Inc. magazine today ranked Merkle’s (www.merkleinc.com) Specialty Retail division, formerly known as CognitiveDATA, NO. 1794 on its 31^st annual Inc. 500|5000, an exclusive ranking of the nation's fastest-growing private companies. This was the fifth consecutive year that CognitiveDATA has been honored on the Inc. 500|5000 list, earning the company “honor roll” status, which speaks volumes about its accelerated growth over the past few years. Companies such as Microsoft, Zappos, Intuit, Jamba Juice, Zipcar, Clif Bar, Vizio, Oracle, and many other well-known names gained early exposure as members of the Inc. 500|5000.

In April 2012, Merkle announced the integration of CognitiveDATA into its Specialty Retail division. The CognitiveDATA team joined with Merkle’s consulting, data, analytics and creative groups to incorporate its IntelliDRESS, IntelliMERGE and IntelliBASE offerings into the CRM agency solution.

“We are proud to be included on such a prestigious list alongside some of the world’s leading innovative businesses,” said Rod Ford, senior vice president and general manager of Merkle’s specialty retail practice. “The success of Merkle’s specialty retail division is the result of the combination of Merkle’s world-class data and analytics with CognitiveDATA’s innovative technology for data accuracy, data processing and database management. Together, we have created the only CRM platform of its kind which integrates data from all marketing touchpoints to give a true 360-degree view of the customer.”

Methodology

The 2012 Inc. 500|5000 is ranked according to percentage revenue growth when comparing 2008 to 2011. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2008. They had to be U.S.-based, privately held, for profit, and independent—not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies—as of December 31, 2011. (Since then, a number of companies on the list have gone public or been acquired.) The minimum revenue required for 2008 is $100,000; the minimum for 2011 is $2 million. As always, Inc. reserves the right to decline applicants for subjective reasons. Companies on the Inc. 500 are featured in Inc.’s September issue. They represent the top tier of the Inc. 5000, which can be found at www.inc.com/500.

“Now, more than ever, we depend on Inc. 500|5000 companies to spur innovation, provide jobs, and drive the economy forward. Growth companies, not large corporations, are where the action is,” says Inc. magazine Editor Eric Schurenberg.

About Merkle

Merkle, a customer relationship marketing (CRM) firm, is the nation’s largest privately-held agency. For more than 20 years, Fortune 1000 companies and leading nonprofit organizations have partnered with Merkle to maximize the value of their customer portfolios. By combining a complete range of marketing, technical, analytical and creative disciplines, Merkle works with clients to design, execute and evaluate connected CRM programs. With more than 1,600 employees, the privately held corporation is headquartered near Baltimore in Columbia, Maryland with additional offices in Boston; Chicago; Denver; Little Rock; Minneapolis; New York; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; San Francisco; Hagerstown, MD and Shanghai. For more information, contact Merkle at 1-877-9-Merkle or visit www.merkleinc.com.