Earlier this year, The SEM Post reported that video ad tech company Unruly had launched Unruly Pulse, a new dashboard that provided marketer with “emotional intelligence.” Among other things, data from the new dashboard showed that advertisers were failing to make people laugh, with hilarity one of the least common emotions worldwide.

Yesterday, Unruly launched two new products designed to bring end-to-end emotional intelligence to digital advertising.

To help advertisers create an emotional connection with consumers, Unruly has developed Unruly EQ, a new content testing tool, launched in partnership with marketing research firm Nielsen, emotional analytics company Affectiva, and pioneers in music data analysis Moodagent, that gives advertisers the data they need to maximize the emotional, social and business impact of their video content.

To connect the dots between content and distribution, the video ad tech company also launched a series of new private marketplaces (PMPs), which allow marketers to programmatically target premium media environments that complement the emotional footprint of their ads.

Academic and industry studies have repeatedly proven the effects of emotional advertising on brand and business metrics. According to a recent Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience study, ads with above average EEG scores (emotional ads) deliver a 23% uplift in sales volume, while the Field, IPA and Gunn Report, “Selling Creativity Short”, stated that emotional campaigns were 10 times more efficient than non-emotional campaigns.

Unruly EQ uses a combination of biometric, neurological, emotional and audio testing methods to evaluate, improve and predict the emotional impact and brand effectiveness of video ads. These include:

• Brand authenticity and perception testing – Unruly EQ allows marketers to test their ads to see if the content is perceived as authentic and consistent with their brand’s values and purpose;
• EEG testing – Collaborating with Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience, Unruly EQ can measure non-conscious responses, something traditional research misses, for a more complete view of consumers. 32 sensors are used to capture activity across all brain regions, along with eye tracking. Unruly Insight analysts and Nielsen neuroscientists use the data to produce recommendations for content optimization;
• Emotional analytics and facial coding – Advertisers are given a second-by-second emotional trace of their content using Affectiva’s market-leading facial coding and emotion analytics technology;
• Audio testing – Unruly EQ incorporates testing from Moodagent, using machine learning to examine how a specific soundtrack amplifies or detracts from the emotional intensity and overall effectiveness of an ad;
• Social impact and shareability analysis – Unruly’s unique algorithm is trained using almost 1 million consumer responses to videos and sharing data relating to 3 trillion video views, and enables advertisers to predict and improve the social impact of their video content.

The analysis provided by EQ will allow advertisers to optimize their video campaigns by providing:

• Identification of the type and intensity of emotions elicited by an ad to predict its overall impact;
• Diagnostics to optimize content for emotional impact and improve creative quality;
• Deep analysis of the metrics that matter, including authenticity, brand statements, brand impact, purchase intent and predicted shareability.

Sarah Wood, Unruly’s co-CEO, said in a press release, “Unruly EQ is the supercollider of digital video testing that smashes together data and emotions, sparking new insights that will help advertisers move the needle on brand and campaign performance. Forward-thinking marketers already appreciate the importance of emotional intelligence when it comes to video advertising. Authenticity, in particular, is very important to viewers, with 76% of consumers saying they lose trust when an ad feels inauthentic, according to the Unruly Future Video Survey.”

Unruly today also launches Emotional PMPs, a series of curated private marketplaces — created in collaboration with Ohio’s Kent State University and available exclusively from SSP UnrulyX. These PMPs help marketers match their ads with the mood of their audiences.

Unruly has found that campaigns targeting people most likely to engage emotionally with specific video creatives result in a 74% increase in brand favorability and an 80% increase in purchase intent. By targeting consumers within environments where they are most likely to emotionally connect with a specific ad, brands will be able to further boost the ROI of their ad campaigns. Private marketplaces currently available include Hilarity, Surprise and Pride.

Wood added, “By launching Unruly EQ for testing content and Emotional PMPs for distribution, Unruly brings end-to-end emotional intelligence to digital advertising. Programmatic advertising needs to evolve if brands want to make a meaningful connection with consumers — that’s why emotional intelligence is just as important for distribution as it is for content creation. With Emotional PMPs, advertisers can get in sync in with the mood of their viewers and massively increase viewer engagement.”

Unruly EQ is available from today across 16 markets including United Kingdom, United States, Germany, France, Singapore, Australia and Japan. Emotional PMPs will initially be available in United Kindom, United States, Germany and Sweden.To find out more about Unruly EQ, click here. To find out more about Emotional PMPs, click here.