• by Tobi Elkin  @tobielkin, October 25, 2016

AdTheorent, a provider of data-based predictive tools, on Tuesday announced the launch of a new ad unit that enables marketers to quickly capture consumer sentiment. The company conducted a survey of the most recent presidential debate using what it’s calling theMindset Intelligent Ad Unit to illustrate the unit’s ability to offer brands a more nuanced understanding of their target audiences.

AdTheorent layers first- and third-party data on top of each survey response to create a comprehensive audience profile. The profiles can be used by issue advocates or brands to inform ad targeting and spend moving forward. The goal is to enable improved targeting and to optimize a campaign in real-time, and to calculate a lift in favorability if it’s done post-campaign.

The customizable  ad unit is a display banner that incorporates a slider function which allows consumers to easily and quickly answer one question by swiping either left or right.  After swiping, consumers can return to their  previous mobile activity.

The ad unit asked consumers who won the third presidential debate and featured an illustration of Donald Trump on one side and Hillary Clinton on the other.  An animated circle could be swiped toward the candidate selected by the user as the winner.  This campaign ran from Oct. 19 to 20, reaching 994,518 uniquely identified individuals and generating 2,245,664 impressions.

AdTheorent said its Mindset ad unit can be used by any brand desiring to better understand its audiences.  The one-question survey is easily answerable with a user “swipe” that doesn’t require interruption. “The unintrusive format (coupled with a survey topic tapping into widespread sentiment) yields higher engagement rates compared to more standard ad units and campaigns,” Jim Lawson, managing partner & chief legal officer, told Real-Time Daily via email. 

Survey Findings:

“First, for both the Trump and Clinton campaigns, it’s interesting to see who is responding to the candidate’s respective messages.  The fact that Clinton had 35% more positive responses from T-Mobile users and Trump had 46% more positive responses from Verizon users might drive either candidate to increase targeting and spend on low-performing carriers,” Lawson said. 

Additionally, AdTheorent said that data offers correlations that advertisers and brands aren’t aware of. For example, in AdTheorent’s recent political survey, pet enthusiasts and truck owners were approximately 50% more likely to support Trump, whereas Clinton supporters were approximately 25% more likely to own an Apple device or watch E Entertainment Television.

Based upon responses to the question of who won the debate, AdTheorent appended the user ids in each category with data to create audience profiles, as well as comparisons related to each candidate’s supporter interests. Here are some of the more interesting findings:

Trump: Pets and Pickups

Compared to Clinton, Trump received more votes among users with the following interests/purchase habits:

--52% more from pet enthusiasts

--52% more from credit card users

--46% more from owners of pickup trucks

--45% more from arts and crafts enthusiasts

--43% more from snow sports enthusiasts

Clinton: Super Mario and Celebrity Gossip

Compared to Trump, Clinton received more votes among users with the following interests/purchase habits:

--29% more from those interested in Nintendo video games

--25% more from owners of Apple Devices

--24% more from watchers of E! Entertainment Television

--23% more from people interested in college education

--19% more from people with a relationship status of Single

Donald Trump Supporter Profile:

Audience attributes associated with the most engaged users that chose Trump as the debate:

--Gender: Skews Male

--Age: 51-65

--HHI: $75K - $100K

--Ethnicity: Caucasian

--Household Size: 3

--Neighborhood: Suburban, Non City Style

--Homeowner Status: Owner

--Key battleground states won: Ohio, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin

Hillary Clinton Supporter Profile:

Audience attributes associated with the most engaged users that swiped for Clinton as the debate winner:

--Gender: Skews Female

--Age: 51-65

--HHI: $50-75K

--Ethnicity: African American

--Household Size: 5+ people

--Neighborhood: Metropolitan city

--Homeowner Status: Owner

--Key battleground states won: New Hampshire, Colorado, Nevada, Virginia

Common ground between Trump and Clinton supporters:

--Operating System: 70% of Clinton voters and 69% of Trump voters had an iOS device vs. an Android

--Of the users connecting through cellular service, Verizon and AT&T were the leaders for both candidates. Interestingly, Clinton had 35% more T-Mobile Users, while Trump had a secure lead with Verizon users – 46% more than Clinton.