Ina Herlihy, the founder of AddGlow, has set out to revolutionize the e-commerce landscape with the introduction of community-building software designed to be hosted on brands’ own websites. Herlihy believes that e-commerce brands are missing out on organic traffic and potential revenue by relying on third-party community sites such as Reddit and Facebook Groups. As new user acquisition costs soar, brands are increasingly focused on enhancing retention and organic traffic. By establishing an onsite community, brands can achieve these goals while maintaining control over their domain.
Key Takeaway
AddGlow’s innovative community-building software offers e-commerce brands the opportunity to drive organic traffic, enhance customer retention, and foster a sense of belonging among community members, ultimately reshaping the e-commerce landscape.
The Next Big Marketing Channel for E-commerce
According to Herlihy, “Owned community is the next big marketing channel for the $17 trillion e-commerce market.” AddGlow aims to address the limitations of fostering community solely through platforms like Facebook Groups by providing detailed user profiles, enabling brands to own the data and streamline the purchasing process for customers.
Personalized Experience and Seamless Integration
AddGlow’s approach involves collecting data through profile attributes specified by the brand, allowing for personalized homepage content, product descriptions, emails, and SMS. The software seamlessly integrates with a brand’s catalog, enabling community members to tag products and add them to their cart without leaving the community. Additionally, an engagement-based loyalty program allows members to earn points for various actions, further enhancing the community experience.
Early Success and Future Plans
After securing $1.7 million in pre-seed funding, AddGlow is poised to enter its next phase of development. The company’s unique founder, Ina Herlihy, successfully navigated the funding process as a “non-technical solo founder with an idea.” With support from Stellation Capital, Precursor Ventures, and strategic angel investors, AddGlow is now focused on expanding its team and enhancing its functionality to cater to both smaller and larger brands.
