Tagkast Launches New Platform for Branded Photo Sharing at Live Events

CHICAGO, Oct. 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Chicago-based startup Tagkast today announced the launch of its native advertising solution for social media. By providing socially connected souvenir photography at events – such as sporting events, festivals, and concerts – Tagkast's patented technology gives advertisers a way to turn photo sharing into branded content that spreads their message in a truly organic way.

"We're able to create brand advocates out of the millions of people who attend events every week as they tag themselves in photos snapped by our photographers on-site," said Sean Strother, co-founder of Tagkast. "It's natural for people to want to share all of the cool things they're doing with their friends via Facebook and Twitter. Our technology gives brands a way to tap into that behavior in a way that feels organic because the photos aren't sponsored posts or paid advertisements on someone's timeline. It's content, not ads."

When brands use Tagkast's services at an event, the average photo shared reaches more than 300 people in each consumer's social graph and delivers measurably higher engagement than other social advertising offerings. With more than 70 percent of the U.S. Internet population on Facebook and 250 million people attending events every week, the Tagkast platform is one of the only native offerings that can achieve scale.

Prior to launching Tagkast, Strother and fellow co-founder Joe Matthews founded Poggled, an event and daily deals company. After attending events and drumming up attention for brands, the idea behind Tagkast was born.

"We realized brands and media buyers were missing a key opportunity to optimize social sharing at events," said Joe Matthews, co-founder of Tagkast. "Consumers are already sharing these photos with their friends, but we make the content brand-oriented by providing suggested captions and connecting URLs to the photos. It's an extremely simple way for brands to expand their social following and access a scalable audience."

Additionally, Tagkast helps large brands and media buyers identify events where they can reach their intended audience and demographic, turning its platform into a form of native advertising that can replace traditional event sponsorship. Tagkast also provides analytics on user demographics, helping brands gain insight on their target audience and measure ROI of offline events.

The company has piloted their unique approach to organic photo sharing at hundreds of events over the summer and is now launching nationwide. Tagkast has previously received funding from Lightbank and NEA. Bill Newlands, President of North America for Jim Beam and Mike Tunnicliffe, Chief Growth Officer for GroupM, are members of Tagkast's board.

About Tagkast

Tagkast is a uniquely designed service that helps brands and advertisers deepen their customer connection and grow their brand. Using tablets at events, Tagkast takes professional photos and helps brands sponsor moments by providing a way for consumers to share photos and tag brands as well as themselves. With the ability to tag and share thousands of photos from a single event, Tagkast provides marketers with access to a scalable audience. Tagkast has worked with large brands and media buyers such as the Buffalo Bills, the American Diabetes Association, Groupon, Diageo, Jaguar and Hearst.

For more information, visit tagkast.com.

CONTACT: Colleen Kennedy, colleen@lightbank.com

SOURCE Tagkast

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