This Search Consultancy Is Helping Innovators Like Microsoft Stay Ahead of the Game

A lot surely goes into answering that question, but search consultancy VentureFuel claims to be a small sliver in the pie. Launched four years ago, VentureFuel actively vets hundreds of global startups daily and then connects them with brands, like the aforementioned, to fuel partnerships that drive new ideas and creative marketing strategies.

To get a feel for how the magic works, VentureFuel founder Fred Schonenberg pointed to the efforts his consultancy has done to pair brands with Alphonso, a startup that uses advanced automated content recognition and fingerprinting technology to target ads on people’s mobile devices in real-time based on what they’re watching on TV.

For example, Schonenberg told Adweek that Scotts Lawn Care came to VentureFuel with a single problem: all of its rival brands selling lawn-care products advertise heavily on...