In science fiction, computers that mimic human sensibilities often trigger chaos. In the venture capital community, software that portrays virtual human beings can attract multi-million dollar investments.
Redwood City, Calif.-based On-Link Technologies Inc. develops software that emulates the human transaction process for e-commerce companies. The company’s Rainmaker sales application provides vendors with a virtual salesperson for pricing, product validation and promotional opportunities.
Earlier this year, On-Link raised $10 million in its second round of venture financing. Berkeley International Capital Corp. of San Francisco led the Series B round with a $7M investment. Existing investors Sierra Ventures and Stanford University returned at pro rata. Since its incorporation in 1995, On-Link has raised approximately $17 million in venture financing.
“The Web offers a variety of different platforms, and if you can automate the customer through the buying cycle you can shorten the sales cycle,” said Chief Executive Buck French. “Rainmaker is a scalable application that is designed with specific capabilities that meet a product’s specific needs.”
Proceeds from the investment will be targeted toward sales and marketing. French said the company will hire 50 new employees in the next 12 months and is in the process of choosing an advertising agency. On-Link’s customers include Internet retailers, Amdahl and Snap-on.
On-Link’s primary competition comes from configurator companies that repurpose their sales software for the Internet. French said that On-Link differs because its software is designed to evolve with the Internet as video and audio streaming further infiltrate the medium.
French added that the company may raise a mezzanine round of financing early next year in preparation for an initial public offering in the next 12 to 18 months.
If you do not receive this within five minutes, please try and sign in again. If the problem persists, please
email: