Irvine-based Brand Affinity Technologies Inc., an advertising startup that looks to hook up celebrities and athletes with online advertisers, has come up with software for tracking celebrities and athletes online.
The software is designed for newspaper and other media sites and brings up icons around a photo that users can click on to get more information about, say, LeBron James.
“We’re trying to fill a hyper-demand for celebrity-type content,” said Ryan Steelberg, chief executive at Brand Affinity.
The software, dubbed netBat, can be used to track any celebrity. Brand Affinity’s hope is that the software will end up promoting its stable of athletes and celebrities looking for endorsement work.
The goal for website operators is to sell more ad time and get more usage out of their site, he said.
“The idea behind netBat was simply the solution of giving more information to users who would normally leave the website to seek the same information,” Steelberg said.
Steelberg started Brand Affinity in 2007 with brother Chad Steelberg. The company expects to double its sales this year to about $30 million.
In August, Brand Affinity raised $20 million in a third venture funding round led by Corona del Mar’s Miramar Venture Partners.
The Steelbergs’ Newport Coast Invest-ments and fellow existing investors RimLight Capital, Fulcrum Venture Capital, and the Netherland’s Ad Pepper Media International NV also took part in the round.
Along with Miramar, another new investor was the Ueberroth family, which invested via its CGI Opportunity Fund.
Peter Ueberroth is managing director of Newport Beach-based private equity firm Contrarian Group Inc.
The Steelbergs have a long relationship with the Ueberroth family thanks to a friendship with Joe Ueberroth, son of Peter Ueberroth.
“We have a personal relationship with the family that I think will play strongly into our corporate stewardship,” Ryan Steelberg said.
Miramar’s Managing Director Bruce Hallett is set to join Brand Affinity’s board of directors.
“Our approach at Miramar is to figure out the best way to assist the team and fill in that way,” Hallett said. “The great thing about investing locally is it will be easier to meet at Peet’s or the Galley over breakfast and talk about the company.”
Brand Affinity has raised $26 million in funding to date.
IPad Marketing
Huntington Beach-based Sullen Clothing Inc. has an iPad app for buyers at apparel tradeshows.
The application developed for use at the ASR and Magic tradeshows allowed buyers and others to navigate pages of Sullen’s catalog of men’s and women’s lines by season.
The app also included images of Sullen athletes, models, musicians and well as various video clips from Sullen TV, the company’s website devoted to art and music.
“From the confirming response we got from buyers and our peers at both recent tradeshows, it is safe to say Sullen is the first action or lifestyle appeal brand to leverage this technology,” said Jeremy Hanna, director of marketing at Sullen.
Sullen has built a buzz with its artwork on T-shirts, hats and sweatshirts, many featuring menacing skulls or the brand’s name in graffiti-style letters.
“The Sullen Clothing catalog application for the iPad demonstrates how committed our team is to pushing the envelope from every angle,” said Ryan Smith, cofounder and creative director at Sullen.
The concept originated from the clothier’s work on its Sullen TV, an online channel featuring art, music and athlete programming.
The app was developed by Smith and Sullen’s Creative/IT team.
“The technology allowed our sales reps to better interact with our buyers and allowed us to show the brand story in a way that immediately provides a gateway to our culture and marketing profile,” Hanna said.
Sullen’s clothes are sold in boutiques, tattoo parlors and in some larger chains, such as Anaheim-based Pacific Sunwear of California Inc.’s PacSun.
The company, which started out of a Huntington Beach apartment in 2001, was one of the first Orange County brands to turn tattoos into T-shirts.
Others also have looked to the iPad for marketing.
Earlier this year, Fountain Valley-based Hyundai Motor America Inc. gave away a free iPad with the purchase of its luxury Equus sedan, with the owner’s manual loaded on the device.
Bits and Pieces
Newport Beach-based Pacific Investment Management Co. debuted a redeveloped website this month. The bond fund manager hired the Irvine office of Chicago-based digital ad shop Acquity Group to design the website. The makeover marks a yearlong effort after Pimco polled 800 website visitors. The site features a section that aggregates information on what Pimco calls the “the new normal” to describe the recovering economy and an interactive timeline of the company’s history. Pimco receives about 900,000 unique visits every quarter … Anaheim-based Fairmont Private Schools hired Oregon’s Tbd to handle the launch of the school’s latest division, Thesys. Thesys is a hybrid program that supports schools using Web-based curriculum, designed by educators to complement classroom learning. Thesys plans to partner with schools and school districts to offer schools access to online teaching. Tbd developed the name, logo and tagline. A direct mail campaign and blog are expected for the fall.
