SAN FRANCISCO — W2O is bolstering its social media analytics capabilities with the purchase of Symplur, the latest in a string of acquisitions by the independent agency group.

Symplur, which focuses exclusively on the healthcare sector, will add its interface and capabilities to W2O’s analytics systems, in a bid to make the technology accessible to users who aren’t particularly tech-savvy, according to the firm.

W2O plans to eventually add features to the platform that will allow users to create custom segments of key audiences of interest to clients.

The deal marks W2O’s second acquisition this year, and fifth since the firm’s buying spree started in 2019. In January, W2O added an advertising agency to its portfolio with its acquisition of 21Grams.

Symplur’s platform is designed to quickly and easily identify social media trends among the healthcare sector’s key audiences — physicians, patient advocates, life science professionals and media among them.

In collaboration with the California Life Sciences Association, W2O and Symplur are already using the platform, as well as existing W2O data systems and technology, to track conversations and trends around Covid-19.

“Particularly in these challenging, uncertain times reverberating across global communities and economies, healthcare companies are looking to track essential information in an urgent and immediate manner utilizing data and analytics to discern insights for decision-making,” said W2O founder and CEO Jim Weiss.

“Symplur is another in a  series of strategic investments in people, technology and platforms that we’ve made, and intend to make to strengthen the solutions we provide to clients. W20 now had hundreds of people focused in technology, data science audience analytics, activation and measurement and we will double down in this space going forward."

Last year, W2O purchased New Jersey-based agency Radius Digital Science, the London-based healthcare firm ISO.health, and the Philadelphia firm Arcus Medica. The acquisitions come after W2O sold a piece of the company to New York investment firm New Mountain Capital, which marked the second round of funding the company has received to further its expansion.

Weiss said the firm saw double-digit organic growth in 2019 and closed the year at nearly $200m in revenue and more than 1,100 employees.