s parent company, which is also Yahoo’s corporate parent.
With their combined expertise in marketing, Yalif, Webb, and Lim set out to create a platform that could generate personalized webpages for each visitor in real-time.
The driving force behind their endeavor was the frustration felt by 74% of customers when they encounter a website that is not tailored to their needs and preferences, as reported by Porch Group Media. Companies that adopt personalization techniques report not only a boost in revenue, but also an increase in marketing efficiency.
Intellimize utilizes AI to generate webpages that are automatically adjusted based on user behavior and referral source. Companies begin by creating a website template, and Intellimize’s AI runs experiments, fine-tuning various elements to deliver the best-performing results to visitors.
While Intellimize is not the only player in this market, with Amazon’s Personalize and startups like Evolv AI and Episerver-owned Optimizely also offering similar services, it has established a strong foothold in the growing market for AI-powered marketing.
At the time of the acquisition, Intellimize had raised over $50 million from investors like Cobalt Capital, Addition, Amplify Partners, and Homebrew. Some of its notable clients include Sumo Logic, Dermalogica, and ZoomInfo.
“The Intellimize team had already developed many of the personalization and optimization tools that we were considering building in-house. They also had an impressive roster of enterprise clients, with their solution showcasing top-notch expertise in machine learning and AI for website personalization and conversion rate optimization. We believed that their addition to Webflow would make for a powerful combination.”
“Integrating Intellimize expands our primary audience beyond designers and developers. Our goal for the initial phase of the merger is to natively integrate both our products, so customers can expect the best of Webflow and Intellimize to be available as one unified product experience later this year.”
– Vlad Magdalin, CEO of Webflow
For Intellimize customers, the merger will not result in any drastic changes, as co-founder Guy Yalif assured. The company will continue to operate as a standalone entity for non-Webflow customers, but will also work towards integrating and linking with Webflow’s services. Yalif will join Webflow as the “Head of Personalization”, leading the efforts to incorporate personalization into Webflow’s products.
“Joining Webflow will allow us to grow and accelerate our progress significantly. Webflow is expanding its integrated solution for website creation, design, and optimization. Intellimize serves as the foundation for the personalization and optimization aspects of this vision. Together, we can take on major, high-cost competitors in the digital experience market.”
The future looks bright for Webflow and Intellimize as they join forces to offer an unparalleled solution to the rapidly growing demand for AI-powered marketing. The integration and collaboration between the two companies promise to revolutionize the way businesses approach website personalization and drive results.
