The semi-regular #Shipped column rounds up the latest product news in the ecosystem. Just shipped something? Send us a note at info@vantechjournal.com.

Hootsuite integrates with Facebook Messenger API

Social media giant Hootsuite announced an integration with the new Messenger API for Instagram after joining the Messenger API for Instagram beta program in 2020.

The new integration will be available via Hootsuite Inbox—the tool that helps Hootsuite customers manage social conversations all in one place (available to Hootsuite Professional customers and above), and Sparkcentral by Hootsuite—a customer engagement platform, acquired by Hootsuite January 2021. 

“These days we’re seeing the entire customer journey happening on social media," said Ryan Donovan, Chief Technology Officer at Hootsuite. "And we're coming to understand more and more that social customer care actually touches every phase of that journey. Now, with The Messenger API for Instagram, we can really help our customers propel themselves into the future of social customer care by meeting their customers where they already are.”

Go deeper:

• Former Ericsson executive Manish Kamra joins Hootsuite as SVP of Software Development to build out the company's long-term technology development strategy

• From Swift to Sparkcentral, a timeline of Hootsuite's acquisitions

Wishpond launches a Calendly competitor

Wishpond announced the launch of Wishpond Appointments, which enables businesses to provide customers with automated online booking, all integrated and managed within the company’s digital marketing platform.

The new product is the first feature integration of EverGenius software into Wishpond's platform which comes from Wishpond’s acquisition of Invigo Media.

Through the new product feature, a customer going through the user journey of a Wishpond-powered marketing campaign could book an appointment, pay for services in advance of the meeting, and be upsold additional offerings during the same cycle all within a seamless experience centralized in Wishpond’s platform.

Last month, Wishpond announced record quarterly revenue with 74% year-over-year growth in the first quarter of 2021.

CloudAdvisors launched a digital employer/employee benefits marketplace

CloudAdvisors AI, a Victory Square Technologies Inc. portfolio company, launched a Canada-wide digital employer and employee benefits marketplace with more than 65 providers and 500 solutions.

The new platform provides access to benchmarking data from over 10,000 employers, AI automated recommendations, and provides a Solution Marketplace that matches employers with benefits they can purchase.

“Advisors have been using traditional tactics for decades, relying on face-to-face communication with hard copy materials,” explained CloudAdvisor's co-founder Matt Lister. “This fragmented sales process has resulted in many employee benefit plans becoming dated and overpriced, while the best advisors want to provide a significantly better service to its clients, while they have lacked the technology to deliver.”

Enter CloudAdvisors’ new marketplace, which serves providers, advisors and employers.  Providers can list their products and services in the Marketplace. Advisors can license and customize CloudAdvisors to organize, analyze, automate and deliver their annual advisory model. And employers can join the platform for free to evaluate their benefits, identify gaps, match with relevant solutions and generate quotes.

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