About Novel Effect
Novel Effect is a Consumer company based in Seattle (United States) founded in 2015 by Matthew Hammersley and Melissa Hammersley. Interactive app for adding music effects while reading stories. It operates in the Consumer, Technology, and Education sectors. Novel Effect has raised $4.34 million across 6 funding rounds from investors including Techstars, Alpha Edison and Waverly Capital. Its chief executive, as recorded, is Matthew Hammersley. Its website noveleffect.com draws about 64 thousand monthly visits. Novel Effect offers products and services including Novel Effect App, Rock Your Read Aloud Book, Book Activities, and Gift Bundles. Its focus areas include Retail, Mom & Baby Care, Learning Platform and StoryTelling. Its legal entity is NOVEL EFFECT, INC. Its competitors include Learn With Homer, Epic and Speakaboos; 3 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Novel Effect was founded in 2015 in Seattle, United States, focusing on edtech for childrens literature. An iOS app is offered that employs proprietary voice-recognition technology to integrate real-time audio effects with story readings. Supported titles are added to the library daily, including classics like Where the Wild Things Are and The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Compatibility is provided for both print books and ebooks.
- Total Equity Funding$4.34M (USD)
in 6 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$4.22M (USD), Series A
May 2018
- InvestorsTechstars
& 9 more
Products & Services of Novel Effect
Novel Effect offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, including Novel Effect App, Rock Your Read Aloud Book, Book Activities, and Gift Bundles.
Mobile app that adds interactive sound effects to children's book read-alouds.
Product for enhancing storytime with additional reading resources and materials.
Supplementary tools for interactive learning and storytime engagement.
Bundles of books and stickers for gifting and educational use.
Apps and channels of Novel Effect
Novel Effect publishes 2 mobile apps with over 100K+ downloads; its YouTube channel Novel Effect has 686 subscribers and 30 videos.
Videos from Novel Effect
The most watched videos on Novel Effect's YouTube channel, Novel Effect (686 subscribers). Click a video to play it here.
More on Novel Effect.
Funding Insights of Novel Effect
Novel Effect has successfully raised a total of $4.34M across 6 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series A round of $4.22 million completed in May 2018. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $4.34M
- Total Rounds 6
- Last Round Series A — $4.22M
- Investors Count 10
All 6 funding rounds of Novel Effect with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2018 | $4.22M | Series A | – | Alpha Edison, Waverly Capital | |
| Jul 2017 | $120,000 | Seed | – | Techstars | – |
| Jun 2017 | Seed | – | Carbon Ventures | – | |
| Jun 2017 | Seed | – | Right Side Capital Management | – | |
| Sep 2016 | Seed | – | – | ||
| Feb 2016 | Seed | – | TenOneTen | – |
10 investors in total: 10 institutional.
Investors in Novel Effect
Novel Effect has secured backing from 10 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Techstars, Alpha Edison and Waverly Capital.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Series A and growth-stage investments are made by Alpha Edison. | alphaedison.com | Los Angeles, United States | ||
Venture capital investments in consumer businesses, emphasizing technology and human behavior. | maveron.com | |||
Seed and early-stage technology companies are funded by Lux Capital. | luxcapital.com | Menlo Park, United States | ||
Carbon Ventures is focused on investing in sustainable infrastructure technologies. | 2019 | carbonventures.vc | New York, United States | |
| alexafund.com | Seattle, United States | |||
Early-stage investments are provided to technical teams by TenOneTen Ventures. | tenoneten.com | Los Angeles, United States | ||
Startups are accelerated globally without sector restrictions through structured programs. | 2006 | techstars.com | New York, United States | |
Pre-seed stage Micro VC firm investing in the US and Canada | rightsidecapital.com | San Francisco, United States | ||
Operates as an investment management firm handling diversified funds and portfolios. | 1978 | waverlycapital.com | New Orleans, United States | |
| pioneeraccelerator.com |
Investor details for Novel Effect
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
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People of Novel Effect
4 people are tracked at Novel Effect (2 in leadership, 2 in team).
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Matthew Hammersley | Co-Founder & CEO | Leadership |
Melissa Hammersley | Co-Founder & CDO | Leadership |
Tracy Mercier | Product Engagement Manager | Team |
Ju Namkung | Lead Developer | Team |
Complete people profiles for Novel Effect
Full employee and board profiles, team structure, tenure and professional contact details require an active premium plan.
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Timeline of Novel Effect
3 dated milestones of Novel Effect across 3 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Novel Effect is founded.
- Funding First funding round.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series A, of $4.2M.
Competitors of Novel Effect
Novel Effect has 3 listed competitors in our database, 3 of them funded. They include Learn With Homer, Epic and Speakaboos.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| learnwithhomer.com | 2013 | Brooklyn, United States | $55.29M | 216 | Comprehensive literacy applications for kids | |
| getepic.com | 2013 | Redwood, United States | $62.4M | 156 | eBooks for children are provided with audio read-along features. | |
| speakaboos.com | 2008 | New York, United States | $32.76M | 216 | Subscription-based interactive storybooks |
Detailed competitors of Novel Effect
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
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Web traffic of Novel Effect
The website of Novel Effect (noveleffect.com) receives about 63.7K visits a month and ranks #508,113 among all websites worldwide, #3,979 in Business Services.
- Monthly visits63.7K
▲ 32.1% vs previous month
- Unique visitors15.1K
per month
- Global rank#508,113
among all websites
- Category rank#3,979
Business and Consumer Services · Business Services
- Bounce rate34%
- Pages per visit5.1
- Average visit4 min 15 sec
- DevicesDesktop 62% · Mobile 38%
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Novel Effect. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
storiesbystorie.com | storiesbystorie.com | 100% | #2,658,540 | – | |
5ms.weebly.com | 5ms.weebly.com | 90% | – | ||
novelfull.audio | novelfull.audio | 88% | #11,659,489 | – |
Top companies in Beauty & Personal Care Products
3 companies that operate in the same segment as Novel Effect (Beauty & Personal Care Products) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3M is recognized as a global leader in industrial innovation. | 1902 | United States | USD 24.95 B | 74 | ||
Provider of FMCG conglomerate products | 1837 | United States | USD 457.23 M | 923 | ||
Subscription-based men's grooming products are provided by Harry's. | 2012 | New York, New York, United States | USD 755.88 M | 431 |
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Related news about Novel Effect
Complete news archive for Novel Effect
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Frequently Asked Questions about Novel Effect
Novel Effect was founded in 2015 and raised its 1st funding round 1 year after it was founded.
Novel Effect is headquartered in Seattle, United States. It is registered at Seattle, Washington, United States.
Matthew Hammersley is the CEO of Novel Effect, as recorded in our data. They have also founded this company.
Novel Effect is a funded company, having raised a total of $4.34M across 6 funding rounds to date.
Novel Effect was founded in 2015 in Seattle, United States, focusing on edtech for childrens literature. An iOS app is offered that employs proprietary voice-recognition technology to integrate real-time audio effects with story readings. Supported titles are added to the library daily, including classics like Where the Wild Things Are and The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Compatibility is provided for both print books and ebooks.
Novel Effect's top competitors include Epic, Learn With Homer and Speakaboos.
Novel Effect offers Novel Effect App, Rock Your Read Aloud Book, Book Activities, and Gift Bundles.
Novel Effect has 10 investors. Key investors include Techstars, Alpha Edison, Waverly Capital, Maveron, and Lux Capital.
Novel Effect operates through Novel Effect, Inc..
Yes. Novel Effect publishes Novel Effect: Read Aloud Books and 1 more app, with over 100,000 downloads.