Appcast Acquires Bayard to Expand Services Across Recruitment Marketing

Programmatic recruitment advertising leader Appcast acquired Bayard Advertising, a recruitment marketing firm that works with clients across industries. The acquisition will combine Appcast’s programmatic technology with Bayard’s full-service recruitment marketing capabilities and also, Appcast said, significantly expand its offerings to cover the entire recruitment marketing process.

The combined company will serve more than 2,000 customers across the U.S. and 10 international markets.

“Bayard’s deep well of talent and comprehensive solution set will expand, accelerate and improve Appcast’s ability to solve complex recruitment marketing challenges for leading employers around the globe,” said Appcast CEO Chris Forman. “Clients will benefit from a data-driven, source-agnostic approach that combines the best of both companies.”

‘Unparalleled Opportunities’

In a statement provided by Appcast, industry analyst Madeline Laurano said the transaction reflects “Bayard’s growing position as a technology innovator.” Bayard’s abilities in search and social advertising, hiring event marketing and application flow optimization will transform Appcast’s platform so that it’s well-positioned to compete in the broader recruitment marketing space, she said. The combination “will offer businesses unparalleled opportunities to optimize their hiring funnels.”

The acquisition follows Appcast’s March 2023 launch of a research and innovation initiative, Appcast Labs, which the company said was intended “to create disruptive and breakthrough talent acquisition solutions for employers.” Among other things, the lab’s mandate is to develop new technology that complements the company’s existing services.

Also, the acquisition is another of 2023’s notable transactions in talent acquisition technology. In May, HireVue acquired the hiring platform Modern Hire, a move intended to streamline the use of both products for assessment, interviewing and end-to-end hiring automation.

All of these companies are working in a growing market. ResearchandMarkets expects the global market for digital talent acquisition to grow from about $30 billion this year to $57 billion by 2030.

By Mark Feffer

Mark Feffer is executive editor of RecruitingDaily and the HCM Technology Report. He’s written for TechTarget, HR Magazine, SHRM, Dice Insights, TLNT.com and TalentCulture, as well as Dow Jones, Bloomberg and Staffing Industry Analysts. He likes schnauzers, sailing and Kentucky-distilled beverages.