Save money, make money be collaborating with other local brands
Owning a local business can be massively rewarding, but is never easy – the challenge to grow and earn loyalty is a constant effort that must be made no matter how busy the day is, and no matter how many hats a business owner wears, a notion that tech startup, Alignable has tapped into.
The company urges local businesses, “take back your town,” and offers a platform that gives local brands a place to network and to market together, a simple idea with widespread implications.
Eric Groves, CEO and Co-Founder hails from Constant Contact who has been helping small businesses since day one, and Stanford-educated Co-Founder Venkat Krishnamurthy serves as the CPO, coming from Checkpoint Systems. The two know what they’re doing – the pain points of local businesses both from a technology standpoint and a marketing standpoint.
How Alignable could actually change the SMB world
The duo has focused squarely on helping local businesses to come together and to collaborate, utilizing their existing resources. According to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company closed a partial round of funding yesterday in the amount of $3.54 million, giving them a running start at changing the small business world.
They could actually make a change by giving businesses a way to connect instead of cold calling in hopes that other business owners are in the same mindset and interested in pooling resources and promoting each other in a meaningful way.
An example of how this could work: a bookstore hosts a reading of a new cookbook out, featuring the chef who penned the book. Inside each book is a bookmark with a coupon printed on it, prompting shoppers to save 20% on any item at a specialty cooking store up the street. Meanwhile, at the cooking supply store, there is signage at the counter for two weeks leading up to the bookstore reading, prompting shoppers to go to the reading and buy the chef’s book.
Instead of having to search for these types of partnerships, businesses can do it from their desk in their downtime, and also take advantage of the wisdom of the crowd, asking questions about regulations, sales, and so forth, tapping local knowledge, and sharing their own.
The bottom line is that Alignable helps businesses by facilitating win-win situations. Simply genius.
