Splash, the leader in event marketing automation software, today announced a $7 million Series B round of funding led by Ascent Venture Partners with continued participation from existing investors Spark Capital and Lerer Hippeau Ventures. This most recent round of funding brings the total raised to $14.5 million. Splash will use the influx of new capital to further its software's ability to automate and optimize the event marketing channel.

'Every marketer knows that nothing converts better than an event -- marketers that use Splash know exactly why their events convert and how to optimize that spend for maximum ROI,' said Ben Hindman, Co-founder and CEO of Splash. 'We're excited by the support of our investors and growing roster of clients; it's a sign that the space has finally matured. In-person Marketing is finally as trackable as digital. In the past year alone, we've more than doubled our client base, more than 80 percent of these new customers are marketers that use our enterprise platform to transform their event programs into a high-performing channel.'

Founded in 2012, by Ben Hindman and Brett Boskoff, Splash quickly became the platform of choice for event marketers. Initially praised for its ease of use and powerful design tools, Splash has evolved into an essential component of the marketing stack, powering the event marketing programs for thousands of clients including most of the Fortune 500. Business-to-business (B2B) marketers are recognizing the power of the platform, as they seek to accelerate their lead generation efforts through event optimization.

'In today's mostly digital environment, events are often the only in-person interaction companies have with customers, offering an ideal venue for strengthening customer relationships. The value is significant; with over $500 billion of global annual spend on marketing events, companies must ensure maximum impact every time, creating an exceptional experience for attendees from start to finish,' said Geoff Oblak, general partner at Ascent Venture Partners. 'Splash's sophisticated event management platform equips marketing professionals with a solution to ensure maximum ROI from every event. Ascent has been highly active investing in companies that enhance the omni-channel customer experience, including the convergence of digital and physical interactions. I look forward to supporting the Splash team and the exciting innovation within this rapidly emerging market.'

The company recently announced the launch of SplashConnect on the Salesforce AppExchange, which provides Salesforce customers with a complete understanding of their event marketing efforts. SplashConnect tracks leads throughout the event-lifecycle, allowing marketers to measure the effectiveness of event programs and make them more efficient through optimization. The software has already had an impact on enterprise marketing, as event programs can now be measured using the same metrics as any other channel.

'Events are absolutely crucial to enterprise marketing because they offer the perfect platform to connect with people and create an experience they will never forget. The real value lies in the trust and relationships that result after an unforgettable experience. That's why we trust Splash to power all of our happy hours, dinners, and even our conferences,' said Maricor Resente, VP of Marketing at Bounce Exchange.

Splash has also announced that it recently filled two key executive roles. David Greenberger, former Foursquare's head of sales joins the team as VP of Sales, and Conrad Rushing, previously director of engineering at Tumblr is now Splash's VP of Engineering.

'At Splash we have a saying -- experience is everything,' said Ben Hindman. 'With over five million events behind us we've been able to build a platform that not only unlocks the rich behavioral data these experiences create, but also fundamentally changes the way marketers view events as a channel.'

About Splash
Billions of dollars are spent on events each year, making in-person initiatives among the most expensive aspects of any budget. Launched in 2012 by Ben Hindman and Brett Boskoff, Splash is the in-person marketing automation software that optimizes that spend. With Splash, building beautiful event pages, selling tickets and seamlessly managing communications are only the beginning. Their proprietary software arms any company with the ability to track and analyze the in-person behavior of every individual that interacts with their brand. Over half of the Fortune 500 is using the data that Splash gathers to gain maximum ROI from their in-person marketing, sales and recruiting efforts. To make your events more efficient, visit: splashthat.com/business.

About Ascent Venture Partners
Ascent Venture Partners is dedicated to investing in innovation for the enterprise. In backing more than 100 early-stage, emerging technology companies since 1985, Ascent has remained committed to its mission of partnering with exceptional entrepreneurs striving to build innovative market leaders. The Ascent investment team manages six venture funds with total commitments of more than $500 million, and is located in Boston, Mass. For more information, please visit http://www.ascentvp.com/.