Zendesk Expands Feedback Data Service With $4.1B SurveyMonkey Buy

Zendesk is hoping that its $4.13 billion acquisition of Momentive Global, which owns SurveyMonkey, will give it the power to see what users and consumers are thinking, TechCrunch reported.

Zendesk’s core offering is related to customer service. With SurveyMonkey, the company can now access feedback it didn’t have and collect data on the interactions, according to the report.

CEO and Founder Mikkel Svane has said, per the report, the idea is to “deliver a rich, colorful picture of every customer so businesses really understand their customers and can build more authentic relationships.”

Holger Mueller, an analyst with Constellation Research, said it would be more important in the future for companies like Zendesk to be able to access data and build more robust pictures of consumers, the report stated.

“The current [thinking] is that you need survey tools to understand what customers, employees, etc. are thinking and feeling,” he said, per the report. “And that’s why Zendesk bought Momentive. If you don’t have the data you need, start a survey.”

Meanwhile, Laurie McCabe, who is a co-founder and analyst with SMB Group, said in the report that the deal would help Zendesk get better, more accurate pictures and “a proven, easy-to-use survey tool to provide its customers with another avenue to learn more about their customers’ attitudes and requirements, not just now, but in the future.”

In other news, the National Retail Federation (NRF) said holiday spending will likely hit record levels this year. That has led some analysts to speculate that supply chain issues could be overblown despite nearly 200 ships waiting to dock in California, and more difficult transit times.

Read more: Holiday Spending Predictions Suggest Some Supply Chain Issues Overblown

NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said the discrepancy has happened because if there are shortages, consumers will just keep shopping for other items instead.