Episerver Acquires Insite Software

Episerver, a platform well known for its strong content management technology tied to its digital experience platform scored a groundbreaking B2B deal on 16/12/2019 when it acquired Insite Software. Insite leverages a deep base in B2B-focused digital commerce technology to better serve a fast-growing market amongst the manufactures as well as the distributors. The teaming up of B2B ecommerce functionality with a “digital experience” platform will help both the companies sharpen their focus to serve a growing market for B2B ecommerce technology.

Adam Berger, chairman of Episerver & managing director; Insight Partners emphasized that the market is accelerating quickly for manufacturers as well as distributors.

He further added that their company saw a great opportunity to deliver a greater value to the underserved trillion-dollar B2B ecommerce market. Episerver has more than 8,000 customers & is a global provider of web content management, ecommerce & related software services. The acquisition of Insite will allow the Episerver to expand its reach as a technology provider in the burgeoning & digitized business-to-business marketplace. Insite comparatively is a smaller company whose core focus is to provide its customers with B2B ecommerce & related technologies & services to manufacturers as well as the distributors.  For Insite, the acquisition opens doors to Episerver’s global customer base. This happens to be a content management system that is highly rated for its functionality by technological as well as the research firms. Also, Insite will have the access to the deeper financial roots that Episerver has. Episerver was acquired last year by private equity firm called Insight Venture Partners. The web technology vendors commerce tools & Content stack are also owned by the Insight Venture Partners.

Steve Shaffer, CEO of Insite Software states: “For us, it’s all about scale.”

He further added that he believed that the market is accelerating quickly for the manufacturers as well as the distributors. He also added that joining Episerver will help their company expand the scope of their mission by offering a more enriched suite of products amidst a rapidly dynamic market. The acquisition of Insite follows Episerver’s recent hiring of Alex Atzberger as CEO, who happens to be a veteran in the ecommerce industry.  Alex is being said to have brought a culture of development & digital commerce technology to the company. Atzberger moved to Episerver after having worked with the business software giant SAP SE, where he was employed as the president of SAP’s Customer Experience division. Also, amongst Episerver’s recent acquisitions is Indio, a content personalization & analytics platform that has been designed to help businesses match their best inventory to their customers’ preferences.

Why Episerver’s Acquisition of Insite is a critical move toward ‘robust’ B2B functionality?

According to several industry analysts under the new organizational structure that has emerged after the acquisition, both the companies will be able to integrate their technologies. Both the technologies are based on the commonly deployed Microsot.Net web development technology – and expertise to produce personalized digital commerce experiences. Episerver helps companies deploy descriptive & educational online content that helps them tell stories about their products and services. Insite on the other hand has focused on B2B functionalities with features such as price quotes & access to past invoices to enhance the online shopping cart experiences of the customers.

According to Jason Diagler, senior director & analyst covering B2B ecommerce at technology research & advisory firm Gartner Inc. the acquisition will help Episerver grow in B2B manufacturing & distribution space – Insite’s primary areas of focuses & will also help them develop & provide robust B2B functionality.

He also added that the commerce platform by Insite will benefit from Episerver’s “stronger content management system, digital experience platform, personalization and customer data management capabilities.” According to Jordan, Jewell, research manager for digital commerce & enterprise applications at research & advisory firm IDC, the acquisition raises the B2B level of functionality for Episerver. He emphasized that the acquisition will equip both Episerver & Insite with stronger B2B product. Andy Hoar, CEO of consulting firm paradigm B2B puts the acquisition as a phenomenon for Episerver that will allow it to augment its industry-leading CMS-driven ecommerce solutions, enhanced by the well-orchestrated B2B cart & transaction capabilities from Insite. Moreover, the InsiteAnalytics online dashboard application tool from Insite software suite shows sellers how particular products are being sold by the sales representatives as well as by the self-serving ecommerce platforms. Another popular tool is InsitePortfolio for Sales & Services, which provides online access to digital product catalogs and related sales, as well as marketing educational content. Some industry experts are however of the view that both Episerver & Insite need to continue developing their cloud-based ecommerce technology to enable faster & more efficient software upgrades.

Justin Anovick, Chief Product Officer at Episerve, in an interview to Digital Commerce 360 B2B stated that they’re a growing company full of ideas & have actually a lot more things to do than they have people.

However, Episerver hasn’t disclosed what it is paying for Insite whose executives & employees are expected to join Episerver. The development & release of applications that integrate the technologies of Episerver & Insite will take several months. According to Justin the first integration will be rolled off within four to six months.

An Integration Focused on Manufacturers & Distributors

Following the acquisition, Insite will be known by the name of “Insite, an Expiserver Company”.  However, the InsiteCommerce technology brand of Insite will remain intact for short term & its name can be potentially changed in the near future. Episerver’s base of more than 8,000 customers includes several B2B companies such as Kimball Midwest, D’Addario & Company & Cleaner’s Supply, and merchants such as Mud Pie, Bealls, Murdoch’s Ranch & Home Supply. Amongst the Insite’s customers are manufacturers Thule Inc., Jones Healthcare & Royal Canin & distributors AmeriPride Services Inc. and Geriatric Medical & Surgical Supply Co.

About Episerver:

Episerver connects digital commerce & digital marketing to help organizations create unique digital experiences for their customers. The company primarily operates in the Computer Software niche was founded in the year 1994 & is headquartered at Nashua, NH. The company provides measurable business solutions – the results can be tracked & optimized. The Digital Experience Cloud by Episerver combines content, commerce, & predictive analytics with multi-channel marketing. The company provides 360-degree online business solutions that range from lead generation to data-intelligent optimization solutions to boost conversions & repeat business. The ease of use of the clients is a major concern for the company that specializes in digital experience cloud, E-commerce Platform, Digital Marketing Platform, Web Content Management, Social Media Marketing & an array of other solutions aimed at improving personalization & scaling up the customer experience management.

About Insite Software:

Insite Software believes that B2B eCommerce is more than just a website.  The company headquartered at Minneapolis, MN was founded in the year 2004 & specializes in crafting B2b eCommerce Strategy, Sales Enablement, eCommerce for Distributors, eCommerce for Manufacturers, B2B and B2C eCommerce, Analytics and Digital Transformation. They provide digital eCommerce solutions to handle the complexities of manufacturing & distribution. The company has a suite of products namely InsiteCommerce, InsitePIM, InsitePortfolio, InsiteCommerce, Mobile App & InsiteAnalytics to power over a million customer experiences for eCommerce.