Salesloft Raises $100M, Valued at $1.1B - Atlanta Tech News

The COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting need for social distancing to limit the virus’s transmission, has led many individuals to work from home. Increasingly, businesses and professionals anticipate this could result in a lasting transition towards remote, distributed, and virtual work models. In response to this growing demand, a company specializing in tools to assist salespeople with this shift – through the implementation of digital sales strategies – has secured a significant funding round for expansion.

SalesLoft, a sales platform headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, delivers AI-powered solutions designed to facilitate a virtual sales process. These tools support salespeople in identifying and following up with potential customers, provide virtual coaching to enhance their sales techniques, and offer assistance throughout the post-sale customer journey. The company has recently completed a $100 million funding round.

Kyle Porter, the company’s co-founder and CEO, confirmed to TechCrunch that SalesLoft is now valued at $1.1 billion post-money, representing a considerable increase from its previous valuation. Prior to the global health crisis, in April 2019, the company had raised a Series D round of $70 million at a valuation of approximately $600 million (a figure verified by sources familiar with the company at that time).

This latest funding round was led by Owl Rock Capital, with participation from existing investors including Insight Partners, HarbourVest, and Emergence Capital – a venture capital firm specializing in enterprise startups, and an early investor in companies like Zoom.

To date, SalesLoft has raised a total of $245 million, a substantial amount for any startup. It is also noteworthy that the company is based in Atlanta, Georgia, a state currently attracting attention due to a closely contested U.S. Senate runoff election.

The company has experienced consistent growth in recent years, establishing itself as a key player in the sales engagement sector: providing tools to help salespeople improve their interactions with clients (and potential clients). These tools can include real-time monitoring for coaching purposes, suggestions for relevant content to strengthen presentations, and fundamental software for managing records and communications.

Even before the pandemic, this area of enterprise software was experiencing significant growth, with both in-person and online/digital salespeople utilizing these products to gain a competitive advantage. However, the primary focus had been on inside sales – B2B sales involving larger transactions. Porter characterized the impact of COVID-19 as a “tailwind” that accelerated this existing trend.

“The effects of COVID-19 have been a tailwind due to the rise of digital selling,” he stated. “All salespeople immediately transitioned to remote work. However, this change is now permanent. Inside sales have effectively become all sales. Whether dealing with mid-funnel opportunities, upgrades, or renewals, we are solidifying our position as the leading engagement platform, as all sales activities are becoming digital and salespeople are achieving greater success.”

He further noted that SalesLoft’s own sales cycle has improved by 40% since the start of the pandemic, which he attributes to the “urgency and necessity” for tools like those his company develops.

The company has also observed a shift in its customer base. Originally focused on the mid-market, SalesLoft is now serving a growing number of larger enterprises. Customers include Google, LinkedIn (which is an investor in SalesLoft and has a strategic partnership with the company), Cisco, Dell, and IBM. Porter also mentioned that more mainstream businesses, such as Cargill, 3M, and Standard & Poor, are increasingly becoming clients.

This expansion is driving the startup to develop more comprehensive solutions, extending beyond its core offering of “sales engagement.” SalesLoft competes with numerous companies, including Clari, Chorus.ai, Gong, Conversica, Afiniti, and Outreach, as well as major players like Salesforce. Outreach, in particular, secured a significant funding round during the pandemic, raising capital at a $1.3 billion valuation in June of last year, demonstrating the broader market demand. Porter emphasizes that SalesLoft’s key advantage lies in its ability to provide customers with an increasingly complete, end-to-end sales solution, reducing the need for multiple vendors.