Speek, a local startup dedicated to making conference calls less painful, has figured out what to do with the $6 million it
raised back in March. Today, the company launches Speek for Business, an enterprise version of the conference call platform that takes direct aim at competitors
WebEx,
GoToMeeting and
join.me.
"We built the audio [platform for conference calling first], then the screen sharing," explains Danny Boice, cofounder of Speek. "We're confident that it's better than [WebEx, GoToMeeting and join.me]. We're throwing down the gauntlet."
The enterprise version of Speek will have screen sharing, a tool that individuals who use Speek for enterprise purposes have been asking for. "It's been our highest-demand feature," says Boice. Speek for Business also gives its customers branding ability, including company subdomains on the actual Speek URL, and a choice of colors and links to social media on the company's conference call page.
"With a dial-in only conference line, you're missing an opportunity to get your brand in front of people," Boice says. "That's been a huge selling point. That's resonated [with our clients] as much as screen-sharing [has]."
Speek has already converted Dell, Social Radar, Politico, Morgan Franklin, Heart of America, CrowdRise, Louisville Slugger and nonprofit Meals on Wheels into Speek for Business customers. Boice says the company's price point of $19 per user per month (as compared with a competitor's $50 per user per month) doesn't hurt. "We want to be disruptive," he says.
Speek started with three at Fishbowl Labs at AOL in Dulles, Va., but became too big for that coworking space. Now, the team of 21 has taken up residence at Disruption Corporation in Arlington; an investment from Disruption's Crystal Tech Fund (part of the $6 million Series A round) gives Boice and cofounder and CEO John Bracken and company desk space there. "We plan to stay at Disruption for a while," Boice says.
With the launch of Speek for Business, the company is actively
hiring for sales positions.