ChannelNet

ChannelNet was founded in 1985 as the Softad Group. In 1986, the company launched what likely were the first interactive digital marketing campaigns in the world for Ford, GM and BMW.^[1] BMW is still a client today. A typical campaign at that time consisted of a print magazine ad that came with a reply card. People sending in the cards received floppy disks, which contained in-depth information on the company’s cars. In an early campaign for Buick, 12 percent of those returning the cards actually bought cars.^[2] Many of ChannelNet’s first clients from the 1980s and 1990s are still with the company. ChannelNet was behind the creation of Ford Motor Company’s Dealer Connection website in 1995.^[3] SoftAd transitioned from a custom software development company to a multi-channel web-based solutions provider in 1999 when they launched SiteBuilder™.^[4] From there, the company launched kiosks, located in auto dealerships, shopping malls and other busy locations where consumers could search for and find information on cars or other products without having to talk to a salesperson until they wanted to do so.

The company developed a way for its interactive software to recommend products according to customer needs and preferences in 2001. This gave an organization’s sale force the ability to display and maintain online products and service details, deliver rebates, and other incentives based on consumer data.

In 2010, a United States Patent was issued to ChannelNet for its SiteBuilder™ software, a modifiable sales and marketing technology platform. In 2012, the United States Patent office issued another patent for SiteBuilder™ for personalization technologies.

Today, ChannelNet, which employs about 100 people, is known primarily for its internet software as a service and internet-based marketing platform that help large consumer-products corporations integrate their sales channels. Customers include clients from more than 20 different industries. Their automotive clients include BMW, Hyundai, Ally Financial, Volkswagen Credit, Audi Financial Services, Volvo, Mitsubishi Motors, Kia Finance and Southeast U.S.Toyota. Home improvement clients are Benjamin Moore and Hunter Douglas among others. Over the years, clients have included Apple, IBM, American Express, Coca Cola, Harley Davidson, Hallmark and Knight Ridder.^[5] Typically, ChannelNet works with a company to create a corporate-products website where consumers can find information on all of a company’s products.^[6] Within the site, consumers can also find links to local retailers where they can search for specific inventory and schedule appointments with sales professionals. Individual retailers, such as auto dealers and Hunter Douglas outlet owners, are also able to use ChannelNet’s product suite to create websites that share a common look and feel with the main corporate site without looking just like another dealer’s website.^[7] In 2013, ChannelNet launched a product that enables automobile financing companies to create individualized websites for each lease customer.^[8] On these sites, someone who has leased a car can check to see how their actual mileage compares to the terms of the lease, make payments, determine their best lease-end strategy, or arrange to lease a new car when the initial lease ends.^[9] ChannelNet has both grown and shrunk with the economic winds, growing from just a handful of employees in the mid 1980s to more than 200 by the early 2000s. Today, the closely held firm employs an estimated 100 people with annual sales self-reported in the low tens of millions, down from a peak of around $25 million around the turn of the century.^[10] Founder and majority owner Tompkins has not accepted venture capital, instead choosing to tightly control shares. Alfred Ford, great-grandson of Henry Ford, is among just a few minority owners.^[11] ChannelNet Board members include: Dean Hovey, Rich Crandall, Alfred B. Ford, Sam Imnan III, Kevin Kelly, Peter Tierney, Emory Winship and AJ Wagner.

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