Image credits: Willow
Social media has undoubtedly transformed the interaction and communication of individuals globally. In fact, it has become a daily practice in a lot of people’s lives. Besides being a platform for entertainment, social media acts as a crucial medium for marketing strategies in business.
Currently, the majority of SMBs use social media to build their brand online. Social media platforms are a versatile marketing tool and inexpensive. At present, there are various social platforms, but not all are created equal. So it is imperative to find out the perfect one to effectively connect with one’s target audience, particularly in business.
Recently, the winners of the 2021 Future Hamburg Award were announced.
Secured €1.5M
Meet Willow (Previously Contento), a Belgian social media platform for SMBs and entrepreneurs. Recently, the Ghent-based company has raised €1.5M from SmartFin, PMV, Alex Brabers, Marc Vanderheyden, and imec.istart. To date, the company has raised around €3M.
Ludwig Dumont, Willow CEO: “We’re really happy to be welcoming tier-A company backers SmartFin and PMV as new shareholders in Willow. Over the course of the last 3 years, we achieved a genuine intimate market knowledge and we developed a number of fundamental processes on which we can now further capitalise. This new round of funding nicely fits within our growth trajectory.”
Fund utilisation
The latest funding round will help the startup to grow and scale the company internationally. It includes hiring new talents to join the Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, and Product teams, strengthening Willow’s brand awareness and further building out the company’s product portfolio.
Making social media accessible to SMBs
Founded in 2018, Willow aims to make social media marketing accessible to SMBs. The company offers a unique blend of AI-based social media content tools and a coaching service — both human and digital – by a social media expert.
Social Media Health Score
Further, the company also provides users with metrics — Willow’s Social Media Health Score. According to the company, customers scores will be based on three crucial factors:
- Consistency: posting regularly and staying on-message week-in and week-out.
- Content Mix: posting a balanced variety of content types so the audience stays interested.
- Involving employees: helping employees to engage, share content, and post regularly on their socials.
The score helps users to use Willow’s smart software more and more independently. On the other hand, the Willow tool has an intelligence that reports to the customer. Next to this, a team of social media coaches further assists.
“Most of our current clients really appreciate their monthly check-ins with our coaches,” says COO Steven Van Kerkhoven. “Our experts help to create the right structure, improve their content mix and advise how to engage and work with employees for greater social media engagement.”
