How often do you have a content or design vision that you really think will boost your startup’s sales and soon you realize that you can’t execute on this vision because you never learned how to code. It can be an arduous process trying to explain to one of your coders what you want; the idea slowly withering away on the vine. What if you didn’t need to code in order to unabashedly create? The cloud-based platform Ceros makes everything you need to produce interactive content easily accessible, simple and without coding. With prominent clients such as the Dallas Cowboys, Mashable and Red Bull on their roster, Ceros is building significant traction in the content design space.
Today we sit down with serial entrepreneur, Simon Berg, CEO and cofounder, to discuss the recent funding as well as how the easy to use platform can transform your content and design needs.
Who were your investors and how much did you raise?
Series B led by Grotech Ventures with participation from CNF Investments and existing investors including Sigma Prime Ventures, StarVest Partners, Greycroft, and Silicon Valley Bank.
Tell us about your product or service.
Ceros is an interactive content platform that empowers marketers and designers to create rich, engaging content without any coding.
What inspired you to start the company?
At Ceros, we believe that creativity is critical to success in the marketing community. Our product helps unlock that creativity and empowers our customers to create engaging, innovative digital experiences. It’s simple: the more people create, the happier and more inspired we are.
How is it different?
Ceros is the best interactive platform for three simple reasons:
- 100% cloud-based. Our entire platform is in the cloud, which means no software updates, no file sharing, and the ability to make updates in real time.
- Speed. Using Ceros, teams are able to scale interactive content creation in a way that just isn’t possible with traditional development workflows.
- Collaboration. The future of work requires collaboration across teams, borders, and technologies. We enable multiple people to work in a single project at one time and produce amazing content at the pace of modern business.
What market you are targeting and how big is it?
Content marketing will be a $300 billion industry by 2019, according to PQ Media’s Global Content Marketing Forecast 2015 – 2019.
What’s your business model?
We use a typical SaaS pricing model. Additionally, we offer creative and technical services to help brands bring their creative vision to life. These services can be purchased as a retainer or on a per-project basis.
Does your platform do anything to help marketers distribute their content?
Our account managers and content producers act as consultants for clients, helping them develop an optimal distribution plan for each experience tailored to their business and content goals.
What was the funding process like?
Choosing an investor is like choosing a life partner. It’s not necessarily going to be a quick and easy process, but once you’ve developed a relationship with a VC, it’s much easier. We met some great people throughout the process, and are thrilled to be partnering with Grotech and CNF for the first time.
What are the biggest challenges that you faced while raising capital?
Timing. You always want to start the conversation earlier than you think. We’ve learned that waiting until you need money can cause unnecessary stress for all parties.
What factors about your business led your investors to write the check?
As our lead investor Lawson DaVries, General Partner at Grotech Ventures, said, “Ceros is an incredibly sticky interactive design platform experiencing impressive growth. With revolutionary technology, a great team, and content marketing exploding around them, Ceros is in the right place at the right time.”
What are the milestones you plan to achieve in the next six months?
Today’s funding will be used to further product development, expand the platform’s reach, and rapidly scales sales, marketing, and client services.
What advice can you offer companies in New York that do not have a fresh injection of capital in the bank?
You should always be looking for investors. This way, when the time is right, you’ve developed those relationships and are prepared to start the conversation.
Where do you see the company going now over the near term?
We believe in a future where creative tools and platforms like ours are freely available to the creative community. The end goal for all those in the business of building tools and products that create should be to create more. That requires some radical thinking and disruptive business models, and we hope to be pioneers in that space.
What’s your favorite rooftop bar in NYC to unwind?
We tend to unwind here at the Ceros Pub. We don’t have a rooftop (just a fire escape), but we do have ping pong and darts!
