From what tools and technologies they’re using, to the types of content they’re publishing, to the quality of the buying experience they’re providing, our Cloud 100 report offers a behind-the-scenes look at how the SaaS world’s top marketing teams operate.
Collectively, the companies on the 2019 Forbes Cloud 100 have raised more than $25 billion (yes,
billion with a ‘b’) in funding. It’s safe to say, then, that this group knows a thing or two about
growth. So, for the third year in a row, we’re digging deep into the sales and marketing practices of
the annual list to find out what’s propelling this monster success.
As in years past, we analyzed the data looking for trends around tech adoption, the use of form
fields and gated content and other emerging trends including video and messaging. This year, we’re
also focusing on the rise of ABM, automation and email usage.
Ready to dig in? Keep scrolling for the full report or use the links below to navigate:
The Cloud 100
Tech Usage, Adoption & Trends
Lead Capture & Qualification
4 Key Takeaways & Predictions For 2020
Methodology
The Cloud 100
Location
The clear winner, for the third year in a row, was San Francisco with 28 companies on the Cloud
100. This number grows significantly if you take into account the entire Bay Area. San Francisco
was followed by New York (17) and Boston & Cambridge (7). Three companies are fully remote:
Zapier, GitLab and Automattic, and a large portion of InVision’s workforce, 8th on the list this year,
is as well.
While certainly not the norm, remote work is on the rise. And trends that we’ll touch on later, like
the use of video and messaging, are making remote work more feasible than ever by removing the
friction that so often comes with co-located and remote employees.
Fundraising
The vast majority of entries on the Cloud 100, which only includes private companies, have raised
more than $100 million in funding. In fact, all but a handful have raised upwards of $60 million.
Zapier raised only one round of funding – its seed round – totaling just over a million dollars. (You
can read more about the company’s rise to profitability here.) And Mailchimp has bootstrapped its
way to $700 million in revenue.
By contrast, the top five companies on the li