Salesforce.com Acquires Assistly for $50M

Meg Rayford September 21, 2011 Tweet

Customer service and social CRM provider Assistly announced today that it has been acquired by Salesforce.com, the enterprise cloud computing company that is leading the shift to the social enterprise.

Assistly helps businesses wrangle customer conversations into a tidy list so support staff can respond quickly to improve customer service. The platform provides users with access to customer histories and even social media conversations about their business. Assistly also provides metrics for response time, service levels, interaction volume by channel and more.

“We will continue to add features and capabilities for your benefit, but at a faster rate using the resources of Salesforce.com,” said Assistly CEO and co-founder Alex Bard today on the company’s blog. “Salesforce.com is committed to Assistly’s success and your success. I assure you that Assistly will maintain its focus on helping companies like yours deliver awesomely responsive customer service.”

More than 17,000 companies use Salesforce’s service cloud to connect with customers, and the purchase of Assistly will enable Salesforce to tap into a market that includes millions of small and emerging businesses looking for cloud-based sales management software.

Salesforce paid $50M for Assistly in the all-cash deal. The two companies teamed up before when Salesforce invested in Assistly, and again, when Assistly launched an app that allows for two-way integration with Salesforce.

At Tech Cocktail, we’ve been watching Assistly grow and evolve since its launch in early 2010. Our readers may remember our coverage back in July, when the company released its product update, Assistly 2.0. We’ll be eager to see how this new partnership enhances Assistly’s service offerings.