- Leading Event Success Platform Bizzabo announced it has raised $138 million in Series E funding
Leading Event Success Platform Bizzabo announced it has raised $138 million in Series E funding. This round of funding was led by Insight Partners with participation from previous investors Viola Growth, Next47, and OurCrowd. Bizzabo will be using the investment to meet surging demand for its platform globally and expand its category-leading capabilities as COVID-19 reshapes the future of the professional events industry. And with the funding round, Bizzabo sets a new precedent for the largest private investment in an event technology platform.
Without in-person events, organizations have turned to virtual conferences and trade shows to connect with customers and grow their business. And with that, virtual events have enabled organizers to safely reach a wide audience, ensure event ROI, and deliver valuable data points to shape future strategies.
Given the benefits — even with a COVID-19 vaccine imminent — virtual events aren’t going away anytime soon. Looking forward, events that combine in-person experiences with digital components will become the new normal.
Bizzabo’s event success platform empowers organizations to manage, measure, and grow professional events across the globe and in any format: virtual, in-person, or hybrid. And in the past year, Bizzabo has seen revenue explode over 100%.
This is powered through a substantial shift upmarket in 2020 with a significant portion of its customer base coming from the enterprise segment. And Bizzabo has powered events for the world’s leading Fortune 100 in eCommerce, technology, education, and media. Plus Bizzabo’s Event Success Platform is used to support hybrid, virtual, and in-person professional events for enterprise and mid-market organizations across industries and verticals.
In order to meet global demand for its platform, Bizzabo will use its investment to build a comprehensive technology that successfully integrates the experiences of virtual and in-person — for both organizers and attendees. And the company will also expand its go-to-market operations and triple its engineering, product, and experience teams with the opening of two new offices in Europe in the first half of 2021. Plus Bizzabo is looking to hire over a hundred new employees globally in 2021.
KEY QUOTES:
“The future of professional events isn’t virtual-only. Our data shows very clearly that while virtual events have major benefits, attendees and businesses want to get back to live events. To stay relevant, marketers and event organizers will need to implement a hybrid strategy that blends together the best parts of virtual and in-person experiences.”
“Our platform has seen unprecedented demand this year. Compared to the year prior, the number of events organized through us has grown 65 percent. Additionally, the number of attendees registering for events with Bizzabo has grown 500 percent, while overall usage is up 150x. With a vaccine likely and more hybrid events in the future, we anticipate even greater growth. Bizzabo has been the category leader, experiencing hyper-growth both pre-pandemic and during the virtual transition, we are excited to continue to lead the market forward by doubling down on product, technology, and user experience, to help organizations unlock the power of hybrid experiences.”
“This investment, led by ScaleUp software investor Insight Partners, is a testament to how Bizzabo is leading the charge in the future of event technology. Events have changed overnight and event technology needs to move as quickly.”
— Eran Ben-Shushan, CEO & Co-Founder of Bizzabo
“COVID-19 has permanently transformed the professional events category. Bizzabo’s impressive growth and momentum began pre-pandemic and accelerated during it as they launched the industry’s first end-to-end event technology solution. Their pedigree in both in-person and virtual events and their impressive execution capabilities have them well-positioned to lead this rapidly evolving space. We are excited to partner with their leadership team and to support them in this new phase of growth.”
— Matt Gatto, a Managing Director at Insight Partners, who will join the Bizzabo board of directors
