Yodle Inc. Raised $12 Million in Series B Round of Funding

Yodle, Inc., a leader in local online advertising and lead generation, announced recently that it raised $12 million in a second round of financing led by Draper Fisher Jurvetson, with existing investor Bessemer Venture Partners also participating in the round. The new funding is the second round of successful financing for the rapidly growing New York based start-up.

Yodle’s goal is to make buying online ads simple and easy for small businesses and to offer a high-performing, cost-effective alternative to the outdated Yellow Pages, previously the standard for small business advertising.

Today, 63 percent of consumers primarily search for local businesses online; Yodle is tapping this enormous advertising market to drive customers to businesses in a way that has never been done before. With Draper Fisher Jurvetson’s financing, we will be able to complete our national rollout and offer our services to small businesses across the country, said Court Cunningham, CEO of Yodle.

Yodle delivers tangible results for its customers, focusing on generating phone calls instead of web clicks. The companys estimate is that $1 invested with Yodle results in $8 in additional profit for small businesses such as lawyers, electricians, doctors, florists and even roofers.

Andreas Stavropoulos, managing director at Draper Fisher Jurvetson, added: What impressed us about Yodle was its ability to deliver a high and steady volume of quality consumer phone calls to small businesses in a simple yet reliable way. Customer loyalty to the Yodle product is higher than that of any competitor in the market we have seen.

In addition, Yodle has developed a proprietary media-buying platform to squeeze maximum performance out of every dollar it spends in online advertising for clients.

Yodle now offers small business owners something they have never had before; they know exactly what their return on investment is using Yodle’s industry leading Call Tracking and integrated Lead Manager tools. This level of transparency is new to small business owners who traditionally advertise in the Yellow Pages. With no long-term contracts and a clear method to track performance, this is low risk and potentially high reward investment for any small business to make, said Cunningham.

Yodle provides local businesses with a simple way to get more customers and phone calls using online marketing. Yodle, a company funded by Bessemer Venture Partners and Draper Fisher Jurvetson, is transforming local online advertising by connecting local business owners with consumers in a simple, measurable and relevant way. Yodle has developed an integrated approach to signing up and serving local businesses that are transitioning their marketing budgets online. Yodle operates offices out of New York, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Boston.

For more information, please visit www.yodle.com