The State of B2B Tech in Austin in 2018

January 9, 2018

Austin, Texas may be completely landlocked, but it’s an island in its own right — in the sense that no town for miles can quite compare to the vivacity of its indescribable music scene, days-long festivals, experimental culinary fare and overall indifference to what a southern city “should” be.

This town of just under one million inhabitants is large enough to house a Big 12 university and a thriving tourist industry, while still intimate enough to provide house concerts and walking trails only the locals can find.

Austin’s local flavor doesn’t stop there, either. Barton Springs municipal pool is open almost all year, encouraging residents to be outdoors no matter the season. The 360 Overlook is almost rural enough to make you forget you’re in the state’s capital, but the traffic roaring on the bridge below will quickly bring you back to reality.

Plus, Austin is home to Torchy’s Tacos and a Voodoo Doughnut, as well as famous food trucks and venerated barbecue joints. It offers both nightlife and downtime, business and pleasure, a place to learn and a place to grow old.

This city also charmed its way onto the tech and startup scene, with PC Mag labeling it number seven on their list of 14 High Tech Cities You’ll Want to Call Home.

Austin's Tech Sector

“It’s where many a tech giant got its start, including Twitter,” Chandra Steele wrote in the article. “It’s also the second city to get Google Fiber, a move that prompted rival AT&T to roll out its own gigabit internet service in the region.”

Tech companies have taken residence in Austin since as early as the 1960s. Kelly O’Halloran outlines Austin’s first tech influences in an article published by Built In, entitled “Memory Lane: Meet a Few of the Companies That Paved the Way for Austin’s Tech Scene.”

“One of the first to arrive was Tracor in 1962. Then came IBM in 1967, Texas Instruments in 1969, Motorola in 1974, the launch of UT’s IC² Institute in 1977, Microelectronics and Computer Consortium (MCC) in 1982, and Dell in 1984.”

And that was just the beginning. According to VentureBeat, 40 startups in Austin were able to raise over $385.9 million in funding in Q2 2017. The groundwork laid by early tech companies decades ago has yet to erode, and it likely won’t any time soon. 

austin-tech-scene

Note: Only software vendors on G2 Crowd with headquarters currently in the Austin area are included in graph.


Austin Tech Leader on the City's Tech Scene

Ticketbud

“Austin is billed as ‘the live music capital of the world,’ so it’s fitting that there would be event ticketing companies based out this famous city. Austin’s tech scene is as diverse as the city itself, with a heavy emphasis on startups — as a tech startup, Ticketbud fits quite neatly into the smorgasbord of companies here.” Sean Burke, Marketing Associate at Ticketbud

Cosential

“Tech within architecture, engineering and especially construction (A/E/C) has traditionally lagged against other industries, however we’re noticing a significant shift in adoption for two major reasons. First, growth in projects and investments in both the private and public sectors is significantly “up and to the right”. Economy growth and confidence, combined with less regulations have A/E/C firms swimming in potential projects to bid on, and that is where we fit in. Firms are vastly realizing the value of incorporating a CRM that speaks their language of projects. The use of subjective, siloed spreadsheets is waning, it’s become the time that firms need to ensure all potential leads are worked properly, and no stones gather moss. That is where Cosential comes in. Our software is built to apply an easy, relative and disciplined approach that helps firms organizing leads and bids to gain an edge on the competition. Second, generational handover in the leadership ranks is rife. Younger, tech savvy leaders with experience and trust in cloud based SaaS solutions are driving A/E/C firms into a new age of accountability, measurement and transparency. Again, Cosential is a perfect fit for this shift given its experience in this specific market, reputation and cloud based desktop and mobile apps.” Bobby Hollis, VP of Marketing & Business Development at Cosential

EZOfficeInvetory

“Austin has a wealth of tech talent, and EZOfficeInventory is proud to have nabbed a great deal of it from the get go. UT Austin’s singular focus on entrepreneurship has made its mark in the region; the Austin tech landscape is full of vibrant incubators and accelerators working hard to push the envelope on the daily. With its own roots as a tech startup, today EZOfficeInventory is a hugely successful operation, with global customers and a home-grown team of business tech enthusiasts. Home to the Capital Factory and the Longhorns, it’s no surprise that Austin’s undeniable spirit shines bright, and EZOfficeInventory loves being a part of this incredible context!” Momina Sohail, Communications Manager at EZOfficeInventory 

ShippingEasy

“There is no shortage of amazing tech companies in Austin constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation. ShippingEasy is proud to be one of them, providing innovative solutions for e-commerce sellers of all sizes to help them succeed in an increasingly competitive environment.” Rob Zeleski, Digital Content Marketer at ShippingEasy

Bazaarvoice

“From emerging startups to large corporations, Austin has established itself as a thriving home for B2B tech companies of all sizes. We are surrounded by some of the most innovative, talented software providers in the world. As a company founded and headquartered in Austin, we’re proud to be recognized as a leader in our local tech community.” Sara Spivey, Chief Marketing Officer at Bazaarvoice

We have compiled data on the state of the Austin B2B tech scene that includes all of the top-rated products on G2 Crowd which have parent companies headquartered in Austin. Our list is ranked by user satisfaction of a company’s top-rated product. To qualify, a product was required to have at least 10 verified user reviews.

For each qualifying product, we created a company profile to recognize what that company is and does, as well as give a little insight into its history. The data relies on G2 Crowd’s more than 300,000 B2B software and services reviews, or from public data sources such as LinkedIn, Crunchbase or each vendor’s website.


Top B2B Austin Tech Companies in 2019

wp

1. WP Engine

Product: WP Engine
Category: CMS Tools
City: Austin
Founded: 2010
Employees: 508

With 97 reviews on G2 Crowd, WP Engine is both a Leader in the website hosting category and a leader within our Austin-based products. With WP Engine, businesses can build and deploy digital experiences (like landing pages for campaigns, content hubs, or even e-commerce extensions) on WordPress that are agile and easy to integrate. That said, while the platform integrates with best-in-breed platforms like Google or Amazon Web Services, it also works seamlessly with open-source technologies. WP Engine has been consistently named a top place to work by the Austin Business Journal. The product received a Leader badge in the Summer 2017 Website Hosting Grid® Report.


spiceworks

2. Spiceworks

Product: Spiceworks Help Desk
Category: Service Desk
City: Austin
Founded: 2006
Employees: 426

With an impressive 200 reviews on G2 Crowd, Spiceworks Help Desk is both a Leader in the service desk category and a leader within our Austin-based products. Spiceworks Help Desk is a ticket system that works to simplify and ease the daily workload of IT support. With the product, IT professionals can avoid wasting time and energy in a ticket wasteland. On a larger level, the entire Spiceworks platform connects IT professionals and marketers with the resources that they need to do their jobs effectively and efficiently. Through Spiceworks, IT professionals can participate in an online community full of peers, research and purchase tech solutions, leverage applications with help desk and network monitoring functionality, and access market intelligence and content that will further their existing IT skills. Spiceworks Help Desk received a Leader badge in the Winter 2018 Service Desk Grid® Report. Spiceworks Network Monitor was also named one of the top free network monitoring software options in 2017.


indeed

3. Indeed

Product: Indeed
Category: Job Boards
City: Austin
Founded: 2004
Employees: 3,323

Indeed is an easy-to-use job board website, where employers can post jobs directly on the platform, and where employees can simply upload a resume when applying for an Indeed job post. According to Indeed, they are the #1 job site worldwide, available in over 60 countries, giving job seekers free access to millions of jobs from thousands of companies. In November 2017, the company was named top workplace for LGBTQ equality, according to the Corporate Equality Index.


shipstation

4. ShipStation

Product: ShipStation
Category: Shipping
City: Austin
Founded: 2010
Employees: 154

ShipStation streamlines the order fulfillment process for online businesses. The product integrates with the majority of existing e-commerce marketplaces, shopping carts, shipping carriers, and e-commerce tools. With ShipStation, e-commerce owners can leverage popular e-commerce marketplaces, easily create shipping labels, track inventory, automate repetitive tasks, and customize the entire order process with their own branding.


signup

5. VolunteerSpot

Product: SignUp.com
Category: Volunteer Management
City: Austin
Founded: 2008
Employees: 17

SignUp.com eases the planning and scheduling aspects of coordinating volunteer efforts on the behalf of schools, businesses, nonprofits, churches, and other associations. In a nutshell, the product provides reliable, trustworthy coordination resources and applications to save organizations’ time and help them achieve remarkable, desired outcomes. With SignUp.com, users can simplify the organization of community activities, reducing the distracting impact of tedious, necessary but manual tasks. In September 2016, the company joined the White House initiative of Computer Science for All (CS for All).


iconixx

6. Iconixx

Product: Iconixx Sales
Category: Sales Compensation
City: Austin
Founded: 2010
Employees: 72

Iconixx Sales is part of the overall Iconixx product suite, which also includes Iconixx Incentive and Iconixx Merit. With Iconixx Sales, sales managers can take a close look at how their salespeople are performing, ensure accuracy of compensation plans, and decrease overall administrative costs. Managers can better forecast sales performance based on the granular sales data that the tool provides. In June 2017, Iconixx was named one of the 50 fastest growing companies of 2017 by the Silicon Review Magazine. In October 2017, Iconixx won the Gold Steve® Award for Great Employers in the “New Products and Services” category.

“Demand for enterprise-grade SPM solutions is strong, we are seeing more enterprise organizations interested in flexible, highly scalable Sales Performance Management solutions. I am very excited Iconixx can showcase and reference these superior capabilities.” Derrik Deyhimi, CEO at Iconixx Software

bigcommerce

7. BigCommerce

Product: BigCommerce
Category: E-Commerce Platforms
City: Austin
Founded: 2009
Employees: 531

With an impressive 136 reviews on G2 Crowd, BigCommerce is both a Leader in the e-commerce platforms category and a leader within our Austin-based products. BigCommerce is a powerful e-commerce website builder that streamlines the management and operations of the entire e-commerce (world). Along with the full-featured CMS, BigCommerce supports leading payment providers, manages order fulfillment and inventory processing, simplifies the multi-channel e-commerce process, and easily integrates with third-party e-commerce applications and solutions. In September 2016, BigCommerce was recognized in Forbes Cloud 100 as one of the fastest growing cloud companies in 2016. BigCommerce received a Leader badge in the Fall 2017 E-Commerce Platforms Grid® Report.


infer

8. Ignite Technologies

Product: Infer
Category: Marketing Account Management
City: Austin
Founded: 2000
Employees: 101

With 48 reviews on G2 Crowd, Infer is a High Performer in the marketing account management category and a leader within our Austin-based products. After ESW Capital LLC’s acquisition of Infer in October 2017, the product was rolled into Ignite Technologies’ Ignite Prime Program, a benefit program designed to offer Ignite customers support across Ignite Technologies’ portfolio of software. That support touches on product offerings in marketing analytics and corporate performance management. Infer received the High Performer badges in the Fall 2017 Lead Scoring Grid® Report, the Summer 2017 Marketing Account Management Grid®Report, the Summer 2017 Marketing Account Intelligence Grid® Report and the Summer 2017 Account-Based Reporting Grid® Report.


invoiced

9. Invoiced

Product: Invoiced
Category: Billing
City: Austin
Founded: 2012
Employees: 3

Invoiced’s billing software can work for (and scale to) businesses of any size. The product automates invoicing and accepting online payments, and can handle recurring billing scenarios, which is ideal for businesses who want to run a subscription business. Invoiced integrates with popular accounting solutions like QuickBooks Online, Sage Intacct, and Xero. The product also has a REST API that allows business to build custom integrations or better integrate the software with existing CRMs or business intelligence platforms.

kbmax

10. KBMax 3D CPQ

Product: KBMax 3D CPQ
Category: CPQ
City: Austin
Founded: 2009
Employees: 20
 0

With 43 reviews on G2 Crowd, KBMax 3D CPQ is a High Performer in the CPQ category and a leader within our Austin-based products. KBMax 3D CPQ is an all-in-one solution, that uses 3D technology to facilitate product configurations, smart pricing, proposal creation, and modeling. With the product, companies can ease and simplify the process of quoting, designing, and selling their products. Online businesses can integrate KBMax 3D CPQ into their external businesses, to improve their multi-channel experiences. The product received a High Performer badge in the Fall 2017 CPQ Grid® Report.


ticketbud

11. Ticketbud

Product: Ticketbud
Category: Event Registration & Ticketing
City: Austin
Founded: 2009
Employees: 8

Ticketbud provides event managers and organizations a user-friendly software that eases the process of selling tickets online. With Ticketbud, users can create an event landing page, promote their events, scan tickets the day of, and reconcile sales and revenue reports. Additionally, the product handles attendee management as well as offers the choice of daily payouts.

“Every company endeavors to be the best it can be, but not all of them succeed. When users do research for the best software to sell tickets online, they choose Ticketbud for its reviews on G2 Crowd. Being recognized by G2 Crowd and users as being a top company in Austin is an extremely proud moment for the entire Ticketbud team.” Sean Burke, Marketing Associate at Ticketbud

cosential

 12. Cosential

Product: Cosential
Category: CRM
City: Austin
Founded: 1999
Employees: 42

Cosential provides CRM solutions specifically for architecture, engineering, and construction firms. The product integrates accounting, marketing, and business intelligence data onto a centralized platform, so that businesses can easily keep track of customer information. Additionally, the product facilitates the generation of engaging proposals that leverages inputted data. Cosential received a High Performer badge in the Fall 2017 CRM Grid® Report.

“For most companies, it is extremely tempting to make radical shifts in direction in their desire for more profit. Cosential has always held the steadfast view of sticking with one product, and being the best at it. We’ve never entertained straying outside of our product or vertical, so for us to be one of the highest rated B2B software products by real users is a validation that our dedication to our product and clients is paying off. CRM for architecture, engineering and construction firms is literally all we do. 100% of our enhancements stem from user stories, or ideas our clients bring to us. As a result, this means our users are guaranteed a product derived by countless years of hyper-relevant best practices. It’s an honor when we hear this feedback from real users, as well being recognized by both peers in the space and objective third parties such as G2 Crowd.” Bobby Hollis, VP of Marketing & Business Development at Cosential
 
bloomfire

 13. Bloomfire

Product: Bloomfire
Category: Knowledge Management
City: Austin
Founded: 2010
Employees: 59

With an impressive 110 reviews on G2 Crowd, Bloomfire is both a leader in the knowledge management category and a leader within our Austin-based products. Bloomfire built an AI-driven search engine that leverages a company’s centralized knowledge database. (The product also works to provide that centralization.) By utilizing the software’s “digital content fingerprint,” organizations can consistently deliver the most relevant content to users. Additionally, the software minimizes redundancy and organizations’ internal silos. Bloomfire received a Leader badge in the Winter 2018 Knowledge Management Grid® Report, and High Performer badges in the Fall 2017 Sales Enablement Grid® Report and the Fall 2017 Team Collaboration Grid® Report.

“It’s an honor to be recognized as one of the big players in Austin’s thriving tech scene. What makes Bloomfire unique is that we recognize in most organizations, knowledge is siloed, and we make it our mission to transform the way companies share knowledge and insights all over the world. We owe a lot of our success to our customers. Without their feedback and reviews, we wouldn’t be where we are today, and we look forward to seeing what 2018 holds.” Dana Youngren Dohse, Director of Marketing at Bloomfire

ezoffice

 14. EZOfficeInventory

Product: EZOfficeInventory
Category: Barcode
City: Austin
Founded: 2011
Employees: 9


EZOfficeInventory is a web-based asset tracking software. With EZOfficeInventory, businesses can better manage their physical assets and inventory via the software’s asset lifecycle management functionality, stock and inventory modules, and GPS-powered geolocation capabilities. The solution also has a REST API that helps businesses integrate EZOfficeInventory with other systems.

“EZOfficeInventory is thrilled to be recognized as a customer favorite asset tracking software, used by businesses ranging from Fortune 500s to startups around the world. There’s a reason we’re so well-loved; we’re scalable, flexible, and offer lightning-fast onboarding! This ensures high ROIs and increased productivity with minimal overheads. Our goal has always been to enable companies to focus on core strengths through enhanced efficiency in business processes. This is why we’re regularly releasing new features, strengthening our modules, and finessing our asset management platform.” Momina Sohail, Communications Manager at EZOfficeInventory

upland  

15. Upland Software
Product: Clickability
Category: Web Content Management
City: Austin
Founded: 2010 (NASDAQ: UPLD)
Employees: 436

Upland Software’s Clickability strives to liberate non-technical marketers and publishers from IT departments. The product is an 100% SaaS platform built to empower non-technical users to create and manage content. With Clickability, organizations can become agile about their digital strategies, and easily align their websites or digital content with marketing objectives. Clickability received a High Performer badge in the Fall 2017 Web Content Management Grid®Report.

shippingeasy

16. ShippingEasy

Product: ShippingEasy
Category: Shipping
City: Austin
Founded: 2012
Employees: 72

ShippingEasy is intelligent shipping software that was built specifically for online businesses. The software is cloud-based and integrates with major shipping carriers and e-commerce marketplaces. Some of the features that ShippingEasy offers are: streamlined order management, commercial plus pricing, and inventory management. While Stamps.com acquired the company in June 2016, ShippingEasy continues to operate independently in Austin, TX.

“Knowing that exceptional feedback from real customers is why we’re being recognized makes this honor even more exciting. At ShippingEasy, we have a relentless focus on our customers. We’re fueled by making their lives easier, and if being recognized means we’re succeeding in that mission, we couldn’t be more thrilled.” Rob Zaleski, Digital Content Marketer at ShippingEasy

hotschedules

17. HotSchedules

Product: HotSchedules
Category: Restaurant Management
City: Austin
Founded: 1999
Employees: 459

HotSchedules is a cloud-based back office platform that helps restaurant operators, managers, and staff streamline and make productive daily operations. HotSchedules’ Clarifi suite provides solutions for midsize and enterprise businesses. Additionally, HotSchedules offers an employee scheduling app, helping managers and restaurants to pivot away from manual spreadsheets. The overall platform, however, also works to control costs, gather actionable insight about the financial health of restaurants, train employees, monitor inventory management workflows, and manage assets.


trendkite

 18. TrendKite

Product: TrendKite
Category: PR Analytics
City: Austin
Founded: 2012
Employees: 223

TrendKite helps public relations professionals quantify the true impact of their brand. With TrendKite’s attribution capabilities, businesses can measure the impact and tailor the reach of existing PR campaigns. The software has two modules: one for brands, and one for agencies. For both, though, TrendKite’s media monitoring tools scrolls through all media types to compile a single, comprehensive view of your business’ media coverage. The product then takes those media and campaign monitoring efforts and turns them into interactive reports that your PR team can share across the organization. TrendKite received a High Performer badge in the Winter 2017 Media Monitoring Grid® Report.


dialog

19. Dialogue Consulting

Product: ScheduGram
Category: Social Media Management
City: Austin
Founded: 2004
Employees: 58
 

ScheduGram is a social media management tool, which lets organizations plans, schedule, and post content to Instagram through its platform. There’s no limit to the number of accounts that users can coordinate through the platform. Additionally, the tool automatically converts uploaded pictures to the correct size and format for Instagram. ScheduGram strives to save users hours and hours of time previously spent on coordinating and managing Instagram posts. ScheduGram received a High Performer badge in the Winter 2018 Social Media Management Grid® Report. ScheduGram is a solution operated by Dialogue Consulting, a company that specializes in all things social media.


bazaar

20. Bazaarvoice

Product: Bazaarvoice
Category: Product Reviews
City: Austin
Founded: 2005 (NASDAQ: BV)
Employees: 1,048

With Bazaarvoice, online businesses can collect and distribute consumer reviews to boost sales and raise brand awareness. Bazaarvoice has a commitment to authentic, user-generated reviews, that will at once ensure relevant content is being dispersed out as well as provide visibility into your brand’s performance across social media channels. Additionally, the software has a Bazaarvoice Network that allows brands to syndicate the user-generated content they collect to retailers.

“We understand the power of ratings and reviews. Since Bazaarvoice was founded, we’ve helped companies collect and leverage the voice of their customers at scale. We know that people trust the honest opinions, recommendations and feedback of other people when making their purchase decisions, so it’s rewarding and meaningful that our products are highly-rated among our customers.” Sara Spivey, Chief Marketing Officer at Bazaarvoice

micromain

21. MicroMain CMMS

Product: MicroMain CMMS
Category: CMMS
City:Austin
Founded: 1991
Employees: 45
 

MicroMain offers a maintenance management software as either an on-premise or cloud-based solution; the cloud-based solution is powered by Amazon Web Services. Organizations can depend on MicroMain CMMS to effectively manage their maintenance operations. Those maintenance operations range from healthcare compliance to fleet management to work order management.

“The ATX tech community is experiencing explosive growth leading into 2018. It has literally inspired a 26-year-old CMMS software company to start-up all over again. We’re honored to call Austin home and to be included in the G2 State of B2B Tech in Austin Top 25. And we’re humbled that the voices of our customers put us there.” Rob Sparks, VP Sales and Customer Success at MicroMain

epicor

22. Epicor

Product: Epicor ERP
Category: ERP Systems
City: Austin
Founded: 1972
Employees: 4,346

Epicor Software delivers business software solutions to a variety of industries, spanning from manufacturing to distribution to retail to service. Epicor’s solutions include enterprise resource planning (ERP), supply chain management, retail management, and human capital management (HCM); the company’s goal is to make businesses more efficient and agile enough to scale and pivot according to the needs of market competition.

“Providing the expertise, resources and the technology to make good on growth opportunities for more than 20,000 customers in 150 countries worldwide, Epicor Software Corporation is proud to call Austin home for its company headquarters. Austin boasts a rich and vibrant business and tech community that provides exceptional resources which will help Epicor as we embark on our next phase of growth.” Lisa Preuss, VP of Corporate Communications at
Epicor Software

buzzstream

23. BuzzStream

Product: BuzzStream
Category: Media and Influencer Targeting
City: Austin
Founded: 2008
Employees: 12

BuzzStream takes on word-of-mouth marketing campaigns to drive buzz, links, and traffic to customers’ websites. BuzzStream does that by finding, nurturing, and effectively managing crucial relationships with influencers that can help build conversations about products and services across the internet. The software is built to ease the process of discovering and adding relevant contacts to organizations’ databases; it also collects data on the performance, reach, and impact of the influencers that businesses utilize. BuzzStream received a High Performer badge in the Summer 2017 Media and Influencer Targeting Grid® Report.


edgar

24. Edgar

Product: Edgar
Category: Social Media Management
City: Austin
Founded: 2014
Employees: 26

Edgar is a bot that automates an organization’s social posting. The product works to create an authentic, “IRL” social media persona for your business, while at the same time saving you time from the menial gruntwork of social media management. Edgar is particularly good for sharing and re-sharing evergreen content. Edgar received a High Performer badge in the Winter 2018 Social Media Management Grid®Report.


aurea

25. Aurea Software

Product: Jive-n
Category: Team Collaboration
City: Austin
Founded: 2012
Employees: 530

Jive-n provides a centralized, interactive intranet that facilitates collaboration across organizations and their applications. Through the Jive-n platform, company communications, knowledge sharing, enterprise search, and employee onboarding are all streamlined. Employees can access the platform via mobile application or web browsers, and happily, the product also integrates with external enterprise systems such as Cisco WebEx, Evernote, SharePoint, Zendesk, and Salesforce. And because the product facilitates a singular intranet, it provides complete visibility and analytics into all processes and interactions. Jive-n is part of the Aurea Software family of customer experience solutions.


Other B2B Austin Tech Companies

While we recognized only the 25 best-reviewed software exports from Austin, there are still an abundance of other B2B tech companies impacting the region’s tech scene. Here’s a rundown of other Austin B2B software companies with their founded dates and total funding.

 

 For any questions about the methodology or data included in this piece, or to request that your Austin B2B tech company be added, please reach out to Editorial Team Lead Jakub Rudnik at jrudnik@g2crowd.com.

The State of B2B Tech in Austin in 2018 G2 Crowd looks at the B2B tech scene in Austin and evaluates overall trends, funding and ranks the top B2B tech companies. https://learn.g2crowd.com/hubfs/austin-texas-1756159_1920.jpg
Grace Pinegar Grace Pinegar is a lifelong storyteller with an extensive background in various forms such as acting, journalism, improv, research, and content marketing. She was raised in Texas, educated in Missouri, worked in Chicago, and is now a proud New Yorker. (she/her/hers) https://learn.g2.com/hubfs/GracePUpdated.jpeg

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