Online classifieds marketplace Carousell has unveiled a new brand identity as it marks its seventh anniversary this year, with a fresh focus on increasing advertiser involvement as part of its on-going monetisation efforts.

Alongside the rebrand, a spokesperson also told Marketing that Carousell will be spending more ad dollars, but details were not shared. According to the company, the refreshed new logo and visual identity signifies the brand’s “progression and growth while putting a spotlight on its core purpose of enabling shared possibilities amongst users of the online marketplace”.

Co-founder and CEO, Quek Siu Rui said in a press statement that Carousell has grown its presence to seven markets including Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Australia. It has also expanded from general classifieds to properties and automobiles and recorded over 250 million listings over the last seven years.

Over the weekend, Carousell also held a flagship event called Carouselland, a retail fair which included workshops and community activities for visitors. 

Speaking to reporters on the side-lines of the event, Quek said that direct media ads and programmatic advertising will be part of a huge scale-up in revenue stream for the company.

“When you look at Carousell, we are actually a very attractive advertising ecosystem and premium publisher, just because of the real stickiness of the app," he said, adding that each Singapore user spends an average of 13 minutes daily on the marketplace.

"All these present very attractive targeting opportunities for advertisers who want to have their brand come up when someone is thinking about buying or selling something," he said

Carousell generated US$7 million in revenue for 2018, of which direct media services and programmatic advertising collectively accounted for US$4.17 million. The company generates revenue from three streams: online advertising; premium visibility like Bumps and Spotlight, where it charges sellers to increase customer reach; and Carousell Pro, a subscription service where it partners car dealers and real estate agents to list their ads.

The focus on securing more advertising dollars comes as the startup, valued at over US$550 million, registered a loss of US$25 million in 2018. In May, it raised US$85 million in Series C funding, co-led by Rakuten Ventures and EDBI, with participation from existing investors, 500 Startups, Golden Gate Ventures and Sequoia India, as well as new investor, DBS.

Sourced from Business Times, Marketing Interactive