Quikly loses a K, adds to team in M@dison Building

Quikly is sliming down its name as it grows its business in the M@dison Building and pivoting its business model.

Shawn Geller moved the Internet marketing startup from Philadelphia to downtown Detroit last year after scoring an investment from Detroit Venture Partners. The 1-year-old company has since landed another seed capital round (a $900,000 Series AA from Detroit Venture Partners and Penstro Ventures) and grown its team to seven employees and two summer interns. It is also looking to move into its own office in the near future to help accommodate its growth.

"We have been able to find awesome talent," Geller says. "We just brought on a senior person who just left Compuware."

Quikly also slimmed down its name by dropping the extra "k" (it was originally Quikkly) and expanded its team by adding Mark Ellis, North American vice president of ad sales for Yahoo and a Grosse Pointe resident, as an advisor. Quikly also has expanded its customer base to include the likes of Moosejaw, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Detroit Pistons. Quikly's software helped the two professional basketball teams up their ticket sales and attendance last season.

Quikly's work with outdoor retailer Moosejaw represented a pivot in the start-up business plan. Quikly's software started out with the idea of helping brands harness their customers' motivations, such as getting the people who stand in line in front of stores on Black Friday to take advantage of similar deals online with the same vigor. Since then it has switched to helping brands attract new customers with deals.

In Moosejaw's case, Quickly helped the retailer sell $10 giftcards online. About 25 percent of those purchasers were new to Moosejaw. About 25 percent of those new customers came back and spent $155 on non-discounted merchandise. Quikly is now focusing on giving giftcards for $5 to $25 that are only good for a day or two to reward quick-to-resond customers as a way of helping brands grow their reach.

"It's a great way to bring in new customers," Geller says.

Source: Shawn Geller, CEO of Quikly
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.