HelloWorld, Merkle Partnership Offers Brands Exceptional Solutions to Build Customer Loyalty

HelloWorld, a Detroit-based digital marketing solutions provider focused on promotion and loyalty solutions, has a new name after it was officially acquired on Wednesday.

Dentsu Aegis Network announced that it acquired HelloWorld and the latter will be rebranded “HelloWorld, A Merkle Company.” Merkle is a subsidiary of Dentsu Aegis Network.

With 370 people and a proprietary technology platform, this acquisition will further scale Merkle’s people-based marketing disciplines, including loyalty solutions, performance media, customer relationship marketing, customer experience, and enterprise technology services.

HelloWorld has developed a differentiated practice that links response-driven consumer promotion with loyalty strategies and program execution. The company operates at the intersection of data, technology, and marketing strategy, enabling marketers to more effectively engage consumers and drive desirable emotional and behavioral response. HelloWorld creates promotional and gamified campaigns to spark interest, loyalty programs to retain and reward, insights-driven communications to continue the brand-consumer conversation, and analytics to optimize marketing execution. Long-standing clients include Coca Cola, Johnson & Johnson, and Microsoft.

HelloWorld was founded in Detroit in 1999 and now has offices in Seattle, Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles.

HelloWorld CEO Peter DeNunzio talked to Loyalty360 about the acquisition.

“Over the past several years, HelloWorld has successfully expanded its loyalty practice,” DeNunzio explained. “By joining forces with Merkle, we add scale, particularly in loyalty technology, but also in strategic consultancy, rigorous analytics, and global reach.”

Adding HelloWorld’s expertise in promotion and loyalty to Merkle’s comprehensive suite of solutions will further scale Merkle’s people-based marketing disciplines, including loyalty solutions, performance media, customer relationship marketing, customer experience, and enterprise technology services, DeNunzio noted.
 
“Merkle has established vertical industry leadership, which aligns with HelloWorld’s client roster, allowing us to better tailor our loyalty solutions to individual client requirements,” DeNunzio said. 
 
DeNunzio said there are no planned structural changes at HelloWorld.

“We will continue to put our team members and clients first,” he explained. “HelloWorld’s leadership will remain the same and the partnership will not impact work at either company. The acquisition allows both organizations to provide a broader and deeper suite of solutions in promotions, customer engagement, loyalty marketing, and creative and technology services that support our clients’ multi-channel loyalty marketing initiatives.” 

What does Merkle bring to the loyalty table that HelloWorld did not have before?

“HelloWorld is excited to tap into Merkle’s global presence and broad expertise in high-value areas such as marketing consultancy, analytics, digital experiences, and software engineering,” DeNunzio said. “Meanwhile, Merkle is eager to leverage HelloWorld’s promotions and loyalty practices, regarded as best-in-class and fuel for continued growth.”

One of HelloWorld’s overarching themes revolves around delivering insight-driven, personalized customer experiences.

“The key is to capture and leverage everything we know about our target audience,” DeNunzio added. “Once we understand who we’re talking to, we blend response-driven promotions with modern platforms and technologies. This gives brands the ability to, not only engage consumers through campaigns that are thoughtful and accessible, but also seamlessly measure, optimize, and collect data. Because both HelloWorld and Merkle aim to assist clients in transforming their marketing through such insight-driven, personalized experiences, this partnership will offer brands exceptional solutions for building consumer loyalty.”

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