Acquity Group

Acquity Group

Former type	Public company
Industry	Digital Marketing
Fate	Acquired
Founded	2001
Defunct	2013 (acquisition completed)
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois, USA
Key people	Jay Dettling (president) Founders Chris Dalton Paul Weinewuth Matt Schmeltz Scott Spear
Revenue	$141+ million (2012)[1]
Owner	Accenture
Number of employees	600
Website	http://www.acquitygroup.com/

Acquity Group, LLC is an American brand eCommerce and digital marketing company with U.S. headquarters in Chicago and offices across North America.

Acquity Group has domestic offices in New York City, Dallas, Seattle, San Francisco, Irvine, Scottsdale, Overland Park, Boise and Atlanta. Its international offices are located in Toronto, Ontario and Ottawa, Ontario.^[2] Acquity Group's work with more than 600 global brands covers eCommerce, mobile, and social media.

Acquity Group Headquarters in Ogilvie Station, Chicago

History

Acquity Group was founded in 2001 by Chris Dalton, Paul Weinewuth, Scott Spear and Matt Schmeltz.^[3] Dalton, who was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2009, serves as chief executive officer.^[4] Acquity Group filed for an IPO in 2012 and was listed on.^[5] the New York Stock Exchange. In May 2013, Acquity Group was acquired by Accenture for $316 million. Acquity Group is now a part of Accenture Interactive, part of Accenture Digital.^[6]

Acquity Group helps its clients use the Internet to increase sales and improve user-experience through an approach it pioneered, known as Brand eCommerce, which incorporates user-experience, creative design, back-end technical implementation and architecture .

Acquity Group’s clients represent a broad base of B2B and B2C companies in a variety of industries. Past and present clients include Adobe, American Airlines, AT&T, Garmin, General Motors, McDonald’s, Motorola, and Saks Fifth Avenue .

Notable clients and projects

Adobe

Acquity Group partnered with Adobe to provide a plan to rebuild the company's digital capability from top to bottom and help it devise a new approach for helping companies generate new business. ^[7]

Mine Safety Appliances (MSA)

Acquity Group worked with MSA to consolidate and centralize its global web properties and provide a better user experience. The restructured web properties allow MSA to manage online content in a central location and distribute information on a global scale, encompassing 39 countries and 20 languages.^[8]

Penske

Penske Truck Rental engaged Acquity Group to complete the design and front-end development of its new mobile site.^[9]

Saks Fifth Avenue

This multi-year, multi-project partnership helped Saks Direct - Saks Fifth Avenue's online division - achieve improvements in site stability, online functionality and eCommerce performance. This project received a Gold Stevie Award, the highest honor award, in the Retail category. ^[10]

Mobile Audit

Acquity Group's Mobile Commerce Audit, an analysis of the Internet Retailer 500 that identifies commerce companies with an active mobile presence, is published annually. The results of the 2009 Mobile Commerce Audit showed that only 4% of the United States' top 500 online retailers had websites compatible with mobile browsers.^[11][12] The 2010 Mobile Audit revealed that 12% of the top web merchants had m-commerce sites; in 2011, that number increased to 37%.^[13]

In 2011 Acquity Group issued its first European Mobile Audit, which revealed that nearly a quarter of Europe's top online retailers had some sort of mobile app and just under 20 percent had a website optimized for mobile devices.^[14]

Brand eCommerce Audit

Acquity Group’s Brand eCommerce Audit is compiled annually and ranks commerce companies across six channels: big browser, mobile/tablet, social, in-store, search and email. Its inaugural report, released November 2012, analyzed Interbrand’s ”Best Retail Brands of 2012” and examined customer expectations across six channels.^[15]

In 2012, Acquity Group Brand eCommerce Audit’s research revealed that 82 percent of retailers have a mobile optimized site, 72 percent have a mobile or tablet app, and 66 percent have both.^[16]

Overview

2001:

• Founded in Chicago by Chris Dalton, Matt Schmeltz, Scott Spear and Paul Weinewuth ^[17]
• Northern Trust and Equity Office Partners join Acquity Group client roster

2002:

• Opens Scottsdale, Arizona office ^[18]

2004:

• Opens Irvine, California office ^[19]
• Launches national sales initiative in Phoenix, Orange County, Chicago
• Playboy, Nautilus and Shimano join Acquity Group client roster ^[20]

2005:

• Opens Kansas City, Missouri office ^[21]
• Launches OnDemand offerings, Commerce OnDemand and Content OnDemand, Menard’s joins Acquity Group roster as the first client for this offering ^[22]
• Zebra Technologies joins Acquity Group client roster ^[23]

2006:

• Opens Dallas, Texas office ^[24]
• Francesca joins Acquity Group client roster ^[25]
• Receives Interactive Media Award for LaPetite.com website re-launch ^[26]

2007:

• Inc. 5000 features Acquity Group for the first time ^[27]
• Expands Chicago office to new location on Madison St.^[28]

2008:

• Crain's 50 Fastest Growing Companies features Acquity Group for the first time ^[29]
• Opens Los Angeles, California Office ^[30]
• The Interactive Media Council recognizes Acquity Group with an Interactive Media Awards for work on ZICO.com and Kohls.com website re-launches^[31][32]

2009:

• Ernst & Young recognizes Founder and CEO Christopher Dalton as Entrepreneur of the Year

^[33]

• Brill Street & Company recognizes Acquity Group as a Top 50 Employer for Gen-Y in Chicago ^[34]
• Eileen Fischer and Underwriter Lab join Acquity Group client roster^[35][36]
• Publishes first Mobile Audit with Internet Retailer ^[37]

2010:

• Opens Boise, Idaho Office
• AdAge recognizes Acquity Group as one of the Top 5 Largest Independent Digital Agencies ^[38]
• Forrester Research lists Acquity Group as a top mobile developer in their report, “How to Build a Mobile Website”^[39]
• Interactive Media Awards recognize Acquity Group with award for work on Boot Barn and Radio Flyer^[40]

2011:

• Celebrates its 10-year anniversary ^[41]
• Coopers, Penske, Belkin and Casual Male name Acquity Group as the preferred digital agency of record
• The Horizon Interactive Awards recognize Acquity Group with six awards, including one for work on the General Motors media site ^[42]
• Adobe names Acquity Group Partner of the Year ^[43]
• Opens New York City New York office^[44]

2012:

• Successfully completes its IPO; listed as NYSE MKT: AQ ^[45]
• Receives a Webby Award for work with AllState ^[46]
• Opens Atlanta, Georgia, Toronto and Ottawa offices ^[47][48]
• hybris names Acquity Group North American Partner of the Year^[49]
• BtoB Magazine lists Acquity Group as a Top BtoB Agency for the third consecutive year ^[50]

2013:

• Acquity Group and Accenture have entered into a definitive agreement under which Accenture will acquire Acquity Group for $316 million.^[51]
• Receives Interactive Media Awards for Best in Class E-Commerce and Outstanding Achievement in E-Commerce ^[52]
• Built in Chicago names Acquity Group 12th Fastest Growing Digital Agency in the city ^[53]
• Acquity Group takes home two Communicator Awards in 2013 ^[54]
• Acquity Group releases its Desktop vs. Smartphone: Technology’s Impact on Omnichannel Behavior Study, which reveals free Wi-Fi could be a key driver of revenue for in-store sales.^[55]
• Acquity Group releases its 2013 State of B2B Procurement Study, which reveals more than half of Gen Y corporate buyers have made a purchase from Amazon Supply.^[56]

References

1. "Acquity Group's CEO Discusses Q4 2012 Results - Earnings Call Transcript". 20 March 2013. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
2. "Acquity Group Expands into Canadian Market, Sets Up Shop in Ottawa". Acquity Group. 14 May 2012. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
3. Vidya Drego (7 December 2010). "Q&Agency: Acquity Group". Forrester. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
4. "Chris Dalton". Acquity Group website. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
5. Thad Rueter (19 April 2012). "Digital marketing firm Acquity Group files for an IPO". Internet Retailer. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
6. "Accenture buying Acquity for $316 million". Acquity Group website. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
7. PRNewswire Shield. "Acquity Group Selected As Adobe Digital Marketing Regional Partner of the Year". Retrieved 1 February 2013.
8. EcommerceHeadlines. "Acquity Group Redefines Global Web Presence for Global Safety Equipment". Retrieved 6 March 2013.
9. Penske. "Penske Makes Online Truck Rental Easier with New Mobile Website". Retrieved 31 January 2013.
10. Shield. "Acquity Group's Brand eCommerce(R) Approach Recognized with Seven Digital Design Awards". Retrieved 1 February 2013.
11. Stephanie Clifford and Claire Cain Miller (17 April 2011). "Retailers Retool Sites to Ease Mobile Shopping". The New York Times.
12. Mark Walsh (24 June 2010). "Only 12% Of Web Retailers Have Mobile-Specific Sites". MediaPost.
13. Kevin Woodward (13 October 2011). "Top 500 e-retailers offer more mobile commerce sites and apps". Internet Retailer.
14. "Acquity Group Announces European Mobile Audit Data". Acquity Group. 7 April 2011. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
15. Acquity Group. "Brand eCommerce(TM) Audit" (PDF). Retrieved 28 January 2013.
16. TMCNet.com (7 December 2012). "Acquity Group Releases eCommerce Audit". Retrieved 28 January 2013.
17. "Acquity Group". Built In Chicago. Retrieved 21 December 2012.
18. "Acquity Group opens Scottsdale office". Acquity Group. Retrieved 21 December 2012.
19. "Acquity Group Opens Southern California Office". BusinessWire. Retrieved 21 December 2012.
20. "Playboy, Nautilus, Shimano". BusinessWire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
21. "Acquity Group opens Kansas City office". BusinessWire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
22. "Manards Signs OnDemand Service Agreement". The free library. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
23. "Acquity Group Helps Zebra Technologies Optimize Product Offerings". the free library. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
24. "Acquity Group Opens Fifth National Office". Chron.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
25. "Acquity Groups Commerce OnDemand Solution Drives Francescas Collections". PRNewswire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
26. "Winners". Interactive Media Awards. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
27. "Acquity Group". Inc.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
28. "Acquity Group Expands Chicago Office". Chicago Real Estate Daily. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
29. "Crain's Chicago Business Names Acquity Group as one of Chicago's Fastest Growing Companies". PR Newswire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
30. "Acquity Group Opens Los Angeles California Office". BusinessWire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
31. "Interactive Media Awards Winners". Interactive Media Awards. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
32. "Interactive Media Awards". Interactive Media Awards. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
33. "Ernst & Young recognizes Founder and CEO Christopher Dalton". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
34. "Brill Street and Company Recognizes Acquity Group as a Top 50 Employer for Gen Y in Chicago". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
35. "EILEEN FISHER Partners with Acquity Group for New eCommerce Platform". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
36. "Underwriter Lab joins Acquity Group". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
37. "Acquity Group Publishes First Mobile Audit with Internet Retailer". PRWeb BusinessWire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
38. "Ad Age Recognizes Acquity Group as One of the Top 5 Largest Independent Digital Agencices". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
39. "Forrester Research lists Acquity Group as a Top Mobile Developer". Acquity Group. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
40. "Interactive Media Awards Recognize Acquity Group". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
41. "Acquity Group Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary". Acquity Group. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
42. "Horizone Interactive Awards Winners". Horizon Interactive Awards. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
43. "Adobe Names Acquity Group Partner of the Year". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
44. "Acquity Group Opens New York City Office". PRWeb.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
45. "Acquity Group Celebrates IPO and First Day of Trading". NYX Exchange. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
46. "Webby Award Winners". Webby Awards. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
47. "Acquity Group opens Atlanta office". BtoB. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
48. "Acquity Group Expands Canadian Presence to Toronto". BusinessWire. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
49. "Business Partners". hybris.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
50. "Acquity Group Named Top Interactive Agency by BtoB". Acquity Group. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
51. "Accenture to acquire Acquity Group for $316 million". Crain's Chicago Business. Retrieved 29 May 2013.
52. "Interactive Media Awards Certificate". Interactive Media Awards. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
53. "Built in Chicago Names Acquity Group 12th Fastest Growing Digital Company in Chicago". TMCNet. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
54. "19th Annual Communicator Award of Distinction Winners". Communicator Awards. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
55. Ryan, Tom (November 6, 2013). "Should Retailers Promote Free Wi-Fi?". RetailWire. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
56. Dawson, Carolyn J. (June 20, 2013). "Acquity Reveals Corporate Buyers' Preference for Amazon Supply". TMCNet. Retrieved 2 February 2014.

External links

• Acquity Group