- Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg confirmed her engagement to Tom Bernthal on Monday, the cofounder and CEO of consulting firm Kelton Global.
- Bernthal's firm specializes in brand strategy consulting — his company has worked with Facebook, Google, and Uber on how to use customer feedback to make key market decisions.
- In 2018, Facebook introduced a Messenger app revamp; the new features were based on Kelton consultants' conducted surveys.
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Facebook's billionaire COO Sheryl Sandberg just confirmed her engagement to Tom Bernthal, an Emmy award-winning producer and cofounder of consulting firm Kelton Global.
While many consulting firms like McKinsey & Company have been around for nearly a century, Bernthal's company is only 18 years old. Kelton is located amid Los Angeles' buzzing tech industry, but it has stayed under the radar without attracting much media publicity. Nevertheless, the firm has partnered up with some big names.
Kelton helps companies navigate through brand revamps and better understand the needs of their customers. Since its founding in 2002, it has served as a problem-solver for tech giants like Facebook, Google, and Uber.
Here's how these tech companies benefited from Kelton's consulting expertise.
It helped Facebook with an app revamp
Case problem: Before rolling out a redesigned Messenger app in 2018, Facebook partnered with Kelton to learn more from users. Facebook wanted to build a better app based on what worked and didn't work for customers.
Solution: The two companies collaborated through several stages of the revamp, but one global PR survey brought customer needs to the forefront. Kelton's study found that 71% of Messenger users listed simplicity as a top priority, and that's the exact approach Facebook took.
Some new features that came after Kelton's insights are three rearranged tabs, more customization options, and a dark mode, Business Insider reported.
It helps Google compartmentalize
Case problem: Google has a lot on its plate — it dominates nearly 90% of the world's search engine market, according to a recent Statista report. Unlike other companies, Google has to keep track of thousands of different mindsets from a wide customer base, the company shared. All the data can easily turn into clutter if it's not organized and analyzed correctly.
Solution: The two companies are in an ongoing partnership. AI-powered trend scans and ethnographic research are only two of six methods Kelton uses to organize Google's vast data, the company shared in its website. The consulting firm not only identifies key trends, but it also measures the effectiveness of Google's market experiments.
It helps Uber maintain a brand image
Case problem: In 11 years, Uber grew tremendously and now operates in more than 700 cities around the world. Nevertheless, the rapid growth triggered unwanted brand perceptions, and the company consulted with Kelton to brainstorm marketing tactics that would keep up with the expansion, the company wrote in its website.
Solution: Uber is in an ongoing partnership with Kelton, in which the firm tracks progress with both riders and drivers. Bernthal's firm described its work with Uber as "ever-evolving," and consultants use quantitative research methods and expert interviews to report insights on market trends.
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