This year eContent profiled "the 20 companies that generated the most
banter among the EContent 100 Judging team during our month-long
wiki-based judging process." We're thrilled to announce that Alacra made the cut. The Alacra profile is presented below; the other 19 profiles can be seen here.
When co-founders Steve Goldstein and Michael Angle teamed up to create Data Downlink Corporation in 1996, they based their company around what was then a hot business technology: Excel spreadsheets. The company has come a long way since then, with a new name—Alacra, Inc.—and has stayed at the forefront as a model of technological innovation and thoughtful customer service.
CEO Goldstein—who was an early exec blogger—sums up his company's mission succinctly: "We're in the business of aggregating content and repackaging it." What sets Alacra apart is how attractive and user-friendly they make that package. Alacra might make its financial and corporate information delivery services simple to use, but there's nothing easy about channeling information from 100 corporate databases and 45,000 relevant websites into a single customized access point for its 600 corporate clients (representing 50,000 subscribers worldwide). 2006 was a banner year for Alacra, with a slew of new releases, updates, and launches that tapped into the power of Web 2.0, conceptually and technologically.
Alacra knows that in the fast-paced business world, every bit of data left undiscovered could potentially derail entire operations. "It's hard to keep the customer happy if there's information out there that they don't get," Goldstein explains. That's what their developers had in mind when they launched the beta version of Alacra Store in late 2005. Users don't need subscriptions to all 35 premium business information databases to summon up one of the 200 million reports on more than 350,000 public and private companies—instead, they can perform a simple free search and click to purchase relevant research. Big databases require robust search tools, and their new Ajax-driven keyword search incorporates an exciting new technology to perform simultaneous searches across a number of fields, and fine-tune results on the spot.
Alacra might not have the widespread name recognition of a company like Google, but then again its search strategies are very different from one-size-fits-all engines. In 2006, Alacra was all about perfecting the very specific—and time-intensive—kinds of vertical searches into its aggregated content that its users need to perform on a daily basis. For example, the new Alacra Compliance addresses stringent financial vetting regulations with a federated search solution that lets users search over 600 global regulatory websites at once in a highly configurable setting, compressing what might previously have been a day-long slog through legal and financial records into a half hour operation.
Also new in 2006 is Alacra Current Awareness, which collects digital content within users' relevancy parameters and then delivers it daily via email, RSS feed, or even directly to BlackBerrys. The details of Current Awareness make it a smarter digital solution for corporations: Managers configure lists for an entire team, delivery is customized right down to the time zone, and Alacra's other applications are seamlessly integrated to build instant snapshots and reports out of the news items.
Alacra isn't shy about asking its corporate customers to pony up their own wealth of insider industry knowledge. In September 2005, an Alacra intern set up the Alacra Wiki, making it one of the first business-to-business wikis on the web. Many business information companies, including Outsell Inc. and Dow Jones & Company, take full advantage of this open forum to post headlines, executive bios, product reviews, links to RSS feeds, and more. Goldstein is enthusiastic about how user-generated content such as that on Alacra Wiki can be beneficial to vertical information markets, and how it encourages collaboration and contribution within specific communities. "The more places where there is accurate information about your company—well, that's a good thing," he says. Goldstein also uses his company's blog more like a two-way radio than a soapbox, putting information out there in order to get comments, feedback, and suggestions from anyone with something to say.
The company also fosters the same open exchange of ideas among its employees. Its diversity mirrors the diversity of its corporate home, New York City, with almost half of its employees coming from outside the United States. Every year, the company celebrates its anniversary with an International Wine and Food Fest, where everyone brings a dish that's either their favorite or representative of their heritage.
All of these innovations are underscored by a number of solid older products, like Alacra Book (which builds briefing reports) and Alacra Premium (their subscription database). But this isn't a company that rests on its laurels—if you've got a great idea for 2007, Alacra would love to hear it.
—Jessica Dye
Many thanks to the eContent team for keeping us on their radar screen.
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