Podium
Podium is an all-in-one AI-powered customer engagement and lead management platform designed specifically for local and small businesses. What began as a simple review management tool to help a frustrated tire shop owner collect more reviews has evolved into a comprehensive SaaS platform serving 100,000+ businesses across automotive, healthcare, retail, dental, home services, financial services, and entertainment industries. Podium’s mission is to help local businesses compete with larger corporations by modernizing how they operate, communicate with customers, and grow—embodied in their motto “the future is local”.
Use Cases
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Appointment & Scheduling: Automating booking confirmations, reminders, and rescheduling via SMS for healthcare, dental, home services, and salon businesses.
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Lead Capture & Conversion: Collecting leads through various channels and automating responses to convert inquiries into customers.
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Online Reputation: Gathering positive reviews and responding to negative feedback to improve star ratings and brand perception.
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Customer Retention: Text-based marketing campaigns for loyalty, promotions, and repeat business driving customer lifetime value.
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Payment Collection: Streamlined invoicing and payment collection integrated with customer communication workflows.
Customers & Markets
Podium serves over 100,000 small and local businesses primarily in the United States, with expanding presence in Australia and Brazil. Key industries include automotive (tire shops, car dealerships, repair shops), healthcare/medical (dental practices, med spas, clinics), retail, home services (contractors, plumbers, electricians), professional services, insurance, and entertainment. The addressable market includes 33 million+ small businesses in the U.S. alone, with Podium capturing a small but growing share.
Research, Partnerships & Innovations
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Research Focus: Small business customer engagement, AI automation for local enterprises, multi-channel communication optimization, and reputation management.
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Partnerships: Ecosystem integrations with Zapier, business management software, accounting platforms, and complementary tools like Goodcall (AI phone assistant); Y Combinator alumni network connections.
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Innovations: AI Employee virtual assistant for call handling, appointment booking, and sales closing; agentic AI that replicates customer service team member behavior; integration of AI across messaging, payments, and review management for end-to-end automation; industry-specific templates and automation workflows.
Key People
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Eric Rea – Co-Founder & CEO: Visionary leader driven by a personal story (his father’s tire shop) to build software for local businesses; maintains unwavering focus on the SMB segment despite investor pressure to target enterprise.
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Dennis Steele – Co-Founder: Early architect of Podium’s product and operations; instrumental in developing the customer-centric development approach (“door-to-door selling and rapid feedback loops”).