The first buys the biggest net he can find and drags it over miles of ocean. He catches a few tuna, some things that can’t be eaten and a lot of debris. He keeps the few Tuna, chucks everything else back and throws the net in again, and again, and again.
Eventually, his staff and fuel costs outweigh his sales, and he goes bust.
The second one buys a small tuna net, starts his boat and drives to where he knows a school of tuna is. He casts his net and encircles the school of tuna. Two hours later he has a boat full of fish and his day is done.
Things have changed in the ecommerce world. It is no longer easy or cheap to target your customers online. Everyone is facing sharply rising costs to acquire customers. The big guys can open their wallets, but that’s not an option for most people. If only there was a way for you to find where the “fish” are.
Welcome to Herdify.
We use your ecommerce sales data to identify offline communities where people are talking about you and buying your products. We turn that information into campaign targeting for any ad platform which will intensify that word-of-mouth activity. Word-of-mouth converts five times faster than other targeting methods, so you’ll get a far greater return for your ad budget.
The idea belongs to our founder Tom Ridges, a former technology strategist from Microsoft, and has been 15 years in the making. Most of that time has been spent mastering artificial intelligence and machine learning, and working with leading data scientists, including Dr Tim Drye, who sits on the board of the Office for National Statistics.
We’ve helped brands like Ladbrokes, Xbox and Eurocamp to predict where their best offline word-of-mouth customers are, without increasing their budget, and we’re ready to help you.
We are Herdify.
What does that mean? Simply, we amplify herd behaviour to influence more sales for you.
What inspired our name?
Herd: to act as if in a herd; to mimic actions of a leader or each other apparently without thought.
+
Heard: to gain information; to listen to with attention.
+
Amplify: to increase volume and amplitude; to make something more marked or intense.
Our mission: to influence and amplify herd behaviour, driving more sales for you.
CEO
My fascination with human influence started after I got off the metro in Paris with my fiancé (now wife!) and was looking for something good to eat (I didn’t want to waste a meal slot on a bad one!).
When I looked at all the review apps, there were what felt like 100 restaurants with five stars in my immediate vicinity. Confusion entailed. This started me on a windy path on recommendations, word-of-mouth and influence that culminated in me founding Herdify.
The best word-of-mouth recommendation I’ve ever received: Funnily enough, it’s food related from the same trip. We were told about a little restaurant and arrived early as advised. It looked run down and was in a weird neighbourhood, but as locals in Porsches and other luxury cars started arriving, we thought we might be in for something special. We were. It still sits as one of my top five meals in my life.
When I’m not Herdify-ing I’m fathering, mountain biking, windsurfing or on the BBQ, generally trying to spend as much time outside as possible.
Lead data scientist
Joining Herdify was the culmination of a decade spent researching across academia and industry. I’ve always been fascinated by why people behave the way they do and the influence we have on one-another.
This first drove me to research at the University of Bristol where my publications investigated topics such as what gives city neighbourhoods their distinctive vibes, the spread of diseases like COVID-19 and novel algorithms for the Internet of Things.
More recently I delivered data-science projects helping large financial institutions better understand their customers’ wants and needs.
At Herdify it’s my job to research and develop our models that sit behind the product, and the methods that ensure businesses can apply the outputs easily in your marketing.
The best word-of-mouth recommendation I’ve ever received: That it was worth giving Tinder a try. The second date was with the woman I married eight years later!
When I’m not Herdify-ing you’ll find me on my bike, struggling up a hill around Bristol (you can’t avoid them) or enjoying a well-earned pint at the top. At home I’ll be trying out something new in the kitchen, or cracking on with renovating our new house.
CMO & customer advocate
I joined Herdify from the other side of the fence, having spent 15 years in marketing for some of the world’s most-loved travel and hospitality businesses, including Travelzoo, BBC Studios and Red Carnation Hotels.
I was a client of Herdify and really believed in what the team were creating, so I decided to hop over the fence to join the MarTech world.
It’s my job to be the voice of our customers at all times, and I feel privileged to be able to champion the customer experience for fellow marketers. I hope to be able to say hello in person at a future event, or to welcome you as a guest on our podcast!
The best word-of-mouth recommendation I’ve ever received: That there’s a thriving market for second-hand wedding dresses, and it was ok to sell mine on… I definitely followed the herd (a few of my friends) on that one, and went on an epic month-long honeymoon to South America with the profits.
When I’m not Herdify-ing you’ll find me early-morning swimming, escaping with my Kindle and a glass of wine, cooking spicy food, trying to keep up with my toddler or planning my next big travel adventure.
Business development manager
I Joined Herdify after spending over a decade in Business Development, always providing Marketing and MarTech solutions, as well as review services for Trustpilot.
I’ve always loved being part of a solution that helps brands on their growth journey to ultimately reach their goals – which meant I was so excited to understand the role word-of-mouth plays for brands, as it always seemed to be the hidden piece of the marketing puzzle.
My role here is to hold the hands of our customers through that journey and help you maximise your growth, by understanding and targeting your brand’s hidden herd!
The best word-of-mouth recommendation I’ve ever received: Where I could buy new rugby boots with big discounts – I’ve saved a fortune over the years and it’s something I always tell my teammates about too.
When I’m not Herdify-ing you’ll find me playing rugby… barely now I’m over the hill (in playing years!), or trying to master my cooking skills. Failing that, the pub’s a safe bet!
Find out where your real-world communities exist
© Herdify Ltd, 2023. All Rights Reserved
In this free whitepaper, you’ll learn: