An Amazon-focused tech firm has hired a vet of the e-commerce giant to build advertising tools for sellers
- Amazon tech firm Teikametrics has hired ex-Amazon ad exec Srini Guddanti as its first chief product officer.
- Teikametrics is one of a handful of tech firms that pitches Amazon sellers so-called deep data, like the cost of goods sold.
- Teikametrics CEO Alasdair McLean-Foreman said Guddanti's insider expertise would help sellers grow their revenue on Amazon.
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As Amazon's ad business continues to grow, a cottage industry of tech firms have popped up that promise sellers proprietary data and insights into the platform that Amazon doesn't provide.
Boston-based Teikametrics is one such firm and has hired former Amazon Advertising exec Srini Guddanti as its first chief product officer. Teikametrics sells software that helps sellers and agencies manage their ad spend and listings. The company also helps sellers with branding and figuring out which platforms to sell on.
Guddanti worked at Amazon for 14 years, mostly in finance roles across Amazon's retail, Prime and advertising business. Since 2016, he worked in a director role on Amazon Advertising and oversaw Sponsored Ads, one of Amazon's bigger ad formats.
Guddanti said he left Amazon because he was interested in using his background to build something new. He will work on Teikametrics' data science and machine learning tools, create new products for Amazon's newer ad formats, and build out a reporting tool for Amazon's app.
Teikametrics CEO Alasdair McLean-Foreman said he met Guddanti three years ago and that he brings insider expertise that will help sellers grow their revenue on Amazon.
He said that Amazon sellers face challenges like handling logistics, pricing and advertising. For example, sellers need help figuring out how to distribute ad spend across formats, he said. Teikametrics says that its data includes seller-specific stats that Amazon does not have, like the cost of goods sold and data about business objectives. Its clients include Clarks, Razer, and Mark Cuban Companies.
"If you're a seller, a brand or even a bigger company, you are flying blind," he said. "In a closed loop, you need to understand inventory and performance to understand advertising, and that is something that Amazon cannot do themselves."
The e-commerce firm is growing as Amazon adds more sellers
For its part, Amazon has increasingly recognized advertisers' need for third parties to dig into data. In August, it launched an online directory tool listing about 60 vetted agencies and tools for advertisers to work with. Facebook, Google, Twitter and Pinterest also have programs with advertising and marketing companies that allow third parties to sell ad space and develop strategies for advertisers.
For example, Sellics is another Amazon-specific firm that recently raised $10 million to grow its partnerships with agencies.
Seven-year-old Teikametrics has raised $10 million in Series A funding. McLean-Foreman said an estimated two million companies sell goods on Amazon. As that number grows, Teikametrics is opening a 10-person office in Seattle to be closer to Amazon's headquarters. The firm currently has 95 employees.
Amazon made $3.59 billion in "other revenue" during the third quarter, most of which is advertising. Research firm eMarketer projects Amazon to make $11.33 billion from advertising this year.