Penny Black, the UK tech company using innovative marketing techniques to make e-commerce packages more rewarding and personalised, has received an additional £1.5m in seed funding from AGFA and VC investor, ninepointfive.
Both investment funds were triggered by the partnerships and wins across the UK and Europe, with the business having shown steady month-on-month growth and attracted a number of new customers. These include sustainable toothbrush retailer SURI, gin brand Warner’s Distillery and health supplements retailer Zooki. Retailers and third-party logistics centres (3PLs) have been attracted to the easy-to-use marketing technology to help differentiate themselves from competitors.
“The moment consumers open their order will be an opportunity for brands to entice and retain consumers, helping them drive more revenue from existing customers,” says Douglas Franklin, CEO, Penny Black. “Our software connects e-commerce stores, marketing tools, warehouse management systems and fulfilment centres, making sure brands can bring in customer data and create hyper-personalised experiences and printed material that delights customers the moment they open purchases.”
Penny Black’s marketing SaaS tool for e-commerce brands is already being deployed across Europe by global fulfilment providers like Radial, Elanders, I-Fulfilment and Schroeders.
“3PL companies currently struggle to personalise e-commerce packages and can’t do much beyond mass-printed, one-design, gift notes thrown inside. Our offering helps automate a revenue-boosting process for on-demand, beautifully-designed printouts, specifically geared towards each customer, location, product or package,” Franklin explains.
Recent trials of Penny Black’s solution showed that retailers saw a measurable uplift in online sales after running personalisation campaigns. The toothbrush retailer, SURI, used Penny Black inserts to drive customer referrals and saw referral share rates up to 30%, driving more customers to discover the brand for the first time. Other brands managed to equate up to an additional £2.20 in revenue per insert sent.
“As a young direct-to-consumer brand, enhancing our unboxing experience is a crucial growth opportunity for us. With Penny Black’s platform, we’re already seeing some brilliant results and delighting our customers. The integration with our 3PL was super simple, the personalisation process is intuitive, and with regular testing and iterating, Penny Black has helped us unlock tremendous value through this channel,” says Gyve Safavi, Co-Founder and CEO, SURI.
