This fascination, or obsession, is directly tied to the revolutionary time in which we live. The world has changed and this change has arisen from a variety of technological advancements, including the internet. In the early 2000s both Jaco and Jon were tuned into the shift in power from producers (companies that make things or provide services) to consumers. They both realized that people no longer were dependent on the historically successful barrage of interruption-based sales and marketing strategies to decide whether or not to purchase something. Why was this happening? Simple. Technology made it easier for consumers to skip through television ads, join ‘do not call’ lists, avoid cold calls by using caller ID. Consumers now had SPAM filters and pop-up blockers in their internet browsers. People could now easily research before they purchased; without interruption.

Jaco Grobbelaar founded BroadVision Marketing in early 2001 as a Marketing Consultancy and used the concept of ‘engagement’ (a cornerstone of Inbound Marketing) rather than an interruption to help his clients reach their revenue goals. Jon Sooy was VP of Marketing for a technology company in the supply chain management industry and had a business development team. Jon used the concept of ‘engagement’ to help his team excel. Jaco and Jon frequently discussed and developed philosophies and strategies to work with this shift rather than battle against it. The sophistication of both of their efforts and how they used these in their respective roles evolved over time and when Hubspot coined the term ‘Inbound Marketing’ in 2006, it simply felt right to both of them.

In 2009, Jaco shifted from a traditional Marketing Consultant to an Inbound Marketing Agency. While Jon was still working for another firm, he moonlighted as a technical and strategic asset for BroadVision Marketing.

Despite great growth and success, in 2012 the company Jon worked for was put up for sale so Jon decided to start his own company. In early 2013, GoSooy was born. Jon’s agency may have appeared to be a competitor of BroadVision Marketing but actually, the two close friends and entrepreneurs spent much of their time helping one another grow.  During this time the two discussed combining their two companies and worked through the potential pitfalls that many partnerships can fall into. It was important to both men that no matter what, their friendship was more important than business. They soon concluded that their values were aligned. Today, Jon serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Jaco as the main strategist and Chief Marketing Officer.

Today BroadVision Marketing is proud to have grown further with the addition of a talented team. Our vision is to take the mystery out of Inbound Marketing and to help our customers meet or exceed their goals.