by Herman Manson (@marklives) Magnetic, the South African marketing technology firm known for its agency-workflow software, has been acquired by Silversoft, a South African enterprise software and professional services firm. Magnetic, which services over 200 clients across South Africa, the UK and the US, was launched in Cape Town and is still headquartered there.
“What Magnetic has achieved in terms of client success, depth of software and market share is amazing and truly a South African success story,” says Jacques du Buisson, Silversoft managing director. “We feel they will play a key role in our drive to deliver people- and project-centric firms best-in-class solutions, and help us accelerate our momentum in the agency industry.”
We speak with Daniel Marcus, who becomes a director of Silversoft while still remaining on as CEO of Magnetic.
Why was the time right to sell Magnetic and how will it integrate with Silversoft?
Daniel Marcus: Magnetic has done well to capture a large market share in South Africa. Silversoft is a well-established firm introducing a large international leader in the agency space via Deltek WorkBook. While we compete well against the likes of WorkBook with the smaller agencies, we felt we needed to expand into the larger networks and engaged with Silversoft to assess if we could potentially align our businesses. This would be in line with our strategy to offer best-in-class product to our client base without over-developing or complicating our current offering, while forming part of a larger portfolio of products for the agency market.
From a timing perspective, Silversoft approached us as they were in the process of launching their agency business. We felt this was ideal timing to combine forces, given the resources they bring to market, plus our local expertise and track record. We had now built the business to a scale that made sense to exit in this manner specifically. This is also why our staff and leadership are staying on to drive the agency unit of Silversoft.
How does Magnetic compliment Silversoft’s current agency offering?
DM: As per the above, Silversoft see our firm as a key driver in its agency market strategy and we will be spearheading that market and offering in its entirely for Silversoft.
What are the opportunities unlocked through this deal?
DM: Our combined technology platforms will give us the best technology on the market, an excellent client-services team, and [a] development skills set that will provide for further innovation in this space. We will also introduce complimentary solutions in the Deltek product family such as ConceptShare (online proofing for marketing and creative teams), which will provide our clients with better solutions to streamline their businesses.
What are your objectives for the new creative software solutions business unit within Silversoft?
DM: For now, it’s business as usual in terms of ensuring our clients and prospects get the best technology and services to deliver the best work they can. Of course, we intend on driving strong growth in the agency space in South Africa and are currently engaged with several local agencies. Magnetic’s development team, headed by founder and CTO, Korak Kuhnert, will certainly drive innovation in the firm and we have already started to conceptualise potential game-changing technology in future releases.
How long has the deal been in the making, and how did it come about?
DM: Silversoft had been following [us] for many years and decided to approach our firm when they ventured into the agency space with Deltek Workbook. Jacques and I immediately saw the possibilities and the rest is history.
Herman Manson (@marklives) is the founder and editor of MarkLives.com.
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